# Chad Byers
Chad Byers is a venture capital investor who co-founded [Susa Ventures](https://www.edgepedia.org/susa-ventures), a San Francisco-based seed-stage firm, in 2013, and is known for leading the firm's first investment into Robinhood's seed round eight years before the trading app went public at a $32 billion valuation.[1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/) He has appeared on the Forbes Midas Seed List every year from 2022 to 2025, with a best rank of 12.[1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/)
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Role | Co-founder and general partner, Susa Ventures (founded 2013, San Francisco)[1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/) • [2](https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevindowd/2021/08/22/meet-the-robinhood-investor-who-turned-250000-into-400-million/) |
| Signature deal | $250,000 seed check to Robinhood in 2013, the first check Susa ever wrote[2](https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevindowd/2021/08/22/meet-the-robinhood-investor-who-turned-250000-into-400-million/) |
| Robinhood outcome | Stake worth roughly $400 million by August 2021, against a $32 billion IPO valuation[2](https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevindowd/2021/08/22/meet-the-robinhood-investor-who-turned-250000-into-400-million/) • [1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/) |
| Firm scale | Over $1 billion raised in Susa's first decade, including a $175 million fifth flagship fund in 2025; 11 unicorns backed[1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/) |
| Focus sectors | Marketplaces, fintech, and healthcare[3](https://medium.com/startup-grind/vc-corner-q-a-chad-byers-f81d62f59a52) |
| Recognition | Forbes Midas Seed List 2022–2025, best rank 12; Forbes 30 Under 30 for VC, 2015[1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/) • [3](https://medium.com/startup-grind/vc-corner-q-a-chad-byers-f81d62f59a52) |
| Education | Bachelor's degree in Environmental Science, University of Colorado, Boulder[3](https://medium.com/startup-grind/vc-corner-q-a-chad-byers-f81d62f59a52) • [1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/) |
## Early life and education
Byers grew up in a venture capital family. He is the son of Brook Byers, a longtime [Kleiner Perkins](https://www.edgepedia.org/kleiner-perkins) partner and former Midas List investor, and the brother of Blake Byers, a former Google Ventures partner.[1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/) He holds a bachelor's degree in Environmental Science from the University of Colorado, Boulder.[3](https://medium.com/startup-grind/vc-corner-q-a-chad-byers-f81d62f59a52)
Before founding Susa, Byers worked in operating roles at technology companies. He was senior director of platform at Integrate.com and held marketing and product roles at [Silver Spring Networks](https://www.edgepedia.org/silver-spring-networks), Bloom Energy, and [Electronic Arts](https://www.edgepedia.org/electronic-arts).[3](https://medium.com/startup-grind/vc-corner-q-a-chad-byers-f81d62f59a52) Forbes named him to its 30 Under 30 list for venture capital in 2015, two years after Susa's founding.[3](https://medium.com/startup-grind/vc-corner-q-a-chad-byers-f81d62f59a52)
## Susa Ventures and Byers' role
Byers co-founded Susa Ventures in 2013 as an early-stage fund based in San Francisco.[1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/) • [5](https://www.chadbyers.com/) The firm's debut fund was $25 million, a size that later constrained how much Susa could put into its early winners.[4](https://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-legend-son-robinhood-first-investors-susa-ventures-2021-7) In 2019 the firm closed a $90 million early-stage fund and a $50 million opportunity fund.[4](https://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-legend-son-robinhood-first-investors-susa-ventures-2021-7) Over its first decade Susa raised more than $1 billion, including a $175 million fifth flagship fund in 2025, and has backed 11 unicorns, most as one of their first institutional investors.[1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/)
Byers focuses on marketplaces, fintech, and healthcare.[3](https://medium.com/startup-grind/vc-corner-q-a-chad-byers-f81d62f59a52) In a 2021 interview he described the firm's posture plainly: "At Susa, we're rarely involved at the board level."[2](https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevindowd/2021/08/22/meet-the-robinhood-investor-who-turned-250000-into-400-million/)
## The Robinhood investment
The deal that made Byers' reputation came together in 2013. Byers, then living in New York, had just finished an 11-month effort to raise Susa's debut fund when he met Robinhood founders [Vladimir Tenev](https://www.edgepedia.org/vladimir-tenev) and [Baiju Bhatt](https://www.edgepedia.org/baiju-bhatt) at the Rosewood Sand Hill hotel.[2](https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevindowd/2021/08/22/meet-the-robinhood-investor-who-turned-250000-into-400-million/) Before that meeting, the founders had been turned down by close to 100 other seed investors.[4](https://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-legend-son-robinhood-first-investors-susa-ventures-2021-7)
