Lak Ananth
Managing Partner at Next47
Palo Alto, California
Overview
Work Experience
Global Managing Partner & Founding CEO
2016 - Current
As founding CEO of Next47, Lak has built a $2+ billion venture platform that recognizes greatness at inception through a product-first approach, rather than waiting for metrics to tell the story. Next47 identifies technical products that demonstrate exceptional quality and potential before they achieve market validation, backing founders when their vision is still taking shape. Next47's investment philosophy centers on recognizing the distinctive markers of extraordinary products—thoughtful design, elegant problem-solving, and the ability to inspire customer loyalty. The firm selectively partners with technical founders who demonstrate deep domain expertise and product craftsmanship. Beyond capital, Next47 provides hands-on support that founders genuinely value, helping them navigate critical growth challenges, refine product-market fit, and build teams that can execute on ambitious visions. This partnership approach has fostered remarkable founder loyalty, with portfolio companies consistently referring their most talented peers to the firm. Under Lak's leadership, Next47 has established itself as the preferred partner for ambitious founders building category-defining products serving B2B customers.
Next47 invests in groundbreaking enterprise entrepreneurs and accelerates revenue growth by opening doors to customers around the world.
Board Member
2024
Board Member
2018
Verkada is a cloud-based physical security platform provider helping enterprises operate safer, smarter buildings.
Raised $444,299,996.00 from Felicis, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Alkeon Capital, Section Partners, Meritech Capital Partners, Friends & Family Capital, Quiet Capital, Sequoia Capital, Linse Capital and Felicis.
Board Member
2020
VAST Data offers a unified data platform that integrates storage, database, and compute capabilities into a single software platform.
Raised $381,000,000.00 from New Enterprise Associates, Fidelity, Bond Capital and Drive Capital.
Board Member
2022
Investor
2022
TigerEye is a SAAS company that offers AI powered business simulation engine for strategic sales planning and execution.
Raised $35,000,000.00 from Initialized Capital, Next47, Pioneer Fund and Y Combinator.
Investor
2019
Investor
2020
Observe.AI is a conversational intelligence platform for contact centers.
Raised $214,020,000.00 from Next47, Emergent Ventures, SoftBank Vision Fund, Scale Venture Partners, Steadview Capital, Nexus Venture Partners, Menlo Ventures, Zoom, NGP Capital and Carya Venture Partners.
Board Observer
2019
Board Member
2017 - 2021
Markforged is a manufacturing company that invents a new 3D printing process to build parts with the strength of Continuous Carbon Fiber.
Raised $346,800,000.00 from M12 - Microsoft's Venture Fund, Wasatch Ventures, Miller Value Partners, Porsche Automobil Holding, Wellington Management, Baron Capital and BlackRock.