Alfred Lin
- Seed/Early
“Dream about the dent you will put in the universe. Stay grounded in your reality. Build a plan that connects these two worlds.”
Backstory
Emigrating from Taiwan at the age of six, my parents moved me and my brother every few years to better school districts. I was always fascinated by businesses, how they operated and how to invest in them. In junior high, I tried to scale my lawn-mowing service—It didn’t even last a whole summer. In college, I bought whole pizzas and sold them by the slice, but I swear, it wasn’t predatory.
Academically, I had honored my parents’ wishes to be a good student, especially in math and science. I even entered a Ph.D. program in statistics, but I found reading business cases more interesting. When Sequoia invested, I joined my college friend Tony Hsieh at his startup, LinkExchange. After we sold LinkExchange to Microsoft (and made Sequoia 17x in 17 months), we started Venture Frogs, which was both an incubator and a seed fund. Out of that came Tellme Networks, which I joined in 2001, and Zappos, which I joined in 2005.
Michael Moritz had been our Sequoia partner at LinkExchange and we chose to work with him again at Zappos. He was a mentor to me and the rest of the management team. He always showed up, having poured through the board materials and listening intensely to every word. He would focus our attention on the first order issues, sharpen our thinking and push us to be even more ambitious. I learned from him that a partner’s most important value-add comes when the chips are down.
On the lookout for
All investors essentially look for the same things: (1) outlier founders, (2) a delightful product or service, (3) a path to a massive market, and (4) a disruptive business model. This leads to a large universe of investable opportunities, which is far greater than our capacity to serve on boards and really partner with founders. To have an edge, you have to play the game differently.
I am much more focused on the founders’ special characteristics, their novel and unique insights, the eureka moment of their founding story, and their lived experiences that creates empathy for the customer they will serve. Basically, I am on the lookout for founder-market fit.
After you strip through all that, there is only one criteria for me: would I love to work for the founders and help them reach their and their company’s full potential? It is our job as partners, not just investors—to work for the founders.
Get in touch with AlfredPersonal Side
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Press & Media
Current Companies
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Athelas builds technology to transition healthcare into the home.Current Stage
Growth
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In2016
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Catch helps merchants and their customers save by cutting out the credit card companies.Current Stage
Early
PartnersJosephine Chen,
Alfred LinPartnered In2020
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Citadel Securities uses its market expertise and technology to empower its clients to access liquidity in new and effective ways.Current Stage
Growth
PartnersAlfred Lin,
Konstantine BuhlerPartnered In2022
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Cobalt Robotics makes autonomous robots for security, facilities and environmental monitoring.Current Stage
Growth
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In2018
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Dia&Co is a personal styling service and clothing company for plus-size women.Current Stage
Growth
PartnersAlfred Lin,
Jess LeePartnered In2016
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Dolls Kill is a global fashion brand that supports self-expression for the next generation.Current Stage
Growth
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In2019
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Faire is the leading wholesale marketplace, connecting independent retailers and brands all over the world.Current Stage
Growth
PartnersAlfred Lin,
Ravi Gupta,
Isaiah BoonePartnered In2017
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Filecoin is a decentralized storage network designed to store people's most important information.Current Stage
Early
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In2017
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Found is an all-in-one business banking, bookkeeping and tax solution for self-employed businesses.Current Stage
Growth
PartnersAlfred Lin,
Josephine ChenPartnered In2020
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FTX is a crypto-derivatives exchange.Current Stage
Growth
PartnersAlfred Lin,
Michelle BailhePartnered In2021
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Houzz is a visual remodeling platform that helps consumers and design professionals collaborate.Current Stage
Growth
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In2011
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Instacart facilitates instant grocery delivery from local stores.Current Stage
Growth
PartnersMichael Moritz,
Alfred Lin,
Ravi GuptaPartnered In2013
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Kalshi is the first federally regulated exchange that allows people to trade on world events.Current Stage
Early
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In2020
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Moovit, now part of Intel, is a leading Mobility as a Service (MaaS) solutions provider and creator of the popular urban mobility app.Current Stage
Acquired
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In2013
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Okay builds dashboards for engineering leaders so that they can run high-performing teams.Current Stage
Growth
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In2020
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Otter matches parents who need childcare with stay-at-home parents who can care for their kids.Current Stage
Early
PartnersJess Lee,
Alfred LinPartnered In2021
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reddit is the front page of the Internet featuring user-generated links to content around the web.Current Stage
Growth
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In2014
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Summer Health is making board-certified pediatricians available to parents via text message.Current Stage
Seed
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In -
Tourlane is an online booking platform for custom multiday trips.Current Stage
Growth
PartnersAndrew Reed,
Alfred LinPartnered In2018
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Truework is an API platform for employment verification.Current Stage
Growth
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In2018
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Zipline delivers vital shipments via the most reliable drone delivery service in the world.Current Stage
Growth
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In2012
Enduring Companies
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Airbnb connects people around the world with unique homes and unforgettable experiences.Current Stage
IPO
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In2009
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DoorDash is an on-demand delivery service.Current Stage
IPO
PartnerAlfred Lin
Partnered In2014
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Zappos, now part of Amazon, is an online shoe retailer driven by customer service.Current Stage
Acquired
PartnersMichael Moritz,
Alfred LinPartnered In2004