About
Zeynep Ilgaz is a General Partner at Cross Ocean Ventures who invests in technology companies and advises founders on fundraising and growth strategy. She co-founded Confirm B, a consumer diagnostics company that achieved retail distribution in over 20,000 stores and was acquired for a nine-figure sum. Ilgaz serves as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Yale Ventures and mentor with Berkeley SkyDeck and Techstars, supporting early-stage startups across fundraising, investor relations, and scaling operations.
Experience
- Cross Ocean VenturesGeneral Partnercurrent2021 — presentSan Diego, CA
- Yale VenturesEntrepreneur in Residence (EIR)current2024 — present
- HelptivoStrategic Advisorcurrent2025 — presentSan Diego, California, United States
- NuFund Venture GroupAngel Investorcurrent2024 — presentSan Diego, California, United States
- Berkeley SkyDeckAdvisorcurrent2022 — present
- EndometricsBoard of Advisorscurrent2022 — present
- San Diego State UniversityBoard of Director, Campanile Foundationcurrent2021 — presentSan Diego, California, United States
- San Diego State UniversityAdvisory Board Membercurrent2020 — present
- San Diego State UniversityLecturer, International Entrepreneurshipcurrent2015 — present
- Confirm BiosciencesChief Advisor an Co-Founder2019 — 2024
- Confirm BiosciencesChief Advisor & Co-Founder2019 — 2024
- Confirm BiosciencesDirector2006 — 2022
Education
- San Diego State UniversityMBA1998 — 2001
- Boğaziçi UniversityBA, Economics
- Antalya Anadolu Lisesi
Skills & more
Strategic Business Advice13Investments21Angel Investing19Board of Directors9Fundraising14Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A)13Retail10Growth Strategies6Biotechnology16Business Development37Business Planning16Business Strategy26
+12 more
CommercializationDrug TestingCorporate DevelopmentEntrepreneurshipInternational SalesMarket ResearchManagement ConsultingMarketing StrategyLeadershipNegotiationStrategic PlanningTeam LeadershipLanguages English · German · Turkish
- NACD Directorship Certification® — NACD (National Association of Corporate Directors)
- Women Owned Business
From Zeynep's professional profile.
Same school
Also attended San Diego State University83
Lucas SchaubelInvestor at DN CapitalJohn GregerCPO & Portfolio Partner at Burda Principal InvestmentsAditya ReddyVice President at Sapphire VenturesEmily NorwoodManager, Marketing at Sapphire VenturesMarienne CaroMarketing Lead at Qualcomm VenturesTakaaki TobaruPartner at Remiges Ventures, Inc.
+ 77 more
Also attended Boğaziçi University47
Santo PolitiInvestor at Spark CapitalElçinTalent Team at Hummingbird VenturesAnıl Gökçen KörpınarManaging Partner at IdacapitalSecil BaysalOperator in Residence at QED InvestorsGülenay ÖzbekInvestment Director at IdacapitalSercan OzcanPartner, Finance & Operations at AlleyCorp
+ 41 more
Shared employers
Also worked at Yale Ventures5
Also worked at San Diego State University6
Emily NorwoodManager, Marketing at Sapphire VenturesKelly KoVice President of Technology Ventures and Innovation at Flare Capital PartnersAshley WhitehurstChief of Staff at Mighty CapitalBrian MillsVice President at Pivotal Life SciencesDivina AgellonOffice Manager at Piva CapitalBenjamin ReiterGeneral Partner at 840 Venture Partners
