Fundraising Fox
Garry Tan
InvestorFounderGeneral Partner at Initialized Associates · General Partner at Initialized Superclass · President and CEO at Y Combinator · Managing Director at Initialized Capital · President & CEO, Y-Combinator at Gold House Ventures · +1 more
San Francisco, CA
Writes $150K checks
FoundedPosterous · YC
Midas 2019 · #21Midas 2020 · #73Midas 2021 · #35Midas 2022 · #28Midas 2023 · #6
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About
Garry Tan wrote the first check to Coinbase and backed Instacart and Flexport as co-founder of Initialized Capital, after earlier co-founding Posterous and designing at Palantir. He became Y Combinator's president and CEO in January 2023, winding down the Continuity growth fund and refocusing the accelerator on early-stage AI companies. He ranked No. 6 on the 2023 Forbes Midas List, his last appearance before returning to YC.
Contact· published on Garry's own website
Invests in
AI & Machine LearningClimate TechCloud ComputingConsumerCrypto & Web3Data & InfrastructureDeep TechDeveloper ToolsE-commerceEnterprise SoftwareFintechFuture of WorkGamingGovTechHardwareMarketplacesPropTechRoboticsSaaSSector AgnosticSocial
Beyond investing
- Founded
- Tan co-founded Posterous, a blogging platform acquired by Twitter in 2012 for $20 million. Tan co-founded Posthaven after the shutdown of Posterous.
- Education
- Studied at Stanford University (BS, Computer Systems Engineering, 2003) Studied at American High School
- Boards
- Tan has served as a board member of GrowSF, a San Francisco pro-growth political group.
- Communities
- Tan is active in San Francisco politics, focusing his donations on housing development, public schools, and public safety, and has supported YIMBY housing groups.
- Family
- Tan was born in Winnipeg, Canada, to a Chinese Singaporean father and a Burmese Chinese mother, and the family settled in Fremont, California, in 1991. As of 2023 Tan lived in Noe Valley, San Francisco, with his wife and two children.
Mentioned above: the Stanford University mafia →
From Garry's own website — common ground for a warm intro.
President & CEO at Y CombinatorYC Unspecified
Intro paths
Y Combinator went through Y Combinator (Unspecified) — Garry is an executive there, so any YC alum in your network can reach them through the company's founders.
In turn, Garry can intro founders to Y Combinator's investors below.
Y Combinator's investors · 2
Co-founders at Y Combinator
Founder at PosterousYC S08
Intro paths
Garry went through Y Combinator (Summer 2008) — any YC alum in your network can reach them through the YC community.
In turn, Garry can intro founders to Posterous's investors below.
Posterous's investors · 10
Co-founders at Posterous
Deals · 4
Standard CognitionLed round
via Initialized Capital · filed Nov 2018
Standard HoldingsLed round
via Initialized Capital · filed Oct 2018
TruepillQuoted
via Initialized Capital · filed Aug 2020
GobbleQuoted
via Initialized Capital · filed Sep 2017
Attribution from SEC filings, press coverage, and firm rosters.
Other disclosed investments
Investor
BeeperBrave CareCedanaCoinbaseComprehendCruiseDharma LabsDrip CapitalFlexportGigaGoodkindInstacartManaraMeadowOneShopOpendoorPaperspaceParagon AIPlaygroundPrePriimePursuitRipplingSafely FinanceSentiyenStuddyTerracotta AITorch
Per curated public sources.
Podcasts & interviews
featuring Garry TanGarry Tan: Own Your Intelligence
Startup School
Alexandr Wang: “This is a Once-in-a-Civilization Opportunity”
Startup School
Sam Altman: "Never a Better Time to Do a Startup"
Startup School
Jensen Huang: The Mindset That Built NVIDIA
Startup School
The New Physics of Business — Garry Tan, Y Combinator
AI Engineer
How The Best Companies Defend Against Mediocrity And Rot
Main Function
6 more appearances
- How to Build the Future: Demis Hassabis2026-04-29
- Inside Garry Tan's AI Coding Setup2026-04-23
- How To Build The Future: Max Hodak2026-03-09
- The New Way To Build A Startup2026-02-14
- What Everyone Is Getting Wrong About AI And Jobs2025-10-14
- Founder Mode: Garry Tan, President & CEO, Y Combinator2025-08-22
Colleagues at Initialized Associates
Frequently asked questions
- Who is Garry Tan?
- Garry Tan wrote the first check to Coinbase and backed Instacart and Flexport as co-founder of Initialized Capital, after earlier co-founding Posterous and designing at Palantir. He became Y Combinator's president and CEO in January 2023, winding down the Continuity growth fund and refocusing the accelerator on early-stage AI companies. He ranked No. 6 on the 2023 Forbes Midas List, his last appearance before returning to YC.
- Where does Garry Tan work?
- Garry Tan is Founder of Posterous and General Partner at Initialized Associates and General Partner at Initialized Superclass and President and CEO at Y Combinator and Managing Director at Initialized Capital and President & CEO, Y-Combinator at Gold House Ventures.
- What does Garry Tan invest in?
- Garry Tan invests in AI & Machine Learning, Climate Tech, Cloud Computing, Consumer, Crypto & Web3, Data & Infrastructure, Deep Tech, Developer Tools, E-commerce, Enterprise Software, Fintech, Future of Work, Gaming, GovTech, Hardware, Marketplaces, PropTech, Robotics, SaaS, Sector Agnostic, Social.
- What check size does Garry Tan write?
- Garry Tan typically writes checks of $150K.
- What companies did Garry Tan found?
- Garry Tan founded Posterous.
- What companies has Garry Tan invested in?
- Investments tracked here include Coinbase, Flexport, Instacart, Beeper, Brave Care, Cedana, Coinbase, Comprehend, Cruise, Dharma Labs, Drip Capital, Flexport, and 21 more.
- What podcasts and interviews feature Garry Tan?
- Tracked appearances include "Garry Tan: Own Your Intelligence", "Alexandr Wang: “This is a Once-in-a-Civilization Opportunity”", "Sam Altman: "Never a Better Time to Do a Startup"", and 9 more.
- Does Garry Tan lead rounds?
- Yes — Garry Tan has led 3 tracked investments.
Founder mafias
Y Combinator mafia10,594
Also came through, then founded or led a company.
Stanford University mafia2,290
Also came through, then founded or led a company.
Microsoft mafia1,488
Also came through, then founded or led a company.
Sun Microsystems mafia138
Also came through, then founded or led a company.
Y Combinator mafia35
Also came through, then founded or led a company.
About this profile. Compiled from public sources — Initialized Associates's own website, regulatory filings, press coverage and public professional profiles — and summarised by Fundraising Fox; every fact is kept with where it came from. Spotted an error, or would rather not be listed? Email privacy@fundraisingfox.com · How we build profiles · Your rights