Who is Chris Sheldrick?

Christopher John Ralph Sheldrick is a British former musician and live-events entrepreneur who co-founded what3words and has led it as CEO and director since March 2013.

He studied music from 2000 to 2003 through King's College London and the Royal Academy of Music, earning a BMus and preparing for a classical performing career.

Why did he leave music performance?

A 2003 sleepwalking accident sent his left arm through a window, damaged nerves and tendons and left two fingers without full use, ending his intended bassoon-performance career.

What did he do before what3words?

He worked at IMG Artists, founded CS Music and co-founded Live Music International/LMI Live, booking, managing and producing music for international events.

Why did he start what3words?

Poor and absent addresses repeatedly sent musicians, suppliers and equipment to wrong event locations, while long GPS coordinates proved difficult to communicate without transposition or omission errors.

Who founded what3words and how were roles divided?

Sheldrick originated the problem and became CEO; Mohan Ganesalingam designed the algorithm and AutoSuggest; Jack Waley-Cohen brought language and operations expertise; Michael Dent says he was the fourth co-founder and first CTO who built early infrastructure. Many official narratives shorten the roster to the first three.

Did Chris Sheldrick invent what3words alone?

No. He is a named co-inventor with Ganesalingam and Waley-Cohen on the core patent, and the system was a collaborative company build. Dent's early infrastructure role is separately documented.

Does what3words replace normal addresses or GPS?

No. Sheldrick describes it as a human-friendly label for coordinates and a precision layer alongside street addresses, maps and place names. GPS or another location source still determines the device's position.

How does what3words make money?

The app and website are free for individuals; businesses license APIs, SDKs or enterprise software to convert between three-word addresses and coordinates at commercial volume.

What are the strongest adoption examples?

Documented integrations include Mercedes-Benz and Subaru vehicles, DHL and DPD delivery flows, Mongol Post and several other national postal operators, UN-ASIGN disaster reporting, Mongolia's emergency services and LAFD dispatch.

Why is what3words criticized for emergency use?

Researchers and rescuers have documented misheard, misspelled, pluralized or nearby-confusable three-word combinations and real responses sent toward wrong locations. They recommend verification and alternative references, especially over noisy voice or radio channels.

How has the company answered precision criticism?

It says the algorithm deliberately separates similar combinations where possible, puts harder words in lower-use areas and uses AutoSuggest to intercept likely errors. Sheldrick acknowledges nearby similar combinations remain, characterizes them as rare and notes that every location system can suffer communication error.

Is what3words an open or ISO standard?

No. It is a proprietary, patented geocode owned by what3words Limited. ISO 19160 covers interoperable address concepts and governance, while OGC DGGS standards define open structured grid frameworks; neither is a certification of what3words.

Why did what3words threaten an open-source researcher?

The company alleged that WhatFreeWords distributed unauthorized proprietary software, word data and binary resources. Critics said the legal demand chilled interoperability and security research. Sheldrick said the action targeted software distribution, not criticism; no court infringement ruling was cited in the reviewed report.

Chris Sheldrick

InvestorFounder

Founder at Homepage von what3words

London, England, United Kingdom

FoundedHomepage von what3words

About

Chris Sheldrick is co-founder and CEO of what3words, a global address system that assigns a unique three-word identifier to every 3-metre square worldwide. He developed the concept with two others after encountering difficulties with international addresses and postcodes while working in the music industry. The company is headquartered in London with a team of more than 100, and its backers include Intel, Mercedes, Ikea, Sony, Deutsche Bahn, and Horizons Ventures.

Invests in

Cloud ComputingEnterprise SoftwareMarketplaces

Founder at Homepage von what3words

Intro paths

→

In turn, Chris can intro founders to Homepage von what3words's investors below.

Homepage von what3words's investors · 11

Beyond1435 GmbHBerlin · $1.1M – $4.3M checks Channel 4 VenturesLondon · $1.3M – $6.3M checks Fraser McCombs CapitalBoulder · $5M – $15M checks German Media PoolBerlin · $550K – $5.5M checks Ingka InvestmentsLeiden Intel CapitalSanta Clara · $1M – $20M checks JamJar InvestmentsLondon · $630K – $6.3M checks Perivoli InnovationsSt. Helier Salica InvestmentsLondon Sony Ventures CorporationTokyo VentureSouqAbu Dhabi · $250K – $50M checks

Co-founders at Homepage von what3words

Jack David Waley-CohenCo-founder

Mohan GanesalingamCo-founder

Experience

what3wordsCo-founder & CEOcurrent2013 — presentLondon
World Economic ForumSchwab Social Entrepreneurcurrent2019 — present
TED ConferencesTED Speakercurrent2017 — present
LMI LiveFounder2011 — 2013
CS MusicFounder2003 — 2013
IMG ArtistsAssistant Artist Manager2002 — 2003London Area, United Kingdom

Skills & more

Start-ups

From Chris's professional profile.

Investments

Investor

Picfair

Per curated public sources.

Founder fit — who Chris backs

Potential fit is strongest for mission-driven UK founders simplifying a difficult technical or infrastructure problem and seeking help with category creation, network-effect adoption, strategic partnerships, localization, B2B2C distribution, voice interfaces or enterprise licensing. His willingness to invest personally, current activity and capital availability are unproven.

