# Wayee Chu

> Wayee Chu is Co-Founder and General Partner at Reach Capital, a San Francisco-based venture firm with $570M+ under management and 140+ portfolio companies across learning, health, and the future of work. A daughter of Chinese immigrants who came to the US for education, Wayee spent eight years at NewSchools Venture Fund - co-founding its Seed Fund in 2006 - before building Reach Capital into one of edtech's defining early-stage firms. She is a founding member of All Raise, sits on the SFMOMA board, and was named an ASU+GSV Power of Women honoree in 2025. Her portfolio spans Replit, ClassDojo, Clayful, Gradescope, and dozens of other companies reshaping how people learn and work.

- **Role:** Co-Founder & General Partner at Reach Capital
- **Organizations:** Reach Capital, All Raise, Broadway Angels, SFMOMA (Board of Trustees), University of Michigan Alumni Association (Board of Directors), University of Michigan Museum of Art Leadership Council
- **From:** Queens, New York, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** B.A., Economics and Political Science, University of Michigan
- **Known for:** Co-founded Reach Capital, which grew to $570M+ AUM across four funds with 140+ portfolio companies and 15+ exits, Co-founded the NewSchools Seed Fund in 2006, one of the earliest dedicated edtech seed funds in the United States, Named 2025 ASU+GSV Power of Women honoree

## Career timeline

- **1997** — Graduated University of Michigan; joined Morgan Stanley as Financial Analyst in New York
- **1999** — Joined Merrill Lynch as Assistant Vice President, Equity Research (financial services sector)
- **2002** — Became Director of Finance at Lifestyle Media (magazine publishing)
- **2005** — Joined NewSchools Venture Fund in California; began focusing on early-stage edtech entrepreneurs
- **2006** — Co-founded the NewSchools Seed Fund - one of the first dedicated early-stage edtech investment vehicles in the US
- **2008** — Led the NewSchools EdTech Entrepreneurship Lab, a partnership with Teach For America and Stanford d.school
- **2013** — Joined Broadway Angels as angel investor
- **2015** — Co-founded Reach Capital with Jennifer Carolan, Esteban Sosnik, and Shauntel Garvey
- **2016** — Led seed investments in Gradescope ($3M) and ClassDojo Series B ($21M)
- **2018** — Became Founding Member of All Raise; Aura Health seed investment ($3M)
- **2023** — Announced Reach Fund IV ($215M) alongside first-ever Founders' Fund with 48 portfolio founders participating; led Clayful seed round ($7M), joined board
- **2025** — Named ASU+GSV Power of Women honoree; spoke at MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference

## Achievements

- Co-founded Reach Capital, which grew to $570M+ AUM across four funds with 140+ portfolio companies and 15+ exits
- Co-founded the NewSchools Seed Fund in 2006, one of the earliest dedicated edtech seed funds in the United States
- Named 2025 ASU+GSV Power of Women honoree
- Founding Member of All Raise, the nonprofit advocating for female founders and investors in tech
- SFMOMA Board of Trustees member
- Led or participated in investments in Replit, ClassDojo, Gradescope, PAPER, Clayful, Swing Education, and 100+ other companies
- Recognized as an 'Exceptional Education Investor' by EdTech Chronicle
- Helped build Reach IV ($215M) with accompanying Founders' Fund featuring 48 portfolio company founders as LPs
- Board of Directors, University of Michigan Alumni Association
- Impact Advisory Board Member, Handshake

## Latest updates

- **2025-06** — Tweeted support for Replit's developer community growth milestone
- **2025-04** — Named ASU+GSV Power of Women honoree
- **2025-02** — Spoke at MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference (SSAC 2025), startup competition panel on collegiate NIL and sports economics
- **2024-09** — Contributed to Reach Capital market maps and perspective content
- **2023-11** — Led Clayful $7M seed round; joined Clayful board of directors
- **2023-04** — Announced Reach Fund IV ($215M core fund) and first-ever Founders' Fund

## Links

- Website: https://reachcapital.com/team/wayee-chu/
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wayeechu
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/wayeechu
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wayeechu/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wayee

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/wayee-chu
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-17