Fundraising Fox

Shawn Carolan

Investor

Partner at Menlo Ventures · Board director at Whisper Aero

Palo Alto, California

Writes $8M – $15M checks · typically $12M

Midas 2024 · #75Midas 2020 · #57Midas 2015 · #92

About

Shawn Carolan is a Partner at Menlo Ventures focused on early-stage "utilitarian consumer" companies that offer better, faster, and cheaper ways to meet consumer needs, occasionally extending into enterprise investments. He holds bachelor's and master's degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and an MBA from Stanford GSB, and previously worked as a software developer and architecture manager at Open Port Technology. He joined Menlo in 2002 and also founded and ran his own startup, Handle.

Contact· self-published, not guessed

Invests in

ConsumerEnterprise Software

Board director at Whisper Aero

Intro paths

→

In turn, Shawn can intro founders to Whisper Aero's investors below.

Whisper Aero's investors · 7

Abstract VenturesSan Francisco · $250K – $750K checks · since 2023Aero X VenturesWinston Salem · $500K – $3M checks · since 2023Launch TennesseeNashville · since 2023Lux CapitalNew York · $100K – $100M checks · since 2023Menlo VenturesSan Francisco · $1M – $20M checks · since 2023Sequoia CapitalMenlo Park · $4.4M – $214M checks · since 2023U.S. Air Forcesince 2020

Co-founders at Whisper Aero

MM
Mark MooreCo-Founder, CEO
IV
Ian VillaCo-Founder, COO, CPO

Experience

  1. Menlo VenturesPartnercurrent2002 — present
  2. ChimeBoard Membercurrent2018 — presentSan Francisco, California, United States
  3. ShipBob, Inc.Board Membercurrent2018 — presentChicago, Illinois, United States
  4. OpenSpaceBoard Membercurrent2021 — presentSan Francisco, California, United States
  5. Monarch MoneyBoard Membercurrent2021 — presentDenver, Colorado, United States
  6. Stanford UniversityDAPER Fund Directorcurrent2016 — presentStanford, California, United States
  7. IMVU, Inc.Board of Directorscurrent2005 — present
  8. UberInvestment Lead2013 — 2020
  9. RokuBoard of Directors through IPO2008 — 2018
  10. JUMP BikesBoard of Directors through UBER acquisition2017 — 2018New York City Metropolitan Area
  11. Handle, Inc.Founding CEO2011 — 2016San Francisco Bay Area
  12. TeleNavBoard of Directors2006 — 2015
  13. YuMe NetworksBoard of Directors2010 — 2014
  14. PlayPhoneBoard of Directors2006 — 2014
  15. Rocketship EducationBoard of Directors2010 — 2013
  16. SiriBoard of Directors2008 — 2010
  17. PlayspanBoard of Directors2007 — 2010
  18. CinemaNow, Inc.Board of Directors2004 — 2008
  19. Booz Allen HamiltonManagement Consulting Summer Associate2001
  20. Open Port TechnologyManager, Software Architecture1997 — 2000
  21. SAICResearch Scientist at DEMACO, Inc. (division of SAIC)1996 — 1997
  22. University of Illinois Center for Computational ElectromagneticsFellow1996 — 1997
  23. MotorolaSystems Engineer Intern, Cellular Infrastructure Group1996
  24. 360 CommunicationsIntern, Technical Planning & Wireless Data Applications1995
  25. MotorolaIntern, Wireless Data Group1994
  26. Digital Appliance ControlsIntern, Quality Assurance Engineering1993

Skills & more

Start-ups99Digital Media55Mobile Devices96Venture Capital99Entrepreneurship65Product Management42Mobile Applications31Monetization8Product Development8Competitive Analysis7Strategy37New Business Development7
+12 moreStrategic PlanningWirelessMobile TechnologyManagementBusiness PlanningDigital MarketingSEOLocation Based ServicesLeadershipMergers & AcquisitionsSocial MediaOnline Marketing

From Shawn's professional profile.

Investments

Led

Roku

Investor

ChimeUber

Per the firm's website.

