Ian Hathaway

Co-founder and General Partner

Far Out Ventures

Contact Ian:

Ian Hathaway is the Chair of CAE’s board of directors.  He is Co-founder and General Partner of Far Out Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm based in the United States.  He is also a startup advisor and mentor; advisor to Index Ventures; senior fellow at the Brookings Institution; and board member and senior fellow at the Center for American Entrepreneurship.  Most recently, Ian was SVP and Head of Capital Analytics at Techstars, where was a leader in the firm’s capital formation, fund management, and investment strategy activities globally.

Ian has a long track record as a thought leader in startups, innovation, and venture capital, and is co-author of The Startup Community Way, a book about entrepreneurial ecosystems published in 2020.  His insights are regularly cited in leading press outlets, such as The New York Times, The Economist, Financial Times, and many others.  He has been a frequent contributor to outlets such as the Harvard Business Review and The Wall Street Journal.

Ian has worked with large businesses, high-growth startups, and governments in the technology and media, startup and venture capital, financial services, and social sectors on a range of strategic, innovation, and analytical matters.  He has advised, mentored, or invested in dozens of early-stage startups and emerging fund managers in the United States, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

Previously, Ian led product and innovation initiatives in the venture capital and media sectors (Techstars, Silicon Valley Bank, Bloomberg); was a consultant to major technology and financial services clients (e.g., Google, Goldman Sachs); was an economist at leading policymaking institutions (Federal Reserve Bank, World Trade Organization); was a founder, advisor, and early employee for data analytics startups; was a social entrepreneur (co-founded Center for American Entrepreneurship); and was an educator (New York University).

Ian is a graduate of the University of Chicago and the University of Dayton.  He resides in Santa Barbara, California with his wife and three children.

Ian’s Recent Writings

September 2, 2020

The Relative Resilience of Venture Capital Deals During COVID-19 So Far

As the COVID-19 pandemic began to take shape in the U.S. in mid-March, two concerns emerged around venture-backed...

  1. Capital
  2. Innovation
July 29, 2020

The Startup Community Way: Five Lessons for U.S. Policymakers

My new book with CAE Advisory Board member Brad Feld published yesterday. The Startup Community Way: Evolving an...

  1. Capital
  2. Innovation
  3. Regulation
  4. Talent
April 14, 2020

Call for Input: Local Policies to Support Economic Development via Entrepreneurship

This is a call for input for a brief survey on local policies or programs to support startup community development. I use...

  1. Innovation
  2. Talent