# Michael Moritz

Sir Michael Jonathan Moritz (born 12 September 1954) is a Welsh billionaire venture capitalist, author, and former journalist, known for his work at Sequoia Capital and early investments in Google and other tech firms.

Sir Michael Jonathan Moritz (born 12 September 1954) is a Welsh billionaire venture capitalist, philanthropist, author, and former journalist. He is best known for his long tenure at [Sequoia Capital](https://www.wikiprompt.org/wiki/sequoia-capital), where he backed some of the most influential technology companies of the internet era, including Google, Yahoo!, and PayPal. Moritz also wrote the first history of Apple Inc., *The Little Kingdom*, and authored *Going for Broke: Lee Iacocca's Battle to Save Chrysler*. He was named the No. 1 venture capitalist on the Forbes Midas List in 2006 and 2007.

## Early life and education

Moritz was born to a Jewish family in Cardiff, Wales, on 12 September 1954. His father, Ludwig Alfred Moritz (1921–2003), fled Nazi Germany and became a professor of Classics at Cardiff University, later serving as its Vice Principal (Administration). His mother, Doris (née Rath; 1924–2019), also fled Nazi Germany. Moritz attended Howardian High School in Cardiff.

He earned a bachelor's degree in history at Christ Church, Oxford, and in 1978 an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania as a Thouron scholar.

## Journalism career

Moritz began his career as a journalist. In the early 1980s, while a reporter for *Time* magazine, Steve Jobs recruited him to document the development of the Macintosh for a book about Apple. By late 1982, Moritz was *Time*'s San Francisco Bureau Chief and worked on the special Person of the Year issue, which was initially intended to feature Jobs. His research included an interview with Jobs' ex-girlfriend Chrisann Brennan about their child, Lisa, leading to a denial of paternity from Jobs. The issue was ultimately renamed Machine of the Year, celebrating the computer rather than an individual. Jobs cut off ties with Moritz after publication, but Moritz's book, *The Little Kingdom: The Private Story of Apple Computer*, was released in 1984 and became a definitive account.

In 2009, Moritz published *Return to the Little Kingdom: How Apple and Steve Jobs Changed the World*, a revised and expanded edition. In its prologue, he expressed his own frustration with the *Time* article, noting that it 'siphoned, filtered, and poisoned' his material, and that the experience led him to seek roles where he could control his own destiny.

## Venture capital career

In 1986, Moritz joined Sequoia Capital after co-authoring *Going for Broke: The Chrysler Story* with Barrett Seaman. Before that, he had co-founded Technologic Partners, a technology newsletter and conference company.

His investments at Sequoia included Google, Yahoo!, Skyscanner, PayPal, Webvan, YouTube, eToys, and Zappos. He served on the boards of numerous companies, including Google, LinkedIn, Stripe, and Klarna. The 2004 initial public offering of Google made Moritz one of Wales' richest men. His investment in Google helped him top the Forbes Midas List in 2006 and 2007, and he ranked second in 2008 and 2009.

In July 2023, Moritz stepped down from Sequoia after nearly four decades, though he remained on the boards of Stripe, Klarna, and Instacart. He shifted focus to Sequoia Heritage, a wealth-management fund he helped launch, which became independent of Sequoia Capital.

## Later ventures and philanthropy

Moritz funded The San Francisco Standard, a for-profit news website focused on San Francisco, with offices in the Mission District. Griffin Gaffney serves as CEO of the site and is also a co-founder of Here/Say Media and TogetherSF, Moritz-funded 501(c)4 organizations.

Moritz has also been an early investor in artificial intelligence, backing companies such as [OpenAI](https://www.wikiprompt.org/wiki/openai) and [Anthropic](https://www.wikiprompt.org/wiki/anthropic) through Sequoia, reflecting his interest in [artificial-intelligence](https://www.wikiprompt.org/wiki/artificial-intelligence) and [machine-learning](https://www.wikiprompt.org/wiki/machine-learning) technologies.

## Honours

In July 2010, Moritz received an honorary fellowship from Cardiff University. In July 2014, he was honoured as a fellow of Aberystwyth University. In November 2014, he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Moritz was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) for services to philanthropy and technology.

## External links

- [Wikipedia: Michael Moritz](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Moritz)

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Source: https://www.wikiprompt.org/wiki/michael-moritz
License: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
Last updated: 2026-10-10T05:29:01.710747+00:00