🤵🏽♂️ EIR VC, Open Tech Ventures (https://xitter.cf/t.co/wUKL0DfwPi) | Chef, @ArjunCooks | Friend to Founders | 1 Exit
📍Los Altos
Joined February 2013
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Excited to be speaking!
TODAY: Founder Investor Day at @finix HQ. Join us for 28 speakers, eight panels, startup pitches, and networking during SF Tech Week.
October 8 · 10 AM–7 PM PT
Finix HQ · 760 Market Street, San Francisco
Presented by Raisi and @finix, in partnership with @Navan, @BakerTillyUS, and @sprintoHQ .
Moderator: @RobertHarary, Raisi
11 AM: Inside the VC process
• Daven Nijran-Talwar, Principal, REV Venture Partners
• @KarnikaYashwant - Mr. KEY, Founder & Chairman, KEY Difference
• @arkg1vc, Managing Partner, Edge Ventures
12 PM: First checks & the founder story
• John Huang, Partner & Producer, Sparknify
• Ashley Trick, Investor, Kismet Capital
• @riohodges__, Partner, Antler
1 PM: How the next generation does business
• @brookeleblanc, Head of Community, Corgi
• @yashallurii, Co-Founder, 529 Labs; Investment Fellow, Entrepreneur First
• Adam T. Henderson, COO & Head of Global, Keiretsu Forum
• Arjun Vad, Founder, Agencity; Early-Stage Investor
2 PM: Backing breakthroughs before revenue
• @arjunraime, Senior Associate & Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Open Technology Ventures
• @Kendrick_G_Kho, Founder, Hyperparameter
• @ldervisheva, General Partner, Chromium Ventures
• @pedropierluisi, Co-Founder & Managing Partner, Canastra Ventures
• Peter Frischmann, Co-Founder & CEO, Sepion Technologies
3 PM: Beyond the first product
• Sarah Loveland, Senior Associate, Civilization Ventures
• Ankur Sethi, Founder & General Partner, Winner Capital
• Adam Pluemer, Venture Partner, Mangusta Capital
• Aidan Banafsheha, Venture Analyst, Seed2Table
4 PM: How investors assess real demand
• Vinit Bhansali, General Partner, Atrium Frontier Fund
• Rumika Sharma, Investor, BankTech Ventures
• @tolykvitnitsky, Founder & CEO, AI or Not
5 PM: What the numbers reveal
• Jiatao Fan, Draper Associates
• Amit Jain, Managing Director, Transaction Advisory Services, Baker Tilly
6 PM: AI companies worth backing next
• @idlivada, Angel Investor, Curata Ventures
• @thomastjoshi, Associate, NEA
• Asit Sahoo, AI Strategy and Infrastructure Lead, Iron Mountain
Also joining us: Emanuel Pleitez, Head of Finance, Finix; Co-Founder, East Los Capital.
Startup pitches run on the second stage from 11 AM–6:30 PM, with networking throughout the day. All times PT.
Bring your questions and meet the founders and investors in the room. RSVP and join us today.
RSVP: lnkd.in/gkwq3FS6
I’m excited to be joining Dream AI Hackathon 2026 in SF as one of the judges.
If you’re building in AI, deep tech, infrastructure, open source, developer tools, or just have an ambitious idea you want to turn into something real, come build with us.
🔗 luma.com/upjkn37w
Token maxxing is great. Sending PII, sensitive prompts, and unfiltered model responses directly between employees and frontier models is not.
Gate.dev sits in the middle to enforce policy, block sensitive data, inspect responses, and to most cost-efficient model.
In the age of AI, information is abundant. Trust is scarce.
Whether you’re building relationships with LPs, HNW investors, founders, or clients, the human side matters more than ever.
Capital may be the transaction. Trust is the currency.
I really wanted space…the national aeronautics space administration 😂😂😂 #VCfund #PortfolioCompany #NASA @NASA
Super proud of one of my epic mentors who in talks with Apple. Huge news for open source and small language learning models.
cnbc.com/2026/07/14/apple-pr…
Potentially, Hosting an Equinox Members Only Event Next Week for VCs in Al, Open Source and Infra.
