# David Cohen

> David Cohen is the founder and CEO of Techstars, the startup accelerator he launched in Boulder, Colorado in 2006 alongside Brad Feld, Jared Polis, and David Brown. A self-described life-long entrepreneur and ex-hacker, he built and sold two companies before turning to investing, then reshaped early-stage funding around a philosophy he calls Give First. Under his leadership Techstars has backed thousands of startups across dozens of countries, seeding more than a dozen unicorns and helping founders raise billions in follow-on capital.

- **Role:** Founder and CEO at Techstars
- **Organizations:** Techstars, Techstars Foundation, Endeavor Colorado, Silicon Flatirons Center, Pinpoint Technologies, earFeeder
- **From:** DeLand, Florida, USA
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Associate of Arts, Computer Science, University of Central Florida
- **Known for:** Founded Techstars, one of the world's most active pre-seed investors, Backed thousands of startups across dozens of countries, Seeded more than a dozen unicorns including Chainalysis, DigitalOcean, Remitly, SendGrid, ClassPass, DataRobot, Outreach and PillPack

## Career timeline

- **1991** — Director of Development at Automated Dispatch Services
- **1993** — Co-founded Pinpoint Technologies (EMS/public-safety dispatch software)
- **1999** — Pinpoint Technologies acquired by ZOLL Medical Corporation (NASDAQ: ZOLL)
- **2006** — Founded earFeeder.com (sold to SonicSwap) and co-founded Techstars with Brad Feld, Jared Polis and David Brown
- **2007** — Launched the first Techstars accelerator program in Boulder, Colorado
- **2010** — Co-authored 'Do More Faster' with Brad Feld
- **2025** — Continues as founder and CEO of Techstars, a global pre-seed investor

## Achievements

- Founded Techstars, one of the world's most active pre-seed investors
- Backed thousands of startups across dozens of countries
- Seeded more than a dozen unicorns including Chainalysis, DigitalOcean, Remitly, SendGrid, ClassPass, DataRobot, Outreach and PillPack
- Built and exited two companies before turning to investing (Pinpoint Technologies, earFeeder)
- Co-authored 'Do More Faster: Techstars Lessons to Accelerate Your Startup'
- Popularized the 'Give First' philosophy in startup communities
- Founding board member of Endeavor Colorado; co-founder of the Techstars Foundation

## Latest updates

- **2025-05** — Featured speaker at the Milken Institute Global Conference 2025
- **2026-01** — Continues to lead Techstars as founder and CEO, with the accelerator active across dozens of global locations

## Links

- Website: https://davidgcohen.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidgcohen/
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/davidcohen

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/david-cohen
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-07-31