# Jennifer Fonstad

> Jennifer Fonstad is a veteran Silicon Valley venture capitalist and co-founder of Owl Capital Group, with a 25+ year career that spans DFJ, Aspect Ventures, and her current early-stage fund. She helped grow DFJ's AUM from $150M to $3.5B, co-founded Aspect Ventures with Theresia Gouw in 2014, and is a champion of diverse founding teams. A Kauffman Fellow mentored by Tim Draper, she has backed companies including Tesla, SpaceX, Athenahealth, and ForeScout, racking up 8 IPOs and 23 M&A transactions. She co-founded Broadway Angels, is a founding member of All-Raise, serves on the Mastercard Foundation board, and was named to Forbes 50 Over 50 in 2025.

- **Role:** Co-founder and Managing Partner at Owl Capital Group
- **Organizations:** Owl Capital Group, Aspect Ventures, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Broadway Angels, All-Raise, Mastercard Foundation
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** BS, International Economics (cum laude), Georgetown University, MBA with Distinction, Harvard Business School
- **Known for:** Named to Forbes Midas List twice, Deloitte Venture Capitalist of the Year (2016), Working Mother 50 Most Powerful Moms (2017)

## Career timeline

- **1987-1989** — Taught mathematics at a high school in Kenya through the Harvard Institute for International Development after graduating from Georgetown
- **1989-1991** — Management consultant at Bain & Company
- **1991-1997** — MBA at Harvard Business School; co-founded the HBS New Venture Competition
- **1997** — Joined Draper Fisher Jurvetson (DFJ) as a Kauffman Fellow, mentored by Tim Draper; made partner within one year
- **1997-2014** — Rose to Managing Director at DFJ; helped grow AUM from $150M to $3.5B; backed Tesla, SpaceX, Athenahealth, Flurry, Nanostring, Sutro Bio, Baidu, Chime Bank
- **2010** — Co-founded Broadway Angels with Sonja Hoel Perkins - an all-women angel network in San Francisco
- **2014** — Co-founded Aspect Ventures with Theresia Gouw; raised $150M debut fund
- **2014-2019** — At Aspect Ventures, raised $150M and $181M funds; built 116-investment portfolio across 67 companies with 13 exits including ForeScout IPO (2017) and The RealReal
- **2019** — Aspect Ventures partnership dissolved; co-founded Owl Capital Group as independent early-stage fund
- **2019-present** — Managing Partner at Owl Capital Group; investing in social networks, climate tech, digital health, enterprise software
- **2024** — Served as Head of Delegation for American Red Cross at IFRC General Assembly in Geneva
- **2025** — Named to Forbes 50 Over 50 class of female entrepreneurs and leaders

## Achievements

- Named to Forbes Midas List twice
- Deloitte Venture Capitalist of the Year (2016)
- Working Mother 50 Most Powerful Moms (2017)
- Forbes 50 Over 50 honoree (2025)
- Helped grow DFJ AUM from $150M to over $3.5B over 17 years
- 8 IPOs and 23 M&A transactions across career
- Co-founded Broadway Angels - 50+ member all-women angel network with 40+ investments
- Founding member of All-Raise, the organization for women in VC
- Co-founded HBS New Venture Competition as a student - still running today
- Kauffman Fellow, Class 3, mentored by Tim Draper
- Board Director at Mastercard Foundation, which manages ~$50B endowment
- Co-founded Aspect Ventures with $331M raised across two funds

## Latest updates

- **2025-01** — Named to Forbes 50 Over 50 class of 2025, recognizing female entrepreneurs and leaders over 50
- **2024-11** — Served as Head of Delegation for the American Red Cross at the 2024 IFRC General Assembly in Geneva
- **2024-01** — Continuing as Managing Partner at Owl Capital Group, actively investing in early-stage companies
- **2025-01** — Active as Dean's Ambassador for the University of Wisconsin-Madison College of Letters & Science

## Links

- Website: https://owlcapitalgroup.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-scott-fonstad-61550850/
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/jfonstad

---

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