# Zachary Bratun-Glennon

> Zachary 'Zach' Bratun-Glennon is a General Partner at Gradient Ventures, Google's AI-focused venture fund based in San Francisco. With a rare trifecta of a CS/Applied Math degree from UVA, a JD and MBA from UCLA, and hands-on stints as a quant at an energy trading hedge fund, an investment banker, and a Google Cloud M&A dealmaker, Zach has directed investments in over 35 companies and held more than 25 board seats. He focuses on AI/ML, data science, vertical software, B2B marketplaces, and fintech, writing checks from $1M to $10M at pre-seed through Series A. Notable portfolio companies include Lambda, Openly, Rad AI, CentML, Stack AI, and Forge.

- **Role:** General Partner at Gradient Ventures
- **Organizations:** Gradient Ventures
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** BS in Computer Science and Applied Mathematics, University of Virginia, Juris Doctor (JD), UCLA School of Law, Master of Business Administration (MBA), UCLA Anderson School of Management
- **Known for:** Led investments in over 35 companies at early stage, Held more than 25 board seats at early-stage startups, Built a portfolio including unicorn-trajectory companies like Lambda AI and Openly

## Career timeline

- **early career** — Started as a quantitative analyst and data engineer at a leading energy trading hedge fund
- **mid career** — Worked as an investment banker advising major software and internet companies on IPOs, M&A, financing, and strategic investments
- **mid career** — Co-founded a social media startup
- **mid career** — Consulted a tech incubator's portfolio startups on fundraising and legal issues
- **pre-2017** — Led acquisitions and strategic investments at Google Corporate Development, focusing on Google Cloud, Ads, and Commerce
- **2017** — Joined Gradient Ventures (Google's AI-focused venture fund)
- **2025-10-09** — Promoted to General Partner (Managing Partner) at Gradient Ventures

## Achievements

- Led investments in over 35 companies at early stage
- Held more than 25 board seats at early-stage startups
- Built a portfolio including unicorn-trajectory companies like Lambda AI and Openly
- Recognized for backing female founders and diverse founding teams
- Part of Gradient Ventures team that built a portfolio of 177+ companies with 4 unicorns (WRITER, Lambda AI, Oura, and others)

## Latest updates

- **2026-03** — Gradient Ventures raised its latest funding round ($220M) in March 2026
- **2025-10** — Promoted to General Partner at Gradient Ventures on October 9, 2025
- **2025-06** — Led Gradient's investment in Clarify
- **2025-02** — Led Gradient's investment in Concierge
- **2024-08** — Led Gradient's investment in Roe AI
- **2024-06** — Led Gradient's investment in Forge
- **2024-05** — Led Gradient's investment in Stack AI

## Links

- Website: https://gradient.com/team/zach-bratun-glennon/
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/zachary-bratun-glennon-b4a16026
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/thezbg
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/gradientvc

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/zachary-bratun-glennon
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-17