History

NEA started more than 30 years ago with a big idea: to create an enduring venture capital firm that would help exceptional entrepreneurs to build transformational businesses.

Our founders wanted to build a sustainable organization based on shared goals and values. They believed that successful long-term investors must be nimble, able to select best-of-breed deals and allocate capital in the right place and at the right time. They believed in rolling up their sleeves to help entrepreneurs build successful companies. In 1977, this meant founding the industry’s first truly bi-coastal firm, enabling NEA to find the best opportunities at the source of innovation, whether east or west coast, and to build a vast network of resources and expertise.

The dream that launched NEA is now shared by more than 65 investing professionals around the world, partnering with visionary entrepreneurs to build innovative companies with exceptional growth potential. As the world’s largest venture capital firm, NEA has more than $13 billion in committed capital across 14 funds, with investing activities across six continents and affiliate offices in India and China.

NEA has funded businesses that have literally transformed everyday life. Our portfolio of historic investments includes companies that have grown to become household names such as 3com, TiVo, Macromedia, CareerBuilder and Salesforce.com. The top 100 companies in our portfolio have generated more than $100 billion in peak annual revenues and employed nearly 300,000 people. Today, NEA has more than 300 active investments in the next generation of market leaders.

Our history of success is no fluke: NEA has ranked consistently among the top firms in portfolio IPOs year in and year out. This legacy of success is built upon the firm’s philosophy of shared achievement and is continually supported by our seasoned team of general partners and investment professionals, many of whom have been CEOs of leading technology and healthcare companies.

Yet while we take pride in our history, we believe that the most compelling stories are being written right now, by entrepreneurs with bold dreams inspired by big ideas. With our strong capital base, extensive insight and domain expertise, we’re here to help write those stories. Check out our portfolio or read about our investing strategy to learn more.