Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, LLC, commonly known as Kleiner Perkins, is an American venture capital firm specializing in early-stage and growth company investments. Since its founding in 1972, the firm has backed notable companies including Amazon.com, OpenAI (via Anthropic), Waymo, and Google. By 2024, it had raised 21 venture capital funds and six growth funds, and in 2026 it announced KP22, a $1 billion early-stage fund, alongside $2.5 billion in growth funds, with a focus on AI startups. The firm is headquartered in Menlo Park, California, with offices in San Francisco and Shanghai.
History
Kleiner Perkins was formed in 1972 by Eugene Kleiner, Tom Perkins, Frank J. Caufield, and Brook Byers, with the name later changing to Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers. It was the first venture capital firm to open an office on Sand Hill Road, helping create the VC cluster there. The firm navigated the 1974 market downturn and by 1996 had funded around 260 companies totaling $880 million. Notable partners have included John Doerr, Vinod Khosla, and Bill Joy. In 2005, Colin Powell joined as a strategic partner, and Al Gore joined in 2007. Mary Meeker joined in 2010, expanding growth-stage investing, but left in 2019. In 2018, the digital growth team spun out, and in 2019, Mamoon Hamid and Ilya Fushman rebooted the firm with KP XVIII. The firm raised KP20 in 2022, KP21 in 2024, and in 2026 announced $3.5 billion for AI-focused investments.
Investments
Kleiner Perkins has been an early investor in over 900 technology and life sciences firms. Notable investments include Amazon.com, Apple (via iFund), Google, Intel (early), Tesla (via early backing), and Anthropic. The firm launched the iFund in 2008 for iPhone-related startups, the sFund in 2010 for social startups, and has invested in companies like Netscape, Genentech, and Electronic Arts. Recent investments include Waymo, Glean, Rippling, and Harvey. In 1994, a $5 million investment in Netscape yielded significant returns from its IPO, and an $8 million investment in Cerent returned about $2 billion when Cisco acquired it in 1999. A $12 million stake in Google in 1999 grew substantially as Google's parent company reached an estimated $831 billion market cap by 2019.
Key Partners
Managing partners and advisors include John Doerr (chairman), Brook Byers (founder), Al Gore, Ilya Fushman, Mamoon Hamid, and Ted Schlein. These individuals have shaped the firm's strategy across decades, from early tech to current AI focus.
Legal and Strategic Developments
In 2012, employee Ellen Pao sued Kleiner Perkins for gender discrimination; the jury found against Pao on all claims in 2015, and she later dropped her appeal. The firm has also adapted to market changes, spinning out its growth team in 2018 and rebooting under new leadership in 2019.
See Also
- List of venture capital firms