Anna Chen
Investor
Madrona
Madrona investor focused on acceleration-stage intelligent apps, enterprise software, and consumer tech.
Bio
Professional summary
Matt McIlwain is a Seattle-based Managing Director at Madrona, where he focuses on founders building with applied machine learning, cloud computing, intelligent applications, and data-driven life science. Before joining Madrona in 2000, he held roles at Genuine Parts Company, McKinsey & Company, and Credit Suisse. His investment track record includes current investments such as A-Alpha Bio, Amperity, MotherDuck, Qumulo, Read AI, and Synthesize Bio, as well as past investments including Apptio, ExtraHop, Isilon Systems, Smartsheet, Turi, Xnor.ai, and XetHub. He has been recognized on the Forbes Midas List and was named to Business Insider's AI Power List in 2024.
Investment focus
Stage, sector, and overall fit
Stage
Seed to early-stageLong-term company building from Day One
Sector
AI / machine learningCloud infrastructureIntelligent applicationsTech-enabled life sciences
Thesis
Applied machine learning companiesCloud computing platforms and infrastructureEnterprise intelligent applicationsData science applied to life sciences
Notable companies
Selected portfolio companies the partner has backed
A-Alpha BioAmperityMotherDuckQumuloRead AISynthesize BioApptioExtraHopIsilon SystemsSmartsheetTuriXnor.aiXetHub
How to approach
Framing and angles for outreach
Pitch framing
Lead with a clear AI-native or cloud-native wedge, evidence of founder learning velocity, and a plan for durable value capture beyond model access. He appears especially relevant for companies applying ML to enterprise workflows, infrastructure, or life-science/data-science intersections.
Personalization hooks
- 1Reference his repeated writing on the reasoning revolution and durable AI-native company building.
- 2Connect the pitch to his interest in the intersection of life science and data science if relevant.
- 3Highlight how the company can become an intelligent application rather than a thin AI feature.
Recent signals
What the partner has said or done recently
Published or co-authored several 2025 Madrona perspectives on reasoning systems, intelligent applications, EdgeRunner AI, and generative genomics.
Business Insider named him to its 2024 AI Power List.
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