Haun Ventures is a venture capital firm created by Katie Haun. It was founded in 2022, and it is based in Menlo Park, California.  The firm operates through two investment platforms: a $500 million fund for early-stage ventures and a $1 billion fund dedicated to acceleration and growth. ^[1][2]

Overview

Firstly operating under the name of KRH Partners, Haun Ventures has raised a total of $1.5 billion, the largest amount raised by a solo female founder, according to PitchBook. The company invests in web3 startups in their seed and early stages, and also offers acceleration. ^[4]

“We believe the next generation of the internet deserves a new generation of investors” - Katie Haun

Haun Ventures' approach involves two key aspects. Firstly, Haun Ventures aims to assist founders in delivering system change. They collaborate with their portfolio companies to lead a global campaign for web3. This campaign involves dispelling misperceptions, engaging policymakers, showcasing positive use cases, and gaining support from leaders across sectors. Secondly, Haun Ventures emphasizes community participation as an integral part of its practices. They have implemented innovative programs to delegate governance rights and tokens to civil society groups, universities, and non-profit organizations.^[7]

Team

Leadership

Katie Haun - Founder and CEO

Katie Haun is the Founder and CEO of Haun Ventures. Prior to founding Haun Ventures, Katie worked as a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), where she co-led the firm's crypto funds. Before joining a16z, she spent over a decade as a federal prosecutor, specializing in fraud, cybercrime, and corporate crime cases. She worked closely with agencies like the SEC, FBI, and Treasury, and played a key role in investigating high-profile cases such as the Mt. Gox hack and corruption within the Silk Road task force. Currently, Katie serves on the board of Coinbase. ^[3]

Investment Team

Sam Rosenblum - Partner and Investment Team Lead

Sam Rosenblum is the Partner and Investment Team Lead at Haun Ventures. Previously, he held the position of general partner at Polychain Capital, where he contributed to institutionalizing the firm and leading business development efforts for their $5 billion Crypto Fund and $300 million Venture Fund II. Prior to that, Sam worked at Coinbase for five years, where he served as a Director of Global Business Development. During his time at Coinbase, he led various initiatives, including international expansion, corporate development, strategic partnerships, and special projects for the office of the Chief Technology Officer (CTO). He was responsible for Coinbase's first venture investment and played a key role in building Coinbase Ventures. Before entering the crypto industry, Sam gained experience in strategic initiatives at Visa, worked as a hedge fund strategy analyst at Lake Partners, and served as an M&A specialist at the U.S. Department of Justice. Sam is an alumnus of the Honors College at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). ^[3]

Chris Ahn - Partner

Chris Ahn is a Partner at Haun Ventures. He began his career at Morgan Stanley and later joined Hellman & Friedman, an investment firm managing over $80 billion in assets. At Hellman & Friedman, he developed an interest in open-source technology, leading him to join GitHub in 2015. At GitHub, Chris engaged in various initiatives, including establishing and leading the Strategic Finance and Business Operations teams, creating the company's first operating plan, scaling the sales team, launching the marketplace product, and overseeing the acquisition by Microsoft. ^[3]

After the GitHub acquisition, Chris became a Partner at Index Ventures, where he focused on investing in community-led businesses. He participated in sponsoring Index's investments in companies like Notion and Figma. Additionally, Chris spearheaded their crypto efforts and led their investment in Fireblocks. Originally from Korea, Chris holds a B.S. degree in Foreign Service for International Economics from Georgetown University. ^[3]

Breck Stodghill - Investment Associate

Breck Stodghill is serving as an Investment Associate at Haun Ventures. Previously, he was the first employee at Zora, where he served as a senior software engineer. Breck's contributions to Zora included working on the core protocol, developing and managing SDKs, and overseeing the scalability of the backend infrastructure that powers the Zora API. ^[3]

Prior to joining Zora, Breck began his career on the crypto engineering team at Coinbase, a leading cryptocurrency exchange. At Coinbase, he participated in building systems that facilitated the expansion of retail and institutional support for over 50 new crypto assets. Breck holds a cum laude Bachelor of Science degree from Vanderbilt University, where he pursued a double major in Computer Science and Human and Organizational Development. ^[3]

