Greylock Caps New $1.5B Fund Despite Ability to Raise More

Venture capital firm Greylock Partners, founded over 60 years ago, has closed its 18th fund at $1.5B. While this represents a 50% increase over its previous $1B fund, it falls short of the capital Greylock could have raised. Partner Saam Motamedi noted that the firm could have attracted several times more, but deliberately capped the fund to maintain high-quality support for portfolio companies.

Greylock is renowned for its hands-on investment approach, focusing on early-stage startups (seed and Series A) and actively guiding their growth. Partners personally mentor founders, helping recruit talent and secure customers. A prime example is Baseten, which grew to a $13B valuation after Greylock’s 2022 investment. However, as Motamedi emphasizes, this level of support is only sustainable with a limited number of portfolio companies—roughly 25 per fund.

While Greylock prioritizes early-stage investments, it does not shy away from later-stage opportunities. Its previous fund included bets on Anthropic, Revolut*, and Wiz, with about 15% of the new fund allocated to such deals. Yet, as Motamedi underscores, Greylock remains fundamentally an early-stage investor, backing founders before their companies even exist.