# Matt Lee

> Matt Lee is the Founder and General Partner of Progression Fund, a pre-seed and seed-stage consumer technology VC firm co-founded with alumni from musical.ly and TikTok. Based in Oakland, California, he backs visionary founders building AI-native products for everyday consumers and prosumers, with a particular thesis around generational behavior shifts - specifically Gen Z and Gen Alpha. His portfolio spans consumer tech, gaming, entertainment, social platforms, live streaming commerce, and digital health, with notable investments including Perplexity AI and Dapper Labs. He brings a global perspective from prior roles at ChinaRock Capital Management, Pereg Ventures, and engineering and consulting stints at Macquarie Group and Capco.

- **Role:** Founder and General Partner at Progression Fund
- **Organizations:** Progression Fund, ChinaRock Capital Management, Pereg Ventures, Sierra CM, CRCM Ventures, Newfund, Macquarie Group, Capco
- **Nationality:** Australian-American
- **Education:** MBA, London Business School, MBA, NYU Stern School of Business, Master of Commerce (Finance), UNSW Australia, Bachelor of Engineering (Telecommunications), UNSW Australia
- **Known for:** Co-founded Progression Fund with musical.ly and TikTok alumni, building a 70+ company portfolio, Early investor in Perplexity AI, one of the fastest-growing AI startups globally, Early investor in Dapper Labs, creator of the Flow blockchain and NBA Top Shot (unicorn)

## Career timeline

- **Early career** — Telecommunications engineering and finance consulting roles at Macquarie Group and Capco
- **Pre-2016** — Venture investor at Pereg Ventures, focusing on media and marketing technologies in USA and Israel
- **2016** — Moved to Bay Area; joined Sierra CM as Principal, later became Partner; met musical.ly team at peak of app's popularity
- **2016-2019** — Partner at Sierra CM (formerly ChinaRock Capital Management); helped launch a $67M seed fund over three years
- **~2019-2020** — Angel investing period (personal investments including Bikes and Lunch Club) while preparing new fund
- **2020** — Co-founded Progression Fund with musical.ly/TikTok alumni Alex Hofmann and JJ Aguhob
- **2020-present** — Founder and General Partner at Progression Fund; portfolio grew to 70+ companies including Perplexity AI, Dapper Labs, FaZe Clan

## Achievements

- Co-founded Progression Fund with musical.ly and TikTok alumni, building a 70+ company portfolio
- Early investor in Perplexity AI, one of the fastest-growing AI startups globally
- Early investor in Dapper Labs, creator of the Flow blockchain and NBA Top Shot (unicorn)
- Helped raise and deploy a $67M seed fund across a three-year campaign
- Built global investment track record spanning Europe, USA, China, and Australasia
- Developed early thesis on Gen Alpha as future wealthiest consumer generation
- Podcast guest on The One Percent Project discussing next-wave consumer investing

## Latest updates

- **2024-09** — Participated in AssetHub pre-seed round ($690K)
- **2024** — Progression Fund portfolio grew to 70+ companies with 40+ tech-focused investments
- **2023-2024** — Continued backing AI-native consumer applications amid the generative AI boom; portfolio includes Perplexity AI

## Links

- Website: https://progression.fund
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-lee-2358b628
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/powerbog
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/login/?next=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fprogressionsports%2F

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/matt-lee
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-18