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Drew Lanza

Entrepreneur and Venture Capitalist

Portola Valley, California

Overview 

Drew Lanza is an accomplished entrepreneur and venture capitalist based in Portola Valley, California. With a background that includes founding successful companies like E/O Networks and Lightwave Microsystems, Drew has also served in leadership roles at Morgenthaler Ventures and currently holds positions on several boards, showcasing his expertise in business development, corporate strategy, and executive management. His extensive education from Stanford University and Harvard Business School further solidifies his reputation as a seasoned professional in the tech and startup industry.

Work Experience 

Smart Coast California

  • Board Member

    2023 - Current

    First non-real estate member of this board. This 501©(3) was created by the California Association of Realtors and the National Association of Realtors to challenge the California Coastal Commission. It’s the only opposition group ever formed to be recognized by the Coastal Commission.

BC

Berkeley Catalyst Fund

  • Founding Partner

    2015

    Invited to be a founding Partner of this new VC fund by alumni of and the current Dean of the College of Chemistry at Berkeley. Worked hard to structure a replicable model for how to create VC funds at UC Berkeley. Helped to raise first fund, mostly from Asian investors. Invested in 10+ companies, including board seats for DNALite, Valitor, Resilient Biotics, PrinterPrezz, Filtricine, and Water Harvesting.

Berkeley Catalyst Fund (BCF) is an investment Firm.

berkeleycatalystfund.com
SC

Santa Catalina Island Company

  • Board Member

    2006

    Long time friend and advisor to the family that controls this company which operates many different businesses on Catalina Island, off the coast of Los Angeles.

PAJARO DUNES ASSOCIATION

  • Board Member and Treasurer

    2017

    Recruited by senior members of the community to clean up a nasty mess made by two former directors.

San Jose Police and Fire Retirement Fund

  • Chairman of the Board of Trustees

    2011

    Led effort to get Measure G on 2014 ballot. Measure G grants greater autonomy to the trustees. Over a decade, worked hard to bring funding status of $4B pension fund from 73% to 87% funded.

Ayla networks

  • Chairman Emeritus

    2010 - 2016

    Helped to found the company. Mentor to first-time CEO and Founder, Dave Friedman. Chair of Compensation Committee.

MV

Morgenthaler Ventures

  • General Partner

    2000 - 2010

    Top performer on the Systems and Semis team at this 50 year old VC firm. Served on over 15 boards.

BT

Brion Technologies

  • Board Member

    2002 - 2007

    Sold to ASML for $270M. My investment of $7M for Morgenthaler yielded a return in excess of $50M.

E/O Networks

  • Founder and VP of Engineering

    1993 - 1998

    Also wrote over 20,000 lines of embedded C and 8051 assembly language code for the product.

Lightwave Microsystems

  • Founder, CEO, and Board Member

    1993 - 1998

Education 

Articles About Drew

Relevant Websites