Ben Yu
Investor at Sierra Ventures
San Francisco Bay Area
Overview
Work Experience
Managing Partner
2000 - Current
To Sierra Ventures, what’s important is not necessarily what your company’s technology is, but rather how and whether it has the ability to change the game —significantly. We’re drawn to companies that are blazing new trails and have strong upside potential. We invest in all areas of technology, including enterprise software, Internet and web applications, software–as–a–service, security, mobile applications, telecommunications, semiconductors, hardware systems, components and subsystems, storage, blockchain and AI. And our companies are not just based in the U.S. You’ll find us backing companies in Europe, Canada, China, and India, for example. We go where the innovation takes us. While we invest at all stages of a company’s lifecycle “from seed to growth” and we often participate in several rounds of financing, we typically begin with an initial investment somewhere between $1 million and $10 million. We also selectively make seed-stage investments of $500,000 to $2 million.
Sierra Ventures is an early-stage venture firm investing globally with a focus on next generation enterprise and emerging technologies.
Board Member
2019
Krisp’s mission is to maximize the productivity of every digital voice conversation and help businesses achieve better business outcomes.
Raised $17,500,000.00 from TechNexus Venture Collaborative, Storm Ventures, s16vc, CM Ventures, RTP Global, TechNexus Venture Collaborative, CM Ventures, HIVE Ventures, Storm Ventures and Sierra Ventures.
Board Member
2020
Board Member
2021
AI-powered website builder.
Board Member
2019
Mission critical wireless technology for smart industrial IoT
Board Member
2021
DeepHow develops an AI-powered learning platform for manufacturing, service, and repair.
Raised $23,120,000.00 from Qualcomm Ventures, Owl Ventures, LG Technology Ventures, Osage Venture Partners, Sierra Ventures, Foothill Ventures and Martal Capital.
Investor
2019
Member Board of Directors
2015 - 2021
NextInput markets a set of proprietary touch technologies to solve key drawbacks in the market of touch technology.
Raised $29,447,924.00 from Weili Dai, UMC Capital, Sehat Sutardja, Sierra Ventures and Cota Capital.
Board Director
2008 - 2017
Leader in motion processing, in many markets including gaming, smart phones, tablets and smart tv. The company completed a successful IPO on NYSE in 2011 led by Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley.
InvenSense provides motion-tracking devices for consumer electronic products such as smartphones, tablets, game controllers, and others.
Raised $38,000,000.00 from VentureTech Alliance, Partech, Qualcomm Ventures, Artiman Ventures and Sierra Ventures.
Investor
2013 - 2016
Leading social audio platform in China