Mike Speiser
InvestorManaging Director at Sutter Hill Ventures · Board director at Luminary Cloud · Board director at Observe · Board director at Sigma Computing
San Francisco, CA
Writes $100K – $5M checks · typically $1.5M
Midas 2021 · #5Midas 2022 · #35Midas 2023 · #13Midas 2024 · #17Midas 2025 · #11
About
Mike Speiser practices a rare incubation style of venture at Sutter Hill, where he has co-created companies inside the firm and served as their first CEO — most famously Snowflake, which he ran from 2012 to 2014 before its record-setting 2020 software IPO. His other incubations include Pure Storage, Sigma Computing, Observe and Lacework. The model has made him a fixture near the top of the Midas List, including a No. 5 finish in 2021.
Contact· published on Mike's own website
Likely email· guessed from name + firm domain, not firm-published
- m•••@shv.comreveal75% confident
Beyond investing
- Founded
- Speiser co-founded Bix, a consumer startup that Yahoo bought in 2006. Speiser came up with the concept for Snowflake alongside its founders in 2012 and served as its first CEO. Speiser began assembling Pure Storage in 2008 with John Colgrove and John Hayes.
- More
- Speiser incubates roughly one company per year at Sutter Hill, typically finding 2-3 co-founders, being the founding investor, and often taking on the interim CEO role for the first year or two.
From Mike's own website — common ground for a warm intro.
Board director at Luminary Cloud
Intro paths
→
In turn, Mike can intro founders to Luminary Cloud's investors below.
Luminary Cloud's investors · 4
Co-founders at Luminary Cloud
JL
Jason LangoCo-Founder & CEO
Board director at Observe
Intro paths
→
In turn, Mike can intro founders to Observe's investors below.
Observe's investors · 9
Alumni VenturesManchester · $100K – $10M checks · since 2025Artisanal VenturesTiburon · since 2025Basecamp FundManchester · $100K – $10M checks · since 2025Evolution Equity PartnersNew York · $20M – $150M checks · since 2025Human CapitalSan Francisco · $250K – $200M checks · since 2025MADRONA ACCELERATIONSeattle · since 2025Madrona Venture GroupSeattle · $2M – $10M checks · since 2025SoftBank Vision FundLondon · since 2025Sutter Hill VenturesPalo Alto · $100K – $5M checks · since 2025
Board director at Sigma Computing
Intro paths
→
In turn, Mike can intro founders to Sigma Computing's investors below.
Sigma Computing's investors · 9
Altimeter CapitalMenlo Park · $1M – $25M checks · since 2026Altimeter Venture PartnersBoston · since 2025Avenir Growth CapitalNew York · since 2026Databricks VenturesSan Francisco · since 2026Princeville CapitalSan Francisco · since 2026ServiceNow VenturesSanta Clara · since 2026Spark CapitalSan Francisco · $500K – $25M checks · since 2026Sutter Hill VenturesPalo Alto · $100K – $5M checks · since 2017Workday VenturesSan Francisco · since 2026
Co-founders at Sigma Computing
JF
Jason FrantzExecutive Officer, Director
RW
Robert WoollenExecutive Officer, Director
RW
Robert WoolenDirector
Experience
- Sutter Hill VenturesManaging Directorcurrent2008 — presentSilicon Valley, CA
- SnowflakeFounding CEO, Investor, and Board Membercurrent2012 — presentSilicon Valley, CA
- WorkdayMember Board of Directorscurrent2024 — presentSilicon Valley, CA
- ReveFounding CEO, Investor, and Board Membercurrent2023 — presentSilicon Valley, CA
- Pure StorageFounding CEO, Investor, and Board Membercurrent2009 — presentSilicon Valley, CA
- Institute for Advanced StudyMember Board of Trusteescurrent2021 — presentPrinceton, NJ
- McLaren RacingAdvisory Board Membercurrent2022 — presentWoking
- YahooVice President of Products2005 — 2008Silicon Valley, CA
- Veritas Technologies LLCVice President of Products2001 — 2005Silicon Valley, CA
- EpinionsCo-Founder1999 — 2001Silicon Valley, CA
- McKinsey & CompanyAssociate1998 — 1999Silicon Valley, CA
- Credit SuisseAnalyst1993 — 1996New York, NY
Skills & more
Product Management99Product Marketing96Start-ups79Entrepreneurship43Venture Capital42Mobile Devices32Analytics31Cloud Computing20Marketing10Go-to-market Strategy9User Experience6Sales4
+4 more
Strategic PartnershipsStrategySaaSEnterprise SoftwareFrom Mike's professional profile.
Deals · 1
Sigma ComputingBoard seat
via Sutter Hill Ventures · filed Jan 2018 · $20M raise
Attribution from SEC filings, press coverage, and firm rosters.
Other disclosed investments
Led
Pure StorageSnowflake
Investor
Lacework
Sources: curated public sources · SEC Form D filings.
Podcasts & interviews
featuring Mike SpeiserFinding the Right Problems: How Sutter Hill Ventures’ Mike Speiser Creates Great Companies
Goldman Sachs
How Mike Speiser and Sutter Hill are changing the rules for venture investing
cnbc.com
Colleagues at Sutter Hill Ventures
Network1
Investors connected to Mike in public investor directories — a warm-intro map.
Frequently asked questions
- Who is Mike Speiser?
- Mike Speiser practices a rare incubation style of venture at Sutter Hill, where he has co-created companies inside the firm and served as their first CEO — most famously Snowflake, which he ran from 2012 to 2014 before its record-setting 2020 software IPO. His other incubations include Pure Storage, Sigma Computing, Observe and Lacework. The model has made him a fixture near the top of the Midas List, including a No. 5 finish in 2021.
