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Samir Kaul
InvestorFounding Partner and Managing Director at Khosla Ventures
Menlo Park, California
Writes $500K – $50M checks · typically $25M
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About
Samir Kaul led an early, outsized bet called the first and largest check into OpenAI and applies genomics experience from Craig Venter’s Institute to evaluating biotech, health and deep-tech.
Contact· self-published, not guessed
Invests in
AI & Machine LearningBiotechCleantechClimate TechDeep TechEnterprise SoftwareHealthtech
Beyond investing
- Founded
- He co-founded Helicos BioSciences with Stanford's Stan Lapidus and Steve Quake, a company developing single-molecule sequencing instruments. He was the founding CEO of Codon Devices, raising its Series A financing and building its technical and advisory teams.
- Education
- Studied at University of Michigan Studied at Harvard Business School (MBA)
- Boards
- He is a board member and chair of the Development Committee of UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital. He joined the Board of Directors of The Michael J. Fox Foundation in 2025. He was a longtime member of the Nominating and Leadership Committees of the Tipping Point Community, a nonprofit focused on poverty alleviation in the Bay Area. He served on the board of trustees for the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association. He serves on the Dean's Cabinet of Harvard's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
- Charities
- He is a founding donor to the Elevate Campaign for the Yellowstone Club Community Foundation. He endowed the directorship of the Michigan Institute for Computational Discovery and Engineering at the University of Michigan. He established a Professorship of Biomedical Innovation and Translation between Harvard Medical School and Harvard Business School.
- Communities
- He remains deeply involved with his alma maters, the University of Michigan and Harvard University. He has expressed deep loyalty to the University of Michigan, from celebrating football championships to funding a new AI institute at the school.
- Hobbies
- He is dedicated to health optimization and sleep fitness, frequently posting his own recovery statistics from devices like Whoop and Eight Sleep.
- More
- He led the Arabidopsis Genome Initiative at Craig Venter's Institute for Genomic Research and published seven peer-reviewed papers in genomics, including a landmark Nature paper on the first complete genome of a flowering plant (Arabidopsis thaliana, 2000). He has backed repeat founder Gilad Almogy across four different companies.
From published sources — common ground for a warm intro.
Deals · 5
TrabaLed round
via Khosla Ventures · filed Jun 2022
Impossible FoodsLed round
via Khosla Ventures · filed Mar 2020
HookLed round
via Khosla Ventures · filed Aug 2017
Guardant HealthLed round
via Khosla Ventures · filed Dec 2014
NutanixLed round
via Khosla Ventures
Attribution from SEC filings, press coverage, and firm rosters.
Other disclosed investments
Led
Connie HealthGranularIora HealthMainspringMirvieNanoH2OOpenAIOscar HealthPrimerQuantumScapeRaxiumReevoRhodaRightway HealthSLDSplit PayUltima GenomicsVarda Space Industries
Board seats
Investor
AmyrisAusraBionaut LabsCodon DevicesConnie HealthConveyCoskataDraths CorporationEat JustEligo BioscienceEpitomeGevoIgGenixLevelLightshipLS9Mariana MineralsMascomaMoonvalleyMorphotekNeurotrackNorm AiPhilz CoffeePiquePrimerPullstringPymetricsQuantumScapeRampRange FuelsReevoRightwayRipple FoodsSakti3Scipher MedicineSegetisSiolta TherapeuticsSLD LaserState SpaceStionSword HealthTarana WirelessUltima GenomicsVarda Space IndustriesVicarious SurgicalViewVirdiaYes Health
Sources: the firm's website · curated public sources · SEC Form D filings.
Colleagues at Khosla Ventures
Network2
Investors connected to Samir in public investor directories — a warm-intro map.
Frequently asked questions
- Who is Samir Kaul?
- Samir Kaul led an early, outsized bet called the first and largest check into OpenAI and applies genomics experience from Craig Venter’s Institute to evaluating biotech, health and deep-tech.
- Where does Samir Kaul work?
- Samir Kaul is Founding Partner and Managing Director at Khosla Ventures.
- What does Samir Kaul invest in?
- Samir Kaul invests in AI & Machine Learning, Biotech, Cleantech, Climate Tech, Deep Tech, Enterprise Software, Healthtech.
- What check size does Samir Kaul write?
- Samir Kaul typically writes checks of $500K – $50M.
- What boards does Samir Kaul sit on?
- Samir Kaul holds tracked board seats at Mariana Minerals, Rightway Healthcare.
- What companies has Samir Kaul invested in?
- Investments tracked here include Connie Health, Granular, Guardant Health, Hook, Impossible Foods, Iora Health, Mainspring, Mirvie, NanoH2O, Nutanix, OpenAI, Oscar Health, and 63 more.
- Does Samir Kaul lead rounds?
- Yes — Samir Kaul has led 23 tracked investments.
About this profile. Compiled from public sources — Khosla Ventures's own website, regulatory filings 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