Greylock

Greylock explicitly focuses on AI‑first software across cybersecurity, infrastructure, SaaS (horizontal and vertical), consumer, marketplaces/commerce, and fintech/crypto. Their thesis centers on the belief that “every company will become an AI company” and that software will reshape industries, creating a new golden age for SaaS. The firm concentrates on Pre‑Seed, Seed, and Series A stages, with more than 80 % of investments being the first check, as reflected in Fund 17—a $1 B vehicle dedicated to these early stages. Geographically, Greylock is based in the Bay Area (Menlo Park and San Francisco) and primarily backs U.S.‑based founders, though its portfolio has global reach. The firm avoids capital‑intensive hardware and biotech, concentrating on software‑led opportunities. Its core value‑creation belief is deep partnership from idea to IPO, providing hands‑on company‑building (e.g., the Edge program) and large early‑stage capital to enable venture‑scale outcomes.

Greylock’s partnership philosophy starts “from Day One,” often at the concept stage. They invest before revenue or code, prioritizing the founder’s insight, ambition, and a venture‑scale opportunity. Partners consistently stress the primacy of team and distribution: former GP Sarah Guo says, “At the Series A, I’m betting on the early team more than anything else,” and Greylock “obsess[es] about distribution as much as product.” Reid Hoffman underscores contrarian conviction: “To achieve real success, you need to be contrarian and right.” On market and traction, Greylock expects clear evidence of a significant problem and a credible go‑to‑market path; internal advisors emphasize leading‑indicator frameworks (“When you try to do everything at once, you drive standards down”). A common filter is venture‑scale ambition; they state they are “appropriate only for founders with venture‑scale ambitions.” Deal‑breakers include unfocused GTM, vague customer problem, or insufficient leading indicators of repeatable sales motion.

• CylakeLead
  AI-native cybersecurity built for data sovereignty; Greylock led the $45M seed (March 2026).
• BasetenLead
  Provides AI application infrastructure, matching Greylock's AI + infrastructure investment theme.
• InstabaseLead
  Intelligent automation and data infrastructure for enterprises fits Greylock's enterprise software thesis.
• Abnormal AILead
  AI-first cloud email security is a core area of Greylock's cybersecurity focus.
• 7AI
  Agentic AI for security operations; Greylock participated in the seed, and the $130M Series A was led by Index Ventures.
• WisetackLead
  Fintech platform for BNPL services expands Greylock's thesis on software reshaping commerce and services.
• Resolve AI
  AI agents for SRE/DevOps align with Greylock's AI + infrastructure interests, though the firm only participated.

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  CapitalG

  Baseten