Maven Ventures
Sara Thomas Deshpande is a General Partner at Maven Ventures, a seed stage venture firm specializing in technology investments that shape emerging consumer behavior. In addition to this role since June 2014, Sara serves as a Lecturer in Management at Stanford University, where Startup Garage is taught. Extensive investment experience includes participation in multiple funding rounds for companies such as Hello Heart, Wildtype, Carrot Fertility, and Daybreak Health, along with serving as a Board Observer for several startups. Previous positions include Director of Entrepreneur Services at The Idea Village, Manager at Deloitte Consulting focusing on healthcare strategy, and advising early-stage startups as an Independent Advisor. Educational credentials include an MBA from Stanford University Graduate School of Business and a BSBA in Finance and Spanish from Xavier University.
This person is not in any teams
Maven Ventures
Maven Ventures invests in software startups that millions of consumers use daily to improve their lives. It makes $750K-$1M Seed investments in founders with a "vision worth fighting for” and the potential to build billion-dollar businesses. Its team identifies future consumer trends—it has already seen its investment predictions come to lifein areas like self-driving cars, the proliferation of mobile, and video communication, the future of retail, and digital health. Notable investments include Zoom (IPO “ZM”), Cruise (acquired by GM), and Chariot (acquired by Ford). As they only make 6 new startup investments each year, they focus on each one, rolling up their sleeves to teach founding teams how to achieve product/market fit, hone their consumer messaging, reach millions of customers with viral marketing, and set them up for success.