- Where does Mike Speiser work?
- Mike Speiser is Managing Director at Sutter Hill Ventures and Board director at Luminary Cloud and Board director at Observe and Board director at Sigma Computing.
- What check size does Mike Speiser write?
- Mike Speiser typically writes checks of $100K – $5M.
- What boards does Mike Speiser sit on?
- Mike Speiser holds tracked board seats at Sigma Computing.
- What companies has Mike Speiser invested in?
- Investments tracked here include Pure Storage, Snowflake, Lacework.
- What podcasts and interviews feature Mike Speiser?
- Tracked appearances include "Finding the Right Problems: How Sutter Hill Ventures’ Mike Speiser Creates Great Companies", "How Mike Speiser and Sutter Hill are changing the rules for venture investing".
- Does Mike Speiser lead rounds?
- Yes — Mike Speiser has led 2 tracked investments.
Paths to reach Mike
People who overlapped with Mike at the same organization — a shared school or employer with one of them is a warm way in.
Together at Sutter Hill VenturesMike: Managing Director
Sam Pullara2012–2026Managing Director at Sutter Hill VenturesNorthwestern University · Worcester Polytechnic InstituteKevin Kwok2024–2026Partner at Sutter Hill VenturesHunter College High School · Yale UniversityDivanny Lamas2019–2026Managing Director at Sutter Hill VenturesHarvard UniversityJim White2008–2026Managing Partner at Sutter Hill VenturesNorthwestern UniversityZack Isaacson2016Venture Partner at Rackhouse Venture Management LpUC Irvine · University of CambridgeGreg Sands2008–2011Founder and Managing Partner at Costanoa VenturesHarvard University · Stanford University Graduate School of Business
Together at ObserveMike: Director
Sahir Azam2022–2025Investor at Index VenturesRPI Lally School of ManagementSam Pullara2017–2026Managing Director at Sutter Hill VenturesNorthwestern University · Worcester Polytechnic InstituteWesley Yiu2024–2026Principal at Alumni VenturesCornell UniversityShankar Krishnan2020Founder at PromptArmorRidge High School · University of California, Berkeley · Y CombinatorSmit Dagli2024–2025Founder at Kanava AIUniversity of California, Berkeley
Together at McKinsey & CompanyMike: Associate
Enrico Resmini1998–1999Partner at McKinsey & CompanyINSEAD · Politecnico di MilanoFabrice Grinda1998Co-founder & Managing Partner at FJ LabsPrinceton UniversityStephane Kurgan1998–1999Investor at Index VenturesINSEAD · Université libre de BruxellesBogomil Balkansky1998Home chef and food blogger, venture capital partner, and wildlife photographerCornell University · Stanford University Graduate School of BusinessAshu Garg1998–1999Investor at Foundation CapitalIndian Institute of Management Bangalore · Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi · St. Mary's AcademyHelen Clement1998–1999Investor at IVP (Institutional Venture Partners)George Heriot's School · University of Oxford
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Together at Credit SuisseMike: Analyst
Bill Gurley1993–1996General Partner Emeritus at BenchmarkMillsaps College · Texas McCombs School of Business · University of FloridaRobert Sigler1993Senior Advisory Board at IronGate Capital AdvisorsHarvard Kennedy School · Kansai Gaidai University · Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyNuman Numan1994–1996Investment | Growth Funds at 212Ege University
Together at Pure StorageMike: Founding CEO, Investor, and Board Member
Mike Volpi2012–2018Investor at Index VenturesStanford University Graduate School of BusinessCameron Bahar2026Venture Partner at Think+ Ventures Management, LlcUC Irvine · UCLA · University of OxfordJoe Pinto2019–2026Chief Customer Experience Officer, Pure Storage at Two Bear CapitalGolden Gate UniversityMallun Yen2021–2026Founder & Managing Partner at Operator CollectiveCalifornia Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo · University of California, Berkeley - School of Law
Together at YahooMike: Vice President of Products
Frédérique Dame2005–2008Investor at GV (Google Ventures)UCLPaul Levine2005–2007Operating Partner at Sapphire VenturesAmherst College · Stanford University Graduate School of BusinessToby Coppel2005–2008Co-founder and Partner at Mosaic VenturesUniversity of OxfordSimon Levene2005–2006Co-founder and Partner at Mosaic VenturesHarvard University · University of CambridgeM.G. Thibaut2005–2008Former Chief Financial Officer at DroneDeploy at Scale Venture PartnersThe Tuck School of Business at DartmouthAnn Crady Weiss2005–2006Investor at True VenturesGeorgetown Law · Gunn High School · UC San Diego
Shared employers
Also worked at Reve2
Also worked at Yahoo305
Jess LeePartner and Chief Product Officer at Sequoia CapitalBrian ActonCo-founder of WhatsApp; co-founder of Signal FoundationStewart ButterfieldCo-founder of Slack and FlickrMax LevchinCo-founder of PayPal; founder, chairman & CEO of Affirm; partner at SciFi VCAmjad MasadCo-founder & CEO of ReplitFrédérique DameInvestor at GV (Google Ventures)
+ 299 more
Also worked at Veritas Technologies LLC13
Cameron BaharVenture Partner at Think+ Ventures Management, LlcAbhi DinkarAdvisor - Enterprise Technology at Augment VenturesShirish DeodharInvestor at Pentathlon VenturesRaphel FinelliMarketing Principal at TDK VenturesBenjamin NyeManaging Partner at Venture Guides Management, L.P.Igor MinaevInvestor at Crimson Investment Fund
+ 7 more