Operating Team

Chris Lehane - Chief Strategy Officer

Chris Lehane holds the position of Chief Strategy Officer at Haun Ventures. Before joining Haun Ventures, he served as a member of Airbnb's executive management team, overseeing the company's policy and communications efforts from 2015 to 2021. Prior to Airbnb, Chris co-founded Fabiani & Lehane, a strategic consultancy that provided advisory services to clients in the political, corporate, technology, entertainment, and professional sports sectors. In the 1990s, he held various roles in the administration of President Bill Clinton, including serving as Press Secretary to Vice President Al Gore and as Special Assistant Counsel to President Clinton. Chris has also contributed as a Lecturer in Management at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Chris holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Amherst College and a Juris Doctor degree from Harvard Law School.^[3]

Tomicah Tillemann - Chief Policy Officer

Tomicah is the Chief Policy Officer at Haun Ventures. Prior to joining Haun Ventures, he served as the Global Head of Policy at a16z Crypto, overseeing policy engagement on digital assets and web3. Tomicah has also led initiatives at New America, including the Digital Impact and Governance Initiative, the Responsible Asset Allocator Initiative, and the Blockchain Trust Accelerator. He began his career in Washington, D.C., working on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Tomicah holds a B.A. magna cum laude from Yale University and a Ph.D. with distinction from the School for Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University. ^[3]

Rachael Horwitz - Chief Marketing Officer

Rachael Horwitz is the Chief Marketing Officer at Haun Ventures. Before joining Haun Ventures, she held the position of Operating Partner at a16z Crypto, where she was responsible for leading marketing and communications. Prior to that, Rachael served as the Vice President of Communications at Coinbase. She has also served as the Communications Director at Google, Facebook, and Twitter, as well as a Marketing & Communications Partner at Spark Capital. Rachael began her career at Greer, Margolis, Mitchell, Burns & Associates, a communications firm specializing in political consulting and issues management. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Washington. ^[3]

James Rathmell - General Counsel

James holds the position of General Counsel at Haun Ventures. Prior to joining Haun Ventures, he served as the Crypto Counsel at a16z Crypto, where he focused on the firm's policy and regulatory strategy. James has previous experience as a lawyer at Cooley LLP in San Francisco, where he provided legal counsel to venture capital firms, public companies, and startups on various matters, including private placements, capital markets offerings, and corporate governance. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics-Philosophy from Columbia University, a Juris Doctor degree from Stanford Law School, and a Master of Business Administration degree from Stanford Graduate School of Business. ^[3]

Kindra Mason - Chief of Staff

Kindra serves as the Chief of Staff at Haun Ventures. Before joining the company, she held the position of Chief of Staff to Katie Haun at a16z crypto, where her responsibilities encompassed areas such as founder interactions, portfolio management, and network development. Prior to that, Kindra worked as the Director of Community at M13 and held an Events Partner role at a16z. She also had roles at companies such as Dropbox, Microsoft, and Google. Kindra's educational background includes a Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard University and an M.B.A. from Stanford Graduate School of Business. ^[3]

Nick Pacilio - Director of Communications

Nick Pacilio is the Director of Communications at Haun Ventures. Before joining the company, he served as the Head of Media Relations at a16z crypto. Prior to that, Nick worked as a Senior Communications Manager at Twitter and as the Press Secretary to Kamala Harris in the California Attorney General's Office. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Media Studies from The University of California, Berkeley. ^[3]

Stephanie Watkins - Director of Executive Affairs

Stephanie is Director of Executive Affairs at Haun Ventures. Prior to joining Haun Ventures, Stephanie served as an Executive Assistant at a16z Crypto, where she supported Katie Haun. Previously, Stephanie served in various roles including Director of Corporate Affairs and Executive Assistant at several investment firms.
Stephanie holds a B.A. in Sociology from San Francisco State University. ^[3]

Nicole Gonzales - Executive Assistant

Nicole is an Executive Assistant at Haun Ventures. Prior to joining Haun Ventures, Nicole worked as an Executive Assistant at Airbnb, where she supported the company’s policy and communications team. Nicole holds a B.A. in Business Management from San Francisco State University. ^[3]

Portfolio

Some of its notable investments include Portal Labs, Sovereign Labs, TaxBit, Exponential, Thirdweb, Euler, and Zora. ^[5][6]