# Bill Gurley

> Bill Gurley is one of Silicon Valley's most consequential venture capitalists - a 6'9" Texan who played college basketball, led the analyst team on Amazon's IPO, and then bet Benchmark's money on a then-tiny black-car startup called Uber. As a General Partner at Benchmark from 1999, he built a track record that includes Uber, GrubHub, OpenTable, Zillow, Stitch Fix, and Nextdoor. He writes the 'Above the Crowd' blog, has appeared consistently on the Forbes Midas List, and in 2026 published 'Runnin' Down a Dream,' a career guide ten years in the making. After stepping back from active investing, he relocated to Austin, Texas - where his wife Amy always wanted to end up.

- **Role:** General Partner (Emeritus) at Benchmark Capital
- **Organizations:** Benchmark Capital, Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, CS First Boston, Compaq Computer, Santa Fe Institute, University of Texas McCombs Advisory Board
- **From:** Dickinson, Texas, USA
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Bachelor of Science (Computer Science), University of Florida, MBA, University of Texas McCombs School of Business
- **Known for:** Led Benchmark's Series A investment in Uber, generating estimated 100x+ returns, Led analyst team on Amazon's 1997 IPO at CS First Boston, Consecutive appearances on Forbes Midas List (top 25 venture capitalists globally)

## Career timeline

- **1989** — Graduated University of Florida; joined Compaq Computer as design engineer working on 486/50 processors and multi-processor servers
- **1991** — Enrolled in MBA program at University of Texas McCombs
- **1993** — Joined CS First Boston as equity research analyst covering PC hardware and software (Dell, Compaq, Microsoft)
- **1995** — Named to Institutional Investor All-American Research Team
- **1996** — Named to Institutional Investor All-American Research Team for second year; led analyst team on Amazon IPO
- **1997** — Joined Hummer Winblad Venture Partners as partner
- **1999** — Joined Benchmark Capital as General Partner
- **2011** — Led Benchmark's Series A investment in Uber at roughly $4M pre-money valuation
- **2015** — Warned at SXSW of 'dead unicorns' in Silicon Valley; published landmark blog post on unsustainable burn rates
- **2016** — Named TechCrunch VC of the Year
- **2017** — Spearheaded call for Travis Kalanick to resign as Uber CEO; departed Uber board the following day
- **2019** — Uber IPO - Benchmark's investment generates estimated 100x+ returns
- **2022** — Portrayed by Kyle Chandler in Showtime's 'Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber'
- **2023** — Stepped back from active investing at Benchmark; relocated to Austin, Texas with wife Amy
- **2026** — Published 'Runnin' Down a Dream: How to Thrive in a Career You Actually Love' (Penguin Random House, February 24, 2026)

## Achievements

- Led Benchmark's Series A investment in Uber, generating estimated 100x+ returns
- Led analyst team on Amazon's 1997 IPO at CS First Boston
- Consecutive appearances on Forbes Midas List (top 25 venture capitalists globally)
- TechCrunch VC of the Year 2016
- Named to Institutional Investor All-American Research Team (1995, 1996)
- Built Above the Crowd blog into one of tech's most-read investment analysis outlets
- Board directorships at Uber, GrubHub, OpenTable (acquired by Priceline), Zillow, Stitch Fix, Nextdoor, HackerOne
- Published New York Times bestseller 'Runnin' Down a Dream' (2026)
- Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA)

## Latest updates

- **2026-02** — Published 'Runnin' Down a Dream: How to Thrive in a Career You Actually Love' (Penguin Random House) - a New York Times bestseller outlining six principles for thriving in a career you love.
- **2023-05** — Fortune profile confirms Gurley has stepped back from active investing at Benchmark and relocated to Austin, Texas with his wife Amy.
- **2022-02** — Portrayed by actor Kyle Chandler in Showtime's 'Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber,' a dramatization of the rise and fall of Travis Kalanick.

## Links

- Website: https://abovethecrowd.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billgurley/
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/bgurley

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/bill-gurley
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-05