# Katia Ameri

> Katia Ameri is a Partner at Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) focused on the intersection of consumer and technology. An LA native of Iranian descent and Stanford graduate, she was the first investment hire at Pear VC, then founded Mirra - a skincare company that grew to 200,000+ newsletter subscribers with zero ad spend - before joining a16z in 2021. At a16z she leads consumer investments, runs the Speedrun accelerator program, and is the founder of Tech Week by a16z, a decentralized conference series in SF, LA, and NYC that drew 40,000+ attendees and 1,000+ events in New York alone.

- **Role:** Partner at Andreessen Horowitz (a16z)
- **Organizations:** Andreessen Horowitz, Pear VC, Mirra Skincare, Rocketship House, Tech Week by a16z, a16z Speedrun
- **From:** Los Angeles, United States
- **Nationality:** American (Iranian descent)
- **Education:** Bachelor of Science, Science Technology and Society, Stanford University, High School (all-girls school, Hancock Park, LA), Marlborough School
- **Known for:** Built Mirra newsletter to 200,000+ subscribers organically (zero paid advertising), Raised $2.2M for Mirra from top-tier investors including Pear VC, Sweet Capital, Global Founders Capital, First hire on the investment team at Pear VC

## Career timeline

- **2013-2017** — First investment team hire at Pear VC; led due diligence and built data-driven SaaS evaluation frameworks
- **2018** — Founded Mirra Skincare, a content-community-commerce platform for millennial women navigating the skincare industry
- **2018-2019** — Grew Mirra's weekly skincare newsletter to 200,000+ subscribers with zero paid advertising
- **2019** — Raised $2.2M for Mirra from Pear VC, Sweet Capital, and Global Founders Capital
- **2020** — Interim CEO at Script Inc (Pear portfolio company) - reached 500,000 users in Southeast Asia; created viral #ZoomBachelorette event; launched GayBurger virtual kitchen
- **2020-2021** — Angel investor; co-founded Rocketship House influencer incubator in Hollywood
- **2021** — Joined Andreessen Horowitz as Partner focused on consumer x tech investments
- **2022** — Launched LA Tech Week - first decentralized community tech conference by a16z
- **2023** — Expanded Tech Week to SF and NYC; NY Tech Week became the largest market
- **2024** — Led NY Tech Week with 740+ events, 30,000+ unique attendees; Speedrun accelerator cohort 3 held in LA
- **2025-2026** — Launched LA Speaker Series at a16z Santa Monica office; announced Boston Tech Week for 2026

## Achievements

- Built Mirra newsletter to 200,000+ subscribers organically (zero paid advertising)
- Raised $2.2M for Mirra from top-tier investors including Pear VC, Sweet Capital, Global Founders Capital
- First hire on the investment team at Pear VC
- Founded Tech Week by a16z - grew to 1,100+ events across SF and LA, and 740+ events / 30,000+ attendees in NYC
- Partner at Andreessen Horowitz, one of the most prestigious venture firms globally
- Led a16z Speedrun accelerator program for gaming and tech startups
- Helped Script Inc reach 500,000 users in Southeast Asia as Interim CEO
- Featured in CNN, TechCrunch, New York Times for various ventures
- Speaks English, French, Farsi, and Spanish

## Latest updates

- **2026-05** — Boston Tech Week announced for 2026, the latest expansion of Tech Week by a16z
- **2025-07** — Launched LA Speaker Series with weekly sessions at the a16z Santa Monica office
- **2024-10** — Led third Speedrun cohort, first held in Los Angeles
- **2024-05** — NY Tech Week reached 40,000+ attendees across 1,020+ events

## Links

- Website: https://www.katiaameri.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katia-ameri/
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/KatiaAmeri

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/katia-ameri
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-09