DM if That's You! (Looking for 2 speakers)
One of the biggest causes of anxiety isn’t reality—it’s uncertainty.
Your brain fills gaps in knowledge with worst-case scenarios.
Instead of asking:
“What if this goes wrong?”
Ask:
“What information am I missing?”
Almost every fear has an action attached to it.
Our venture fund, Open Tech Ventures, is hosting a series of dinners over the next few days in Bay Area (focus around deep tech, open source, AI infra conversations).
If you're actively partnering with venture funds, lmk.
*Must be accredited per SEC rules
I was interviewed by Miranda Liu earlier today on all things Silicon Valley, Asian culture, open source models, life as an entrepreneur turned venture capitalist working across several organizations and more. Full interview coming soon by Netease media. 🚙🌲
We’re still using operating systems designed for a world before AI.
Macintosh and Windows were built around the idea of installing static applications. But what happens when interfaces become dynamic, generated in real time from intent instead of downloads?
Imagine an open source OS called OpenTo OS built on NixOS where UI/UX is assembled dynamically using MCP-style “DNA protocols” from vendors like Adobe, Canva, Zoom, Gmail, Outlook and others.
Instead of downloading apps, the OS sequences interface “DNA” from providers and generates personalized cells, workflows and experiences based on what you’re trying to do in the moment.
Want to send an email?
The OS pings Gmail or Outlook protocols and instantly forms the interface.
Need to hop on a meeting?
It dynamically assembles a Zoom-like workspace.
Designing a pitch deck?
It pulls creative DNA from tools like Canva or Adobe and builds around your preferences, habits and agent memory.
Your AI agent becomes the operating layer:
- handling payments
- token usage
- permissions
- orchestration
- personalization
- vendor communication
Not SaaS subscriptions.
Usage-based intelligence.
The future OS may not be “apps” at all.
It may be prompt-native infrastructure where interfaces are generated instead of installed.
Almost like biological cells forming from DNA sequences — but for software.
Open source becomes critical here because users should own the orchestration layer, not just rent it.
With rumors of companies like OpenAI exploring AI-native operating systems and interfaces, it feels like we’re approaching a major platform shift.
Would you use a prompt-based operating system like this?
#OpenSource #AI #OperatingSystem #NixOS #MCP #AgenticAI #ArtificialIntelligence #UX #UI #FutureOfWork #SaaS #DeveloperTools #AIInfrastructure #OpenTo #SovereignAI #TechInnovation #HumanComputerInteraction #Startup #BuildInPublic #FutureTech
Today’s VC coffee event hosted by @lolitataub of Ganas Ventures felt… different in the best way.
Not because of the venue or the guest list, but because of how it was run.
We started seated in a circle of founders, angels, and funds where each shared our story. It felt intentional, intimate, and grounded. Then, as the session opened up, Lolita stood up and moved into 1:1 conversations, thoughtfully connecting people where there was clear mutual value. It wasn’t networking—it was orchestration.
You could feel the intent.
This wasn’t a room full of people trying to “pitch up.” It was a tight, curated group openly sharing what they’re building and where they need help. More importantly, Lolita asked for perspectives from the group without trying to dominate the conversation. She facilitated it.
That level of empathy and emotional intelligence is rare in venture.
I ended up meeting a startup that fits directly into our thesis around open source where we focus on consulting, investing, and incubating projects that push the ecosystem forward. Exactly the kind of outcome you hope for when you show up to these things, but rarely get without the right environment.
What stood out most is how aligned the experience was with her investment philosophy: community-first. Not just in words, but in execution.
This was part of the lead-up to Startup Grind Conference in Redwood City, with founders and investors flying in from across the country (and beyond).
I’ll be there representing Open Tech Ventures—if you’re around, come say hi. Email if in town ARAI@OTincubator.com. 👋
Welcome to CarJello where we interview cool folks on cool topics. First up, @_Lillianzhang en route to her talk at @UCBerkeley inspiring students with creator, finance and tech topics.
Who should we interview next? 👀