Colleagues at Menlo Ventures

Amy Wu
General Partner at Menlo Ventures
Amy Wu Martin
Partner at Menlo Ventures
Aunkur Arya
Venture Partner at Menlo Ventures
Avery More
Venture Partner at Menlo Ventures
Brent Fellows
Vice President, Finance and Tax at Menlo Ventures
Bryan Eglan
Director of Business Development at Menlo Ventures
C.C. Gong
Principal at Menlo Ventures
Claire Palmer
Director of Investor Relations at Menlo Ventures

Network6

Amy WuScout
General Partner at Menlo Ventures
Aunkur AryaScout
Venture Partner at Menlo Ventures
Chris SaccaScout
Investor at Lowercase Capital
Daniel V. LeffScout
Managing Partner at Waverley Capital
Deepen ParikhScout
Partner at Courtside Ventures
Eurie KimScout
Managing Partner at Forerunner Ventures

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

Frequently asked questions

Who is Shawn Carolan?
Shawn Carolan is a Partner at Menlo Ventures focused on early-stage "utilitarian consumer" companies that offer better, faster, and cheaper ways to meet consumer needs, occasionally extending into enterprise investments. He holds bachelor's and master's degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and an MBA from Stanford GSB, and previously worked as a software developer and architecture manager at Open Port Technology. He joined Menlo in 2002 and also founded and ran his own startup, Handle.
Where does Shawn Carolan work?
Shawn Carolan is Partner at Menlo Ventures and Board director at Whisper Aero.
What does Shawn Carolan invest in?
Shawn Carolan invests in Consumer, Enterprise Software.
What check size does Shawn Carolan write?
Shawn Carolan typically writes checks of $8M – $15M.
What companies has Shawn Carolan invested in?
Investments tracked here include Roku, Chime, Uber.
Where did Shawn Carolan go to school?
Shawn Carolan studied at Stanford University Graduate School of Business (MBA); University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (MS, Electrical Engineering); University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (BS, Electrical Engineering + CS Minor).
Does Shawn Carolan lead rounds?
Yes — Shawn Carolan has led 1 tracked investment.

Same school

Also attended Stanford University Graduate School of Business1,383

Roelof BothaAdvisor & former Steward at Sequoia Capital; SpaceX board memberPeter FentonGeneral Partner at BenchmarkSteve JurvetsonCo-founder of Future VenturesDavid SzeAdvisory Partner at GreylockKatherine BoyleGeneral Partner at Andreessen Horowitz (American Dynamism)Hunter WalkCo-founder & Partner at Homebrew

+ 1,377 more

Also attended University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign421

Max LevchinCo-founder of PayPal; founder, chairman & CEO of Affirm; partner at SciFi VCLuke NosekCo-founder of PayPal; co-founder of GigafundSundeep PeechuGeneral Partner at Felicis VenturesDeep NisharInvestment Team at General CatalystPrashant ShahPartner at Monta Vista CapitalNoorPartner at Clear Ventures

+ 415 more

Shared employers

Also worked at JUMP Bikes3

Mark FinkelInvestor at Maccabee VenturesKfir KachlonManaging Partner at 91 VenturesAvra van der ZeeGeneral Partner, SOSV at HAX

Also worked at TeleNav6

Raphel FinelliMarketing Principal at TDK VenturesMark LeslieExecutive Advisory Board at NYU Innovation Venture FundHarry FengVenture Partner at FusionAxel FuchsVenture Partner at Motus Ventures, LlcDmitry AlekseevFounder at EdwinArthur SilversteinFounder at Opencall

Also worked at Playspan4

Philipp StaufferFounder & General Partner at FYRFLY Venture PartnersSimon RuEconomic Empowerment | Gold House Ventures at Gold House VenturesRachel LamCo-Founder and Managing Partner at Imagination CapitalSimon Ru2x Founder, Venture Partner, Gold House (Strategy Council) at UC Berkeley Skydeck

Also worked at Booz Allen Hamilton147

Neeraj AgrawalGeneral Partner at Battery VenturesRohan BhargavaInvestor at 8VCLiam DonohueInvestor at .406 VenturesTrip HoferVenture Partner at .406 VenturesNekeshia WoodsManaging Partner at Parkway Venture CapitalSean EbertSenior Partner at Altira Group LLC

+ 141 more