David Bohnett is an American entrepreneur and philanthropist aligned with left-of-center political and cultural causes. He first became wealthy as the co-founder of GeoCities, one of the earliest web-hosting and online community platforms, which was sold to Yahoo for $3.6 billion in 1999. Bohnett has since managed Baroda Ventures, a Los Angeles–based venture capital firm, and established the David Bohnett Foundation, which has distributed more than $120 million in grants to advocacy organizations, cultural institutions, and leadership training programs. His giving priorities include LGBT issues, Democratic-aligned economic policy initiatives, gun control, and public policy fellowships. ^{1 2}

Background

Born in Chicago in 1956, Bohnett earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Southern California and an MBA from the University of Michigan. He began his career in technology and founded GeoCities in 1994. The company was an early pioneer in user-generated websites and community “neighborhoods,” and became one of the most heavily trafficked websites of the late 1990s. Yahoo purchased GeoCities in 1999. According to Forbes, Yahoo purchased GeoCities for $3.2 billion plus $800 million in options. Bohnett’s 8.1 percent stake netted him $260 million in Yahoo stock, most of which he later sold. ³

A 2025 TIME profile of Bohnett noted that “Tech entrepreneur David Bohnett knew he was gay growing up in Chicago in the 1960s, but didn’t come out publicly until he was an undergraduate at the University of Southern California. Living part of his life closeted and then part of his life out, he says, made him appreciate the value of community and connecting with people who have similar interests—a regard that eventually led him in 1994 to co-found GeoCities.com, a pioneering social media site that built virtual communities in ‘neighborhoods’ around common interests. When Yahoo bought GeoCIties in 1999, Bohnett put much of his nearly $300 million in profits into a foundation that also focuses on fostering connection, particularly among the LGBTQ+ community.” ⁴

In 2025, TIME included him in its “TIME100 Philanthropy” list, noting his foundation’s cumulative giving of more than $135 million and its emphasis on LGBT and left-of-center issues. ⁵

Baroda Ventures

Following the sale of GeoCities, Bohnett launched Baroda Ventures, a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage technology companies. Its portfolio has included firms in consumer internet, SaaS, digital media, and e-commerce, with Bohnett continuing to work as managing member. A 2003 Forbes profile of him and other founders who sold to Yahoo reported that his venture fund at that point had worked with companies including Gamesville.com which “was acquired by Lycos for $207 million in November 1999” and Stamps.com which “sells postage stamps over the Net [and] had a brief moment in the sun after it went public in mid-1999.” However, it noted he had several “bombs” as well, such as Crescenda Wireless which was “a developer of software for handheld computers that dissolved” and Encryptics which was “a Stamps.com ticket-printing spinoff that went nowhere.” The profile also noted that his foundation had funded several gay-rights campaigns and a campaign to ban handguns at that time. ^{3 3}

Foundation

Bohnett founded the David Bohnett Foundation in 1999. The foundation supports LGBT interests, technology, Los Angles-specific grants, gun control, animal liberation, and left-of-center programs in higher education. Bohnett has stated that he believes one of the organization’s primary aims is to “create an environment which destigmatizes homosexuality.” ^{6 7}

Bohnett has funded multiple higher education programs through his foundation. The University of Michigan’s Ford School of Public Policy administers the Bohnett Fellowship, which provides tuition support and internships in Detroit city government for graduate students. At the University of Southern California, he donated $15 million to establish the David C. Bohnett Residential College at USC Village, a dormitory for more than 300 students intended to integrate academic and community engagement. He has also sponsored public policy fellowship programs at USC and other universities that place students into internships with Los Angeles city and county government offices. ^{8 9}

Affiliated Organizations

In addition to running his foundation, Bohnett has held leadership positions with several cultural and civic institutions. According to his business biography as of 2025, he was chairman of the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, chairman of the David Bohnett Foundation, vice chair of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and a trustee of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the University of Southern California, and amfAR (the Foundation for AIDS Research). ¹

1. David Bohnett. Baroda Ventures. Accessed September 25, 2025. https://www.barodaventures.com/david-bohnett
2. TIME100 Philanthropy: David Bohnett. Time, 2025. Accessed September 25, 2025. https://time.com/collections/time100-philanthropy-2025/7286034/david-bohnett/
3. “Purple People.” Forbes, September 1, 2003. Accessed September 25, 2025. https://www.forbes.com/forbes/2003/0901/072.html
4. https://time.com/collections/time100-philanthropy-2025/7286034/david-bohnett/
5. time
6. “Our Programs” David Bohnett Foundation. Accessed September 25, 2025. https://www.bohnettfoundation.org/programs/
7. Callahan, David. Fortunes of Change: The Rise of the Liberal Rich and the Remaking of America. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2010, 86–90.
8. David C. Bohnett Residential College. University of Southern California, Village USC. Accessed September 25, 2025. https://village.usc.edu/student-life/david-c-bohnett-residential-college/
9. Bohnett Fellowship. Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan. Accessed September 25, 2025. https://fordschool.umich.edu/bohnett-fellowship