Blond bids farewell to Founders Fund after just 18 months
In a surprise announcement, Sam Blond has announced his departure from Founders Fund, one of Silicon Valley’s most prestigious venture capital firms. After less than two years with the firm, Blond has decided to leave the world of venture capital behind and return to the world of operating within companies.
In a tweet on Monday, Blond expressed his gratitude for the opportunity to work at Peter Thiel’s VC firm, saying, “Full time investing / being a VC isn’t the right fit for me and I’ve decided to go back to operating.” This decision likely means that Blond either has or is in the process of accepting a position at a startup or another tech company, or potentially even founding his own startup.
Before joining Founders Fund, Blond was known for his role as Chief Revenue Officer at Brex. While Brex is not a portfolio company of Founders Fund, the firm is an investor in one of Brex’s biggest competitors, Ramp. Blond’s transition to venture capital raised some eyebrows, especially since Brex had reached “decacorn” status with a $300 million raise in September 2022. Such successful times for a company typically have employees eagerly anticipating potential IPOs or other exits, making Blond’s departure at that time all the more curious. Prior to Brex, he had served as VP of sales at Zenefits, a once high-flying HR tech startup, which was also backed by Founders Fund and ultimately acquired by Trinet in 2022.
Blond’s departure appears to be an amicable one, with a Founders Fund spokesperson stating, “Sam is a fantastic operator and he’s been a great resource for our founders. We hope to have the opportunity to work with him again.” This statement also hints that the firm may consider backing Blond’s future endeavors, or at least hear his pitch.
This is the second notable departure from Founders Fund in recent months, following Keith Rabois’ surprising decision to leave in January and return to his former firm, Khosla Ventures.
It’s uncommon for senior partners to leave one VC firm for another, as their success and earnings are tied to the results of their investments, which can take years to mature. This creates strong incentives for them to stay put. However, those with backgrounds in startup operations, like Blond, who have also invested their own money, often move on from VC roles after a relatively short time. Investing with other people’s money requires a different skillset.
Founders Fund has a unique approach to working with founders, standing out among Silicon Valley firms. As partner Trae Stephens explained at the Strictly VC LA event last week, “We are founder absolutists… we always vote with founders. And at the point that a company no longer has a founder as CEO, we are out. We don’t invest in non-founder led businesses.” This philosophy does not preclude partners from also being founders of their own startups, as Thiel famously founded Palantir, Rabois founded OpenStore, and Stephens co-founded Anduril.
At Founders Fund, involvement in the companies they back is not encouraged, as partners are seen as more valuable when they are not actively involved in operations. As Stephens put it, “The more that a VC says, ‘I’m going to add value,’ the more you should hear them say, ‘I’m going to annoy the ever living crap out of you for the rest of the time that I’m on the cap table.’ So I think our approach is more, you know, we’re going to invest in the company because we believe that that founder or that group of founders are the people that are going to grow this business.” This dynamic means that a VC’s success at Founders Fund hinges on choosing successful investments while having little say in how those companies are run.
While the reasons for Blond’s departure may never be fully known, it appears that he has chosen to leave the VC world behind and return to operating within companies. As for Founders Fund, they continue to maintain their unique approach to working with founders and investing in businesses. Time will tell if Blond’s future endeavors will involve working with the firm once again.
