Managing Partner, SOSV
Sean O’Sullivan is managing partner of SOSV, a venture capital firm with over $990 million in assets under management (AUM). SOSV specializes in programs for very early stage, deep-tech startups and is one of the most active venture investors in the world, with more than 1,000 companies in its portfolio.
O’Sullivan’s first company, MapInfo, grew to a $200 million revenue public company with over 1,000 employees, and popularized street mapping on computers. His first internet company, NetCentric, developed many concepts in internet computing, and he is credited as the co-creator of the term “cloud computing”. O’Sullivan founded JumpStart International, a leading humanitarian organization in conflict zones and oversaw 3,500 staff at the height of the Iraq conflict.
SOSV runs the world’s most active startup development programs in hardware (HAX), life sciences (IndieBio), Asia cross-border startups (Chinaccelerator/MOX) and blockchain (dlab).
O’Sullivan received his Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a Masters of Fine Arts in Film Production from the University of Southern California. Alongside serving as the founder of the O’Sullivan Foundation, he was the founding funder of Coderdojo (a global network of coding clubs that more than 50,000 kids attend every week) and is a principal donor to Khan Academy (used by more than 75 million students monthly). O’Sullivan is on the board of Khan Academy, Sun Genomics, the Tyndall Institute, the Autism Impact Fund, the Brain Foundation, and a number of private companies.