Smash Capital

Bradley Twohig is a founding and managing partner at Smash Capital, focused on growth and late-stage technology investing. Previously, he served as a managing director at Insight Partners and co-led growth and late-stage investing at a West Coast firm. His investment portfolio includes numerous exits through acquisitions and initial public offerings, among them Cvent, HelloFresh, Udemy, and Qualtrics.

Eric Garland is co-founder and managing partner of Smash Capital, a later-stage investment firm focused on consumer internet, software, and technology companies with a portfolio including Plaid, Epic Games, Coda, and ElevenLabs. Previously, he served as EVP Digital at Live Nation following the sale of his company BigChampagne Media Measurement, a digital analytics firm, and led venture and growth investments for The Walt Disney Company from 2014 to 2018. Garland has over 25 years of experience in technology and entertainment spanning venture capital, corporate development, and entrepreneurship.

Kevin Mayer is co-CEO and founder of Candle Media, as well as co-founder, executive chairman, and managing partner of Smash Capital. He previously served as CEO of TikTok and COO of ByteDance, where he oversaw global strategy and corporate functions across multiple business units. Prior to ByteDance, he held the position of chairman of Disney's Direct-to-Consumer and International division, where he led the development of Disney+ and managed the company's streaming services, international operations, and major acquisitions including 21st Century Fox, Marvel, and Lucasfilm.

Paul Szurek is a Partner at Smash Capital, where he invests up to $500 million in technology companies across fintech, AI, commerce, and defense. His portfolio includes Plaid, TradingView, Whatnot, Vinted, and Monday.com, among others, as well as companies acquired by Bill.com, nCino, and Siemens. Prior to Smash Capital, Szurek held positions as an investor at Insight Partners, company-builder at Juxtapose, product manager at Blockchain.com, and management consultant at Bain & Co.

Tom Staggs is Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Candle Media and serves as a board member at Spotify. Previously, he held the position of Chief Operating Officer at The Walt Disney Company, where he also served as Chairman of Disney Parks and Resorts Worldwide for five years and Chief Financial Officer for nearly twelve years, during which time he was involved in major corporate acquisitions including Cap Cities/ABC, Pixar, and Marvel, as well as overseeing significant capital projects including the Shanghai Disney Resort, expansions at Disneyland Resort, new Disney cruise ships, and the development of themed experiences including Disney's Aulani Resort and the Avatar-themed land at Disney's Animal Kingdom Park.

Priya Purewal is Enterprise Growth lead at Runway. Previously, she worked as a venture investor at Smash Capital's Los Angeles office and as an investor at March Capital, a Santa Monica-based growth-stage venture capital fund focused on B2B SaaS. She holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a B.B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin, and earlier in her career worked at Deloitte Consulting on business transformation and technology solutions for Fortune 500 clients across Financial Services, TMT, Consumer and Packaged Goods, and Professional Services.

Sesana Allen is a venture investor who spent two years at Smash Capital evaluating companies across sectors as a generalist investor. Named to Forbes 30 Under 30 in Venture Capital in 2024, Allen is currently a student at Stanford Graduate School of Business. Allen has experience in media and entertainment, including voice acting work and consulting producer credits on documentary projects.