Strong signalsSimple human interface over technically complex infrastructureClear pain observed directly by the founderProduct that benefits from network effects and social validationB2B2C model with enterprise integrations and free consumer utilityStrategic partners that provide distribution and credibilityGlobal localization and voice usabilityMarketplace or creator-economy fairness propositionMission with measurable logistics, safety or inclusion value

["Pitches assuming Intel, Mercedes-Benz, Sony, Ingka, Subaru, ITV, Channel 4 or other what3words backers are Sheldrick's personal investments", 'Pitches relying on a disclosed personal check size, stage mandate or active angel program', 'Claims that what3words partnerships or Swiftcomplete acquisition are personal deals', 'Claims that directorships in family-linked investment companies reveal a startup portfolio', 'Safety-critical products without independent testing, fallback methods and error handling', 'Products whose adoption story lacks a credible distribution or behavior-change plan', 'Requests to treat company valuation or fundraising as a personal exit']

How to pitch

Lead with the concrete user failure, why existing tools are hard to communicate or adopt, and a product simple enough to become habitual. Show the enterprise payer, consumer utility, distribution partner, localization plan, error model and independent validation. Ask whether he is open to personal angel investing rather than presuming it. Do not imply that what3words investors are available through him or that one 2017 Picfair check establishes a repeatable fund strategy.

Stages: early stage, inferred from Picfair participation only · Sectors: Location technology and geocoding, Marketplaces and creator tools, Logistics and delivery infrastructure, Automotive and voice navigation, Enterprise API and B2B2C software, Humanitarian and emergency location tools

Editorial inference from Chris's portfolio, writing and public record — not a published mandate.

Investment themes

10 documented themes from Chris's essays, talks and portfolio, grouped by what they say about founders.

▶More themes10

Human-friendly precision layered onto coordinates and conventional addresses
Addressing as economic, civic and humanitarian infrastructure
Voice-ready navigation and error-aware location input
Strategic capital as distribution, credibility and integration
Social validation and niche-community adoption
Localization through native-language teams and word lists
Open, egalitarian internal idea culture with mission belief
Proprietary commercial stewardship as a route to global adoption
Complementary emergency tools rather than single-method dependence
Music, resilience and reinvention after injury

Podcasts & interviews

featuring Chris Sheldrick

A precise, three-word address for every place on earth

ted.com · ted.com

Location.location.location: What3Words co-founder wants to transform mapping

campaignlive.co.uk · campaignlive.co.uk

Digital Innovators: Q&A with Chris Sheldrick

cityam.com · cityam.com

What3Words: Why an injury can be the best thing to happen to you

secretleaders.com · secretleaders.com

#42: Chris Sheldrick CEO & Co-Founder of what3words

alcottglobal.com · alcottglobal.com

How What3Words is helping people to navigate the world

independent.co.uk · independent.co.uk

4 more appearances

Writing

Childhood computing and daily collaboration with Mohan Ganesalingam

A method and apparatus for identifying and communicating locations

Frequently asked questions

Who is Chris Sheldrick?: Christopher John Ralph Sheldrick is a British former musician and live-events entrepreneur who co-founded what3words and has led it as CEO and director since March 2013.
What did he study?: He studied music from 2000 to 2003 through King's College London and the Royal Academy of Music, earning a BMus and preparing for a classical performing career.
Why did he leave music performance?: A 2003 sleepwalking accident sent his left arm through a window, damaged nerves and tendons and left two fingers without full use, ending his intended bassoon-performance career.
What did he do before what3words?: He worked at IMG Artists, founded CS Music and co-founded Live Music International/LMI Live, booking, managing and producing music for international events.
Why did he start what3words?: Poor and absent addresses repeatedly sent musicians, suppliers and equipment to wrong event locations, while long GPS coordinates proved difficult to communicate without transposition or omission errors.
Who founded what3words and how were roles divided?: Sheldrick originated the problem and became CEO; Mohan Ganesalingam designed the algorithm and AutoSuggest; Jack Waley-Cohen brought language and operations expertise; Michael Dent says he was the fourth co-founder and first CTO who built early infrastructure. Many official narratives shorten the roster to the first three.
Did Chris Sheldrick invent what3words alone?: No. He is a named co-inventor with Ganesalingam and Waley-Cohen on the core patent, and the system was a collaborative company build. Dent's early infrastructure role is separately documented.
Does what3words replace normal addresses or GPS?: No. Sheldrick describes it as a human-friendly label for coordinates and a precision layer alongside street addresses, maps and place names. GPS or another location source still determines the device's position.
How does what3words make money?: The app and website are free for individuals; businesses license APIs, SDKs or enterprise software to convert between three-word addresses and coordinates at commercial volume.
What are the strongest adoption examples?: Documented integrations include Mercedes-Benz and Subaru vehicles, DHL and DPD delivery flows, Mongol Post and several other national postal operators, UN-ASIGN disaster reporting, Mongolia's emergency services and LAFD dispatch.
Why is what3words criticized for emergency use?: Researchers and rescuers have documented misheard, misspelled, pluralized or nearby-confusable three-word combinations and real responses sent toward wrong locations. They recommend verification and alternative references, especially over noisy voice or radio channels.
How has the company answered precision criticism?: It says the algorithm deliberately separates similar combinations where possible, puts harder words in lower-use areas and uses AutoSuggest to intercept likely errors. Sheldrick acknowledges nearby similar combinations remain, characterizes them as rare and notes that every location system can suffer communication error.
Is what3words an open or ISO standard?: No. It is a proprietary, patented geocode owned by what3words Limited. ISO 19160 covers interoperable address concepts and governance, while OGC DGGS standards define open structured grid frameworks; neither is a certification of what3words.
Why did what3words threaten an open-source researcher?: The company alleged that WhatFreeWords distributed unauthorized proprietary software, word data and binary resources. Critics said the legal demand chilled interoperability and security research. Sheldrick said the action targeted software distribution, not criticism; no court infringement ruling was cited in the reviewed report.