Reid Hoffman

Reid Hoffman
U.S. Secretary of Defense · CC BY 2.0 · source
Name	Reid Hoffman
Caption	Hoffman in 2012
Birth date	5 August 1967
Birth place	Stanford, California
Alma mater	Stanford University (BA), Oxford University (MSc)
Occupation	Entrepreneur, venture capitalist, author
Known for	Co-founder of LinkedIn, partner at Greylock Partners
Spouse	Michelle Yee

Reid Hoffman is an American entrepreneur, investor, and author best known as a co-founder of LinkedIn and an early executive at PayPal. He has been a prominent venture capitalist at Greylock Partners and a public intellectual on topics ranging from technology, entrepreneurship, and public policy. Hoffman's career spans startup founding, angel investing, philanthropy, and contributions to business literature and media.

Early life and education

Hoffman was born in Stanford, California and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. He attended Palo Alto High School before studying at Stanford University, where he completed a Bachelor of Science in Symbolic Systems and Cognitive Science. Hoffman later studied at Wolfson College, Oxford as a Marshall Scholar, earning a Master of Studies in philosophy from Oxford University. During his formative years he was influenced by contemporaries and institutions linked to Silicon Valley and the intellectual traditions of Cambridge, England and Oxford.

Career

Hoffman began his career in product management and strategy at Apple Inc. and later joined PayPal as an executive vice president, where he worked alongside entrepreneurs from the PayPal Mafia such as Peter Thiel, Max Levchin, and Elon Musk. He co-founded LinkedIn in 2002 with partners including Allen Blue, Konstantin Guericke, Jean-Luc Vaillant, and Eric Ly and served as its founding CEO and later executive chairman. Under his leadership, LinkedIn navigated venture funding rounds involving firms like Sequoia Capital, Greylock Partners, and Bessemer Venture Partners, culminating in an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange and a later acquisition by Microsoft Corporation in 2016. Hoffman has also been involved with technology companies and research organizations such as Mozilla Foundation, Kiva (organization), and OpenAI.

Investing and Greylock Partners

Hoffman joined Greylock Partners as a partner and has led investments in numerous startups, including early-stage bets on companies like Facebook, Airbnb, Flickr, Zynga, Github, and DeepMind. His angel and venture investing portfolio includes stakes in Airtable, Shopify, Palantir Technologies, Ravenpack, and Asana. Hoffman has often co-invested with firms such as Benchmark (venture capital firm), Accel Partners, and Andreessen Horowitz. He has advocated for network effects and platform businesses in venture strategy, drawing on case studies from Amazon (company), Google, and eBay.

Philanthropy and public policy

Hoffman is active in philanthropic initiatives and public policy debates, supporting organizations such as the Hewlett Foundation, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, and Open Philanthropy Project. He has funded projects addressing technological governance, AI safety, and democratic resilience, collaborating with institutions like Future of Humanity Institute at University of Oxford and Berkman Klein Center at Harvard University. Hoffman has engaged with policy forums including World Economic Forum, testified before legislative bodies, and worked with think tanks such as the Brookings Institution and Center for American Progress on issues intersecting technology and public life.

Publications and media appearances

Hoffman has authored and co-authored books and essays on entrepreneurship and strategy, including titles published by Portfolio (publisher) and collaborations with writers linked to Harvard Business Review and The New York Times. He hosts and appears on podcasts and interview series, engaging with figures from Academia, Silicon Valley, and Washington, D.C., and has been profiled in outlets like Forbes (magazine), The Wall Street Journal, and The Economist. Hoffman has lectured at institutions such as Stanford Graduate School of Business and University of California, Berkeley, and has participated in documentary and television projects exploring technology trends and startup culture.

Personal life and interests

Hoffman is married to Michelle Yee and resides in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is known for interests in philosophy, chess, and podcasting, and maintains connections to academic and cultural institutions including University of Oxford, Stanford University, and arts organizations in San Francisco. Hoffman has received honors from organizations such as Fast Company and industry awards recognizing entrepreneurship and innovation.

Category:American venture capitalists Category:American technology company founders Category:Stanford University alumni