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Person

Steve Jurvetson

Nationality:

American
Occupation:

Venture Capitalist
Political Party:

Democrat Party
Residence:

Los Altos, California

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Steve Jurvetson is a venture capitalist who supports the left-of-center Audacious Project, 1 which he has called a “bold adventure in social philanthropy.” 2 Steve Jurvetson is the ex-husband of Karla Jurvetson, a major donor to Democratic Party candidates and political action committees (PACs). 3

In 2016, Steve Jurvetson was appointed by President Barack Obama as a Presidential Ambassador for Global Leadership. 4 5 Jurvetson supported the 2020 presidential campaign of Joe Biden 6 and celebrated Biden’s election victory over then-President Donald Trump on Twitter. 7

Career

Steve Jurvetson is a venture capitalist who was an early investor in Hotmail, Tesla, and SpaceX and is the co-founder of the venture capitalism firm Future Ventures. 8

Jurvetson has been the managing director of Future Ventures since he founded the firm in 2018. He is a board member of aerospace company SpaceX and was a board member of American electric vehicle producer Tesla from 2006 until 2020. Previously, Jurvetson was co-founder of the venture capital firm Draper Fisher Jurvetson (DFJ) as well as its managing director. In 2017, he resigned from the company after facing a sexual harassment allegation, which he denied. 9 Jurvetson has also held positions at Apple, Bain and Company, and Hewlett-Packard (HP). 10

Steve Jurvetson has also been selected by Forbes as one of technology’s best venture investors and named venture capitalist of the year by business consulting company Deloitte. 11

Political Activities

Steve Jurvetson and his second wife, Genevieve Jurvetson, financially support the left-of-center Audacious Project 12 with others including Chris Larsen, Lyda Hill Philanthropies, and Hansjorg Wyss. The Audacious Project in turn helps fund the left-of-center U.S. Alliance for Election Excellence and the Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL). 13

Jurvetson has called the Audacious Project a “bold adventure in social philanthropy,” 14 supports the far-left Black Lives Matter movement, 15 and attacked Pope Francis for calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine War. 16

In 2020, Jurvetson supported the 2020 presidential campaign of Joe Biden 17 and celebrated Biden’s election victory over then-President Donald Trump on Twitter. 18

In 2016, Jurvetson was appointed by President Barack Obama as a Presidential Ambassador for Global Leadership. 19 20

Jurvetson supported the 2008 presidential campaign of then-Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) 21 and attended the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado. On his Flickr photo stream, Jurvetson shared photos that were supportive of Obama, former President Bill Clinton, and then-Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY). 22 23

At the state-level, Jurvetson supported Colorado Proposition 122, the Decriminalization and Regulated Access Program for Certain Psychedelic Plants and Fungi Initiative, in 2022. The successful ballot initiative allows personal access to natural psychedelic substances in the state. 24 25

Personal Information

Steve Jurvetson was married to Karla Jurvetson, a major donor to Democratic candidates and PACs, from 1990 until she filed for divorce in 2016. 26 Since the divorce, Karla Jurvetson has become a leading female donor to Democratic-aligned campaigns and PACs. She donated over $20 million to these causes in the 2020 election cycle, and much of her fortune is derived from the investments of her ex-husband. 27 28

In 2018, Steve Jurvetson married Geneveive Jurvetson. 29 30 They live in Los Altos, California, 31 and operate the Jurvetson Family Foundation. 32 Steve Jurvetson has a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering and computer science, a Master of Science in electrical engineering, and a Master of Business Administration from Stanford University. 33