Susa carved out $250,000 to help fill out Robinhood's seed round. It was the first check the firm ever wrote.[2](https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevindowd/2021/08/22/meet-the-robinhood-investor-who-turned-250000-into-400-million/) Susa then used its pro rata rights (investor's right to buy more shares to keep ownership percentage) in the Series A led by [Index Ventures](https://www.edgepedia.org/index-ventures) to invest another $500,000, but the $25 million debut fund capped any further participation.[4](https://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-legend-son-robinhood-first-investors-susa-ventures-2021-7)
Byers explained his reasoning in terms of the founders' product thesis: "the founders had a unique insight that no one was building great mobile-first fintech products for the upcoming generation."[3](https://medium.com/startup-grind/vc-corner-q-a-chad-byers-f81d62f59a52) Robinhood went public in 2021 at a $32 billion valuation, eight years after the seed round.[1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/)
The value of Susa's stake around the IPO is reported differently by two credible outlets. [Business Insider](https://www.edgepedia.org/business-insider) reported in July 2021, before the listing, that the $250,000 check was worth upwards of $300 million.[4](https://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-legend-son-robinhood-first-investors-susa-ventures-2021-7) Byers told Forbes in August 2021 that the stake, including a couple of follow-on investments, was worth somewhere in the neighborhood of $400 million.[2](https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevindowd/2021/08/22/meet-the-robinhood-investor-who-turned-250000-into-400-million/) Both figures are attributed to Byers and reflect different dates and scopes.
## Other notable investments
Beyond Robinhood, Byers led Susa's seed investments in Andela (a $800 million valuation at the time of the profile), Newfront Insurance and Stord.[3](https://medium.com/startup-grind/vc-corner-q-a-chad-byers-f81d62f59a52) Forbes lists his earliest-stage investments as Flexport (a $3.8 billion valuation, down from $8 billion in 2022), Stord ($1.5 billion), Human Interest ($1.3 billion), and the AI Medicare broker Chapter.[1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/)
## Recognition: the Midas Seed List
Forbes has ranked Byers on its Midas Seed List in each of 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025, with a best rank of 12.[1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/) His earlier [Forbes 30 Under 30](https://www.edgepedia.org/forbes-30-under-30) selection in 2015 predates the Midas recognition by seven years.[3](https://medium.com/startup-grind/vc-corner-q-a-chad-byers-f81d62f59a52)
## Public positions and other activities
Byers' personal website lists two current projects: Susa Ventures and Byers Capital, a single family office.[5](https://www.chadbyers.com/)
## By the numbers
The arithmetic of the Robinhood deal explains Byers' standing. A $250,000 first check, plus $500,000 of pro rata follow-on in the Series A, produced a stake Byers valued at roughly $400 million by August 2021, against the $32 billion IPO valuation.[2](https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevindowd/2021/08/22/meet-the-robinhood-investor-who-turned-250000-into-400-million/) • [4](https://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-legend-son-robinhood-first-investors-susa-ventures-2021-7) At the firm level, Susa grew from a $25 million debut fund to more than $1 billion raised over a decade, capped by the $175 million fifth flagship fund in 2025, with 11 unicorns backed.[1](https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/) • [4](https://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-legend-son-robinhood-first-investors-susa-ventures-2021-7)
## References
1. Chad Byers — Forbes Profile. https://www.forbes.com/profile/chad-byers/
2. Kevin Dowd, "Meet The Robinhood Investor Who Turned $250,000 Into $400 Million," Forbes, August 22, 2021. https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevindowd/2021/08/22/meet-the-robinhood-investor-who-turned-250000-into-400-million/
3. "VC Corner Q&A: Chad Byers," Startup Grind on Medium. https://medium.com/startup-grind/vc-corner-q-a-chad-byers-f81d62f59a52
4. "A Silicon Valley Legend's Son Was One of Robinhood's First Investors," Business Insider, July 2021. https://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-legend-son-robinhood-first-investors-susa-ventures-2021-7
5. Chad Byers — Personal Website. https://www.chadbyers.com/
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Economics and business › Founders, operators, and investors › Venture and growth investors › United States venture since 1985 › Seed and early-stage partners*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license