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Person

Mark Stevens

Occupation:

Venture capitalist
Position:

Partner, S-Cubed Capital
Net worth:

$3.3 billion
Lives:

Menlo Park, California

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Mark A. Stevens is a billionaire venture capitalist and left-of-center philanthropist based in Menlo Park, California. Stevens currently works as managing partner at S-Cubed Capital, a venture capital firm he founded with his personal fortune that invests in startups. Prior to founding S-Cubed Capital, Stevens worked as a partner at Sequoia Capital. During his time at Sequoia, the firm invested in technology companies including Apple and Google, growing its fund to become one of the largest venture capital firms in the United States. 1

Stevens sits on a variety of philanthropic boards and has made several charitable contributions, including a gift totaling over $100 million to the University of Southern California (USC), Stevens’s alma mater. 2 Much of Stevens’s recent career in venture capitalism, particularly his enduring involvement at Sequoia Capital, focused on environment, social, and governance investing, an investment approach that promotes left-of-center corporate policy. 3

Background

Stevens began his career in sales at the Hughes Aircraft Company before moving into a sales position at Intel. Stevens joined Sequoia Capital in 1989 as an associate and became a partner at the firm in 1993.

During his time as a partner at Sequoia, the firm made several lucrative investments at technology companies including Apple, PayPal, and Google. Stevens worked as a director for several prominent accounts during his time at Sequoia, including AtWeb (acquired by Netscape/AOL), Billpoint (acquired by Ebay), Commquest (acquired by IBM), Stratum One (acquired by Cisco), and Terayon Communications (acquired by Motorola). 4

Stevens currently sits on the corporate boards of Nvidia, Quantenna, Innovium, and Second Spectrum. He also sits on the board of trustees at USC and the board of the United States Olympic Committee Foundation. 5

Stevens owns an 8% stake in the Golden State Warriors, a team in the National Basketball Association (NBA). In 2019, Stevens made national news when game officials threw Stevens out of an NBA Finals game after he pushed and taunted Toronto Raptors player Kyle Lowry. In response, the NBA fined Stevens $500,000 and banned Stevens from all NBA and Warriors activities for one year. 6

S-Cubed Capital

Upon leaving Sequoia Capital in March of 2012, Stevens retained the title of special limited partner at Sequoia. Stevens then founded S-Cubed Capital, a venture capital firm that invests in technology, financial asset management, sports management, agribusiness, and real estate. The firm also manages the Stevens family office and the Stevens family’s personal philanthropy. 7

Philanthropy

Stevens and his family support a variety of non-profits in the San Francisco Bay Area. Most notably, Stevens has given over $100 million to USC and the USC Stevens Center for Innovation is named after him. 8

Mark and his wife Mary Stevens have also signed the Giving Pledge, an initiative led by Warren Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates that commits billionaires to donating the majority of their wealth in their lifetimes. 9

Stevens has also provided philanthropic support for organizations including:10

  • The Hoover Institution
  • Harvard Business School
  • Boys & Girls Club of the Peninsula
  • Culver City Education Foundation
  • TESS Research Foundation
  • San Francisco 49ers Academy
  • BUILD (Businesses United in Investing Lending and Development)
  • Law Foundation of Silicon Valley
  • Vote Tipton
  • Save the Waves

References

  1. “Mark Stevens.” S Cubed Capital. Accessed September 30, 2020. http://www.scubedcap.com/mark-stevens
  2. Di Rado, Alicia. “Mark Stevens’ Trojan Success Story.” USC. Winter 2017. https://news.usc.edu/trojan-family/mark-stevens-usc-trojan-success-story/
  3. “China’s Interest in ESG Investing Blossoms” FOF Weekly. August 2, 2020. Accessed September 30, 2020. https://medium.com/@fofweekly/chinas-interest-in-esg-investing-blossoms-88ee09f264cc
  4. “Mark Stevens.” S Cubed Capital. Accessed September 30, 2020. http://www.scubedcap.com/mark-stevens
  5. “Mark Stevens.” S Cubed Capital. Accessed September 30, 2020. http://www.scubedcap.com/mark-stevens
  6. Au-Yeung, Angel. “Meet Mark Stevens, The Silicon Valley Billionaire Banned From NBA Games, Fined $500,000” Forbes. June 6, 2019. Accessed September 30, 2020. https://www.forbes.com/sites/angelauyeung/2019/06/06/who-is-the-silicon-valley-billionaire-banned-from-the-nba-finals-mark-stevens/#749523aa416f
  7. Au-Yeung, Angel. “Meet Mark Stevens, The Silicon Valley Billionaire Banned From NBA Games, Fined $500,000” Forbes. June 6, 2019. Accessed September 30, 2020. https://www.forbes.com/sites/angelauyeung/2019/06/06/who-is-the-silicon-valley-billionaire-banned-from-the-nba-finals-mark-stevens/#749523aa416f
  8. Di Rado, Alicia. “Mark Stevens’ Trojan Success Story.” USC. Winter 2017. https://news.usc.edu/trojan-family/mark-stevens-usc-trojan-success-story/
  9. “The Giving Pledge” Mark Stevens. Accessed September 30, 2020. https://markstevens.com/mark-and-mary-stevens-the-giving-pledge/
  10. “Philanthropy” Mark Stevens. Accessed September 30, 2020. https://markstevens.com/philanthropy/
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