References

  1. “Facebook Post.” Steve Jurvetson Facebook. Posted April 18, 2019. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10161693678750611.
  2. “Tweet.” Steve Jurvetson Twitter. Posted April 18, 2019. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://twitter.com/FutureJurvetson/status/1119037170193502209.
  3. Schleifer, Theodore. “The Los Altos Shrink Taking Over Washington.” Puck. September 21, 2021. Accessed via Web Archive April 16, 2023. https://archive.ph/JzAoa/again?url=https://puck.news/karla-jurvetson-goes-for-broke/.
  4. “Tweet.” Steve Jurvetson Twitter. Posted June 24, 2019. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://twitter.com/FutureJurvetson/status/1143203814708695048.
  5. “Steve Jurvetson.” Future Ventures. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://future.ventures/bio.
  6. “Tweet.” Steve Jurvetson Twitter. Posted November 6, 2020. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://twitter.com/futurejurvetson/status/1324846173706878976.
  7. “Tweet.” Steve Jurvetson Twitter. Posted November 7, 2020. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://twitter.com/FutureJurvetson/status/1325118214888591362.
  8. “Steve Jurvetson.” Future Ventures. Accessed April 16, 2023. https://future.ventures/bio.
  9. Claire Cain Miller, Katie Benner, and Jodi Kantor. “Steve Jurvetson Quits Venture Capital Firm Amid Investigation.” New York Times. November 13, 2017. Accessed via Web Archive April 15, 2023. https://archive.ph/TbP8L.
  10. “Experience.” Steve Jurvetson LinkedIn. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevejurvetson/details/experience/.
  11. “Steve Jurvetson.” Future Ventures. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://future.ventures/bio.
  12. “Facebook Post.” Steve Jurvetson Facebook. Posted April 18, 2019. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10161693678750611.
  13. “Protein design named as an Audacious project.” UW Medicine. April 16, 2019. Accessed April 19, 2023. https://newsroom.uw.edu/news/protein-design-named-audacious-project-0.
  14.  “Tweet.” Steve Jurvetson Twitter. Posted April 18, 2019. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://twitter.com/FutureJurvetson/status/1119037170193502209.
  15. “Tweet.” Steve Jurvetson Twitter. Posted June 8, 2020. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://twitter.com/futurejurvetson/status/1270181729337094144.
  16. “Tweet.” Steve Jurvetson Twitter. Posted October 2, 2022. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://twitter.com/FutureJurvetson/status/1576599482824724481.
  17. “Tweet.” Steve Jurvetson Twitter. Posted November 6, 2020. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://twitter.com/futurejurvetson/status/1324846173706878976.
  18. “Tweet.” Steve Jurvetson Twitter. Posted November 7, 2020. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://twitter.com/FutureJurvetson/status/1325118214888591362.
  19. “Tweet.” Steve Jurvetson Twitter. Posted June 24, 2019. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://twitter.com/FutureJurvetson/status/1143203814708695048.
  20. “Steve Jurvetson.” Future Ventures. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://future.ventures/bio.
  21. “Looking forward to the DNC.” Flickr Photo Caption, Steve Jurvetson. Posted 2008. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://www.flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/2793519826/.
  22. “Biden & Obama.” Flickr Photo Caption, Steve Jurvetson. Posted 2008. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://www.flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/2806182499/in/photostream/.
  23. “The Clintons.” Flickr Photo Caption, Steve Jurvetson. Posted 2008. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://www.flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/2807007696/in/photostream/.
  24. “Tweet.” Steve Jurvetson Twitter. Posted November 9, 2022. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://twitter.com/FutureJurvetson/status/1590398820252516352?cxt=HHwWgIDQxZ_TnZIsAAAA.
  25. “Proposition 122: Access to Natural Psychedelic Substances.” Colorado Legislative Council. Accessed April 16, 2023. https://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/initiative%2520referendum_proposition%20122%20final%20lc%20packet.pdf.
  26. Schleifer, Theodore. “The Los Altos Shrink Taking Over Washington.” Puck. September 21, 2021. Accessed via Web Archive April 16, 2023. https://archive.ph/JzAoa/again?url=https://puck.news/karla-jurvetson-goes-for-broke/.
  27. Geng, Lucia. “New faces emerge among top political donors in 2020.” Open Secrets. October 5, 2020. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2020/10/donors-top-2020-10/.
  28. Smith, Kyle. “The Party of Plutocracy.” National Review. January 19, 2022. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/the-party-of-plutocracy/.
  29. “For our first Anniversary… revisiting my Wedding Vows.” Steve Jurvetson Flickr. Accessed April 16, 2023. https://www.flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/49312007161.
  30. “Tweet.” Steve Jurvetson Twitter. Posted January 3, 2018. Accessed April 16, 2023. https://twitter.com/FutureJurvetson/status/1080961731944275968.
  31. “Stephen Jurvetson.” Forbes Profile. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://www.forbes.com/profile/stephen-jurvetson/?sh=26abdf2874fe.
  32. “About Us.” Jurvetson Family Foundation. Accessed April 16, 2023. https://www.jurvetson.org/aboutus.
  33. “Education.” Steve Jurvetson LinkedIn Profile. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevejurvetson/details/education/
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