Pete Koomen
InvestorFounderGeneral Partner at Y Combinator · Founder at Optimizely
Reno, Nevada
Writes $5K – $50K checks · typically $25K
FoundedOptimizely · YC
Find your path to Pete
1,995 people in our graph share verified history with Pete — schools, employers, funds. One of them is your warm intro.
About
Co-founder of Optimizely, which grew past $100M ARR before acquisition. Holds a master's in CS from UIUC.
Contact· published on Pete's own website
Invests in
Developer ToolsSaaS
Beyond investing
- Founded
- Pete Koomen co-founded Optimizely (YC W10), which helps companies run experiments on their websites and apps, and grew it to over $100M in ARR before its 2020 acquisition.
- Education
- Studied at University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign (Master's, Computer Science)
From Pete's own website — common ground for a warm intro.
Founder at OptimizelyYC W10
Intro paths
Pete went through Y Combinator (Winter 2010) — any YC alum in your network can reach them through the YC community.
In turn, Pete can intro founders to Optimizely's investors below.
Optimizely's investors · 27
Co-founders at Optimizely

Experience
- Y CombinatorGeneral Partnercurrent2023 — present
- Y CombinatorVisiting Group Partner2022 — 2023
- OptimizelyCo-founder2010 — 2021
- CarrotSticksCo-founder2009
- GoogleProduct Manager2006 — 2009
Skills & more
From Pete's professional profile.
Investments
Investor
AlacrityAllus AIANORIAApolinkApproval AIArga LabsAriniArticulateArtisan AIAseon LabsAuctorAutumnBearBetter AuthBifrost OrbitalBiteSightBloomBluejayBoltoBrickantaCanvas AICapacitiveCerbosCharacter QuiltChonkieChronicle LabsCladoClearBrainCleonCloudCruiseCoastsCombinelyConduitCotoolCrunchedCuroDarkDeepNightEfferenceElyraEncoreExonicExpected ParrotFabricateFileforgeGaitGeneral AviationGlimmerGoldenBasisHemutHEVNHuscarlImagine AIInQueryInspectMindIntelligence FactoryInventive AIItemJSX ToolKalpa LabsKestrel AILapelLingo.devLuciteLyraMarblismMayflowerMbodi AIMilk VideoMiniswapMoonshineMossMountNapkin MathNotus Autonomous SystemsOpenProseParsePermitPortalPlayvisionPrimitivePrintifyQFEXRecaseRoundabout TechnologiesRovi HealthShowAndTellsmol machinesStageStandard SignalSummed AISynth AITenet IndustriesTerratonTesterArmyThe Company CompanythroxyTicket WalletTrieveVesenceVoicepanelxPayYarnZarnaZenbuZenobia PayZero
Per curated public sources.
Podcasts & interviews
featuring Pete KoomenInside YC's AI Playbook
Lightcone
AI Apps Are Broken — Here's How To Fix Them
The Breakdown
The Right (And Wrong) Way To Spend Money At Your Startup
Office Hours
How To Use AI In Your Startup
Office Hours
Enterprise Sales for Founders
Startup school
How to convert more visitors into customers
Design Review
Colleagues at Y Combinator
Network2
Investors connected to Pete in public investor directories — a warm-intro map.
Frequently asked questions
- Who is Pete Koomen?
- Co-founder of Optimizely, which grew past $100M ARR before acquisition. Holds a master's in CS from UIUC.
- Where does Pete Koomen work?
- Pete Koomen is Founder of Optimizely and General Partner at Y Combinator.
- What does Pete Koomen invest in?
- Pete Koomen invests in Developer Tools, SaaS.
- What check size does Pete Koomen write?
- Pete Koomen typically writes checks of $5K – $50K.
- What companies did Pete Koomen found?
- Pete Koomen founded Optimizely.
- What companies has Pete Koomen invested in?
- Investments tracked here include Alacrity, Allus AI, ANORIA, Apolink, Approval AI, Arga Labs, Arini, Articulate, Artisan AI, Aseon Labs, Auctor, Autumn, and 94 more.
- Where did Pete Koomen go to school?
- Pete Koomen studied at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (M.S., Computer Science); Case Western Reserve University (Dual B.S., Mathematics).
- What podcasts and interviews feature Pete Koomen?
- Tracked appearances include "Inside YC's AI Playbook", "AI Apps Are Broken — Here's How To Fix Them", "The Right (And Wrong) Way To Spend Money At Your Startup", and 3 more.
Founder mafias
Y Combinator mafia10,230
Also came through, then founded or led a company.
+ 10,223 more
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign mafia352
Also came through, then founded or led a company.
+ 345 more
Case Western Reserve University mafia43
Also came through, then founded or led a company.
+ 36 more
Same school
Also attended University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign864
+ 858 more
Also attended Case Western Reserve University134
+ 128 more
Shared employers
Also worked at Y Combinator427
+ 421 more
Also worked at Optimizely38
+ 32 more
Also worked at Google2,000
+ 1,994 more





















































