Fundraising Fox

Ilse Calderon

Investor

Associate at OVO Fund

Palo Alto, California

Writes $250K – $500K checks · typically $400K

30 Under 30 2023 · Venture Capital

About

Ilse Calderon is Chief of Staff to the CTO at Forge and a venture capital professional with over seven years of experience in business operations and startup strategy. She has led projects spanning consumer fintech product launches, data-driven project structuring, and operational scaling, while managing cross-functional relationships and industry analysis. Calderon is a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree and contributor focusing on opportunities within the Latinx demographic and direct-to-consumer business models.

Experience

  1. ForgeChief of Staff to CTOcurrent2024 — presentSan Francisco, California, United States
  2. ForbesForbes Contributorcurrent2020 — present
  3. Lightspeed Venture PartnersScoutcurrent2022 — present
  4. OVO FundPrincipal2021 — 2024
  5. OVO FundSenior Associate2019 — 2020San Francisco Bay Area
  6. OVO FundAssociate2017 — 2018Palo Alto, CA
  7. MosBusiness Operations2022 — 2023San Francisco Bay Area
  8. Silicon Valley BankAssociate2017Palo Alto
  9. Signia Venture PartnersSummer Intern2016Bay Area
  10. Hangster Inc.Chief Marketing Officer2015 — 2016Stanford, CA
  11. Stanford Sigma Eta PiVice President & Co-founder2014 — 2016Stanford, CA
  12. Stanford Student EnterprisesBanking Associate2014 — 2016Stanford, CA
  13. China-US Cultural Exchange Association of Cornell UniversityIvy League Leadership Conference Program Leader and Marketing and Operations Intern2015Beijing, China
  14. AdmitSeeProject Manager2014 — 2015
  15. OpinnoIntern2014Greater Madrid Metropolitan Area
  16. LEADership, Education and Development (LEAD)Residential Team Advisor2014Wharton University of Pennsylvania
  17. Tibetan Social Entrepreneurship LabProgram Fellow2013 — 2014Stanford, CA
  18. The Kairos SocietyCommunity Management Intern2013
  19. City of Prairie View 4B Economic DevelopmentIntern - Stanford HAAS Center Fellowship2013Prairie View, Texas
  20. Stanford Linguistics DepartmentTranscriber2012 — 2013
  21. Rotary International's Interact Club at Klein Oak HSCo-Founder & President2009 — 2011Spring, Texas

Skills & more

Spanish50English8French7Presentations8Forecasting7Executive Presentations6Project Management3Investments1Finance1Presentation Skills2Data Analytics2Data Analysis2
+12 moreQuantitative FinanceExecutive TeamBusiness StrategyEvent PlanningEntrepreneurshipVolunteer ManagementMarket ResearchStart-upsHigher EducationBusiness DevelopmentFundraisingGoogle Slides

Languages English · French · Spanish

From Ilse's professional profile.

Colleagues at OVO Fund

Adam Kaufman
Senior Advisor at OVO Fund
Beyang Liu
B2B SaaS / Dev Tooling at OVO Fund
Dr. Rene Caissie
Healthcare at OVO Fund
Dr. Zhengyuan Zhou
Applied AI at OVO Fund
Eric Chen
Earliest Stage Investors
Gianfranco Filice
Partner at OVO Fund
Jeff Davis
Generalist at OVO Fund
Lou Shapiro
Healthcare at OVO Fund

Network3

Adit Singh
Partner at Cota Capital
Carmen Palafox
Founder & General Partner at 2045 Ventures
Eric Chen
Earliest Stage Investors

Investors connected to Ilse in public investor directories — a warm-intro map.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Ilse Calderon?
Ilse Calderon is Chief of Staff to the CTO at Forge and a venture capital professional with over seven years of experience in business operations and startup strategy. She has led projects spanning consumer fintech product launches, data-driven project structuring, and operational scaling, while managing cross-functional relationships and industry analysis. Calderon is a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree and contributor focusing on opportunities within the Latinx demographic and direct-to-consumer business models.
Where does Ilse Calderon work?
Ilse Calderon is Associate at OVO Fund.
What check size does Ilse Calderon write?
Ilse Calderon typically writes checks of $250K – $500K.
Where did Ilse Calderon go to school?
Ilse Calderon studied at Stanford University (Bachelor of Science in Science, Technology); Lycee Odilon Redon (Economics); Klein Oak High School.

Same school

Also attended Stanford University2,000

Peter ThielCo-founder & Partner at Founders FundReid HoffmanCo-founder of LinkedIn; Partner at GreylockDavid SacksCo-founder & General Partner at Craft Ventures; former White House AI & Crypto CzarKeith RaboisManaging Director at Khosla VenturesGarry TanPresident & CEO of Y CombinatorAlfred LinPartner at Sequoia Capital

+ 1,994 more

Also attended Klein Oak High School1

Aman GottumukkalaFounder at Firebender

Also attended United States Naval Academy75

Chad SummeBoard Member at CincyTechDouglas Lemott Jr.Vice President, SAP National Security Services at Riphean InvestmentsTony WellsVenture Partner at Copper Sky CapitalJuliane GallinaPartner at Lavrock VenturesMike SteadmanFounder, Coach, USNA '10 — writing, coaching, and designing categories for underdog military veteran founders and CEOsJohn DillonInvestor at Alsop Louie Partners

+ 69 more

Shared employers

Also worked at OVO Fund6

Eric ChenEarliest Stage InvestorsGianfranco FilicePartner at OVO FundAdam KaufmanSenior Advisor at OVO FundMaurice ChiangHealthcare at OVO FundGuy WuolletGeneral Partner at a16z cryptoRene J CaissieFounder at Medeloop

Also worked at Mos3

Oliver HsuPartner at Andreessen HorowitzAmira YahyaouiScout at Sequoia CapitalDavid ZhangFounder at Mos

Also worked at Signia Venture Partners7

Ed ClussInvestor and Mentor at Signia Venture PartnersAnagha RajeInvestor at Signia Venture PartnersSunny DhillonFounder and Managing Partner at Kyber Knight CapitalLinus LiangFounder and Managing Partner at Kyber Knight CapitalRick ThompsonPartner at Signia Venture PartnersDavid BloomSenior Associate at Signia Venture Partners

+ 1 more

Also worked at LEADership, Education and Development (LEAD)1

Marlon PrimousOutcomes Associate at Seven Seven Six