Laela Sturdy Has Been Named New CEO Of Google's CapitalG

One of the few women to head a significant venture business will be Sturdy.

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After overseeing CapitalG's high-profile investments in firms like Duolingo and Stripe Inc., Laela Sturdy will now serve as the fund's managing partner. Years after the industry promised it would do better on promoting women and investing in women founders, Sturdy will become one of the few women to manage a significant venture company as a result of the move.

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The CapitalG founder, David Lawee, will leave his position as managing partner as of this coming Wednesday but will remain with the company for a transitional period of many months. According to CapitalG, Lawee, 57, is getting ready to leave his board positions, with the exception of Lyft Inc., where he will continue to serve as an independent director.

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The independent investment company CapitalG, which is supported by Alphabet Inc.'s Google, has made a name for itself as a leader in investments in late-stage startups, or somewhat established businesses. Apart from Lyft and Stripe, other firms in its portfolio include Airbnb and Airbnb. During nearly ten years, CapitalG has made just 55 investments, following a focused strategy. Sturdy stated in an interview that she intended to quicken that pace.

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Sturdy, 45, was a driving force behind many of CapitalG's best investments. In 2015, when Gusto was a $560 million payroll services startup, she oversaw the $60 million fundraising round. Gusto had a valuation of approximately $10 billion at its most recent funding. She also oversaw the $45 million investment round for the language-learning software Duolingo in 2015, when the business had a $470 million valuation. The value of Duolingo during its initial public offering in 2021 was $6 billion. Then in 2016, she served as the leader of a funding round for the industry giant Stripe. Even following conversations to raise capital at a lower valuation, Stripe is currently among the most valuable firms in the world.

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In 2007, Sturdy began his Silicon Valley career at Google. On the company's emerging businesses team, she held executive positions and contributed to the development of products like Google Offers and Adwords Express. She met Lawee through Claire Hughes Johnson, a former coworker at Google who ultimately rose to the position of chief operational officer at Stripe. For the tech juggernaut, Lawee spent several years making acquisitions.

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After establishing the new business in 2013, Lawee immediately hired Sturdy to work on CapitalG. Years after Google Ventures, now known as GV, the company was created. While GV supports early-stage private companies, CapitalG's goal is to fund later-stage enterprises with larger sums of money, usually at least $50 million. It likewise supports public corporations on occasion.

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Sturdy claims she drew on her operational expertise when introducing new goods within a bigger company at CapitalG. In that way, I had started many enterprises for Google, she claimed. Sturdy studied businesses preparing to go public and "how to think about multiples and how they would trade" alongside Lawee and Gene Frantz, another partner and graduate of TPG, to learn about the financial side of the venture industry.

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Sturdy soon began to receive hits. Among them was UiPath Inc., a firm she supported and one of the biggest IPOs of 2021. According to the company, CapitalG's $160 million investment in UiPath increased to $2 billion.

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A woman being elevated to the position of CEO of an established venture capital firm is highly uncommon. Many of the female VC leaders quit their jobs at established companies to launch their own venture firms. Examples include Mary Meeker, previously of Kleiner Perkins, who founded Bond, and Katie Haun, formerly of Andreessen Horowitz, who founded Haun Ventures.

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Sturdy claimed that she gave different employment options in the field, including opening her own business, some thought. She admitted that she had considered her alternatives along the way. "I believe I am in the finest possible situation for me, and I am in a situation where I believe we can have a significant influence."

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CapitalG has the benefit of avoiding the tedious task of fundraising. Unlike to other businesses, which receive funding from affluent individuals, pension funds, and foundations, Alphabet was the sole source of the $4 billion CapitalG has invested throughout the years.

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In other ways, the alphabet is useful. Luis von Ahn, the chief executive officer of Duolingo, was introduced to Google's own subscription and advertising professionals by Sturdy as he was getting ready to monetize his software. While other venture companies occasionally employ consultants to assist founders, Sturdy claimed that having the specialists on staff is more effective and potentially have a greater impact.

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She added that the company's extensive staff network was a "big advantage," adding that "the Googlers love to do it because it's really pleasant to get exposed to a new startup and to meet that team."

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The venture capital business has struggled with a lack of female diversity over the years that Sturdy has worked at CapitalG. Ellen Pao, a former partner at Kleiner Perkins, sued the company for harassment and retaliation ten years ago. Even while Kleiner Perkins prevailed in the lawsuit, it highlighted a wider issue of discrimination against women at the company and in the technology sector at large. Many people in the sector have committed to improve in recent years. Yet, statistics shows that only 16% of venture firms' decision-makers are women.

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There are many people attempting to advance women's positions generally and "some outstanding (women) investors out there," according to Sturdy. Chief, a member network targeted at assisting women in leadership roles, is one of her more recent ventures. She remarked, "I'm interested to see what everyone can do to continue helping each other.