Our Haute 100 list details the accomplishments of the most influential people in each of our markets—Miami, New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. These people continue to make moves, so rather than waiting for the next Haute 100 issue to come out, we thought we’d provide you with regular updates on those Haute 100 members who are making headlines. Check back daily for more info on the most powerful people in your city. “Friending” big names such as Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos, L. John Doerr is taking Kleiner Perkins Caufiled & Byers back to its early dominance in consumer Internet by partnering with Facebook, Amazon and Zynga to form sFund, a $250 million investment fund providing financial support for build social applications and services.
L. John Doerr
Category: Billionaires
Company: Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers
Industry: Venture Capitalism
What Made Him Haute: 2009 was a big year for venture capitalist L. John Doerr. Not only was the billionaire investor named a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, but he also was appointed to the President’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board. His role? Provide advice to the president and his administration on the best strategy for returning America to its glory days of prosperity once again. With the Silicon Valley company Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, he has invested in Netscape, Google and Amazon, and is a board member for the latter two.
What Makes Him Haute Now: John Doerr is getting social in Silicon Valley. Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers is establishing a $250 million investment fund, dubbed “sFund,” to aide entrepreneurs with tech start-ups focused on social media. The venture capitalist king showed his face and spoke his mind at Facebook Inc.’s Palo Alto office where the announcement was made at a press conference on Oct. 21. KPCB aims “to find and fund and accelerate the success of these new kinds of social entrepreneurs,” Doerr says. Joining the KPCB partner at the conference were Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, Marc Pincus and Bing Gordon. Although KPCB will provide most of the $250 million, Facebook, Amazon and Zynga are said to be anchor investors, and Comcast, Allen & Co. LLC and Liberty Media are also expected to contribute to sFund.
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November 1, 2010Haute 100 New York Update: Marc Jacobs
