
Danielle is a Bay Area-based Partner on the Technology Investing Team, which she joined in 2017. She invests from seed to growth in generational companies across AI applications and physical AI. Her investments include Physical Intelligence, Databento, Beehiiv, Patreon, Workera.ai, among others. Prior to joining NEA, she was an investment banker at Goldman Sachs. She holds a BA in Economics, Business Institutions and Chinese from Northwestern University.
What’s a philosophy that guides your approach to relationship-building?
Trust and respect. Whether it’s a marriage, friendship, or a working relationship, all good relationships need these two ingredients. So many things have to go right for a company to be successful. Having relationships grounded in trust and respect among the team, with the board, and with lead investors is crucial.
How do you establish trust in your relationships with founders?
For me, it’s about having a high say-to-do ratio and demonstrating consistency in your follow-through, in your communication, and in how you show up—and it’s about sharing a few meals together. It’s also remembering that trust is not the same as having the same opinions.
Which parts of your personality make you well-suited for your role?
Curiosity and optimism. Both are needed to investigate problems deeply and to see the art of the possible in companies.
In your opinion, what matters most in the process of building a company?
Failing fast. There are few clichés that I believe in more deeply than this one, in life and in company building. Great companies are built by iterating with keen judgment, focus, and low ego.
How did your childhood shape who you are today?
I’ve always been a big reader and was surrounded by books growing up. One shelf in my room was dedicated to Time magazine’s annual Best Inventions issues. There was no digital print then, and they only came out once a year, so I would read them over and over again until some of the pages had to be taped together. I loved dreaming about the future and about new technologies that were being brought into the world. And now I get to do that every day.
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“Relentlessness, integrity, a clear right to win and a love for the work. We look for the same things in the founders we back as we do in ourselves.”