Marc Andreessen

Marc Andreessen graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a degree in computer science. While a student he helped develop the Mosaic web browser — the first browser to display images inline with text — which became the foundation of the World Wide Web as a mass consumer medium. He co-founded Netscape Communications in 1994, and its 1995 IPO was one of the first major internet IPOs, valued at $3 billion on its first day of trading. Netscape was eventually acquired by AOL for $4.2 billion. After several other ventures, Andreessen co-founded Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) with Ben Horowitz in 2009. a16z pioneered a new model of venture capital that combined traditional investment with extensive support services for portfolio companies — a full-stack VC that invested in people, technical advice, executive recruiting, and sales introductions. The firm has backed some of the most valuable technology companies of the past 15 years, including Facebook (early investor), Twitter, GitHub (acquired by Microsoft for $7.5B), Airbnb, Lyft, and Coinbase. a16z has been one of the most aggressive investors in cryptocurrency and blockchain infrastructure, betting on a Web3 paradigm. Andreessen articulated his worldview in a 2011 Wall Street Journal essay titled "Why Software Is Eating the World," which described the structural shift toward software companies in every industry. He is one of the most influential voices in technology investing.