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Irene Au is a highly respected design leader, former Operating Partner at Khosla Ventures, and an active angel investor. She is widely recognized for her pioneering work in user experience at major technology companies like Google, Yahoo, and Udacity.
Irene Au primarily invests in startups that prioritize strong product design, user experience, and strategic growth. Her investment interests span various sectors, including artificial intelligence, consumer technology, health and wellness, and enterprise software.
While Irene Au previously served as an Operating Partner at Khosla Ventures, she now operates as an independent angel investor, advisor, and board member for various companies. She also shares her expertise as a yoga instructor.
Irene Au is a Design Partner at Khosla Ventures based in San Francisco, California. Before joining the venture capital firm as a partner in 2014, she served as the Global Head of User Experience at Google from 2006 to 2012, where she scaled the internal design team from a small group to hundreds of practitioners. Her earlier career includes an eight-year tenure as Vice President of User Experience and Design at Yahoo!, following her initial role as an interaction designer at Netscape between 1996 and 1998. In addition to her corporate leadership roles, she authored the 2016 book Design in Venture Capital and serves as an adjunct lecturer teaching product design at Stanford University. Au currently focuses on advising various portfolio companies on human-centered design strategy, user research, product innovation, and executive team building.
Irene Au stands as a pivotal figure in the intersection of design, technology, and venture capital. Renowned for her transformative work in user experience, she brings a unique perspective to the investment landscape as an angel investor and former Operating Partner at Khosla Ventures. Her career trajectory showcases a deep commitment to elevating the role of design in product development and business strategy.
At Khosla Ventures, Irene Au served as an Operating Partner, a role where she leveraged her extensive expertise to guide and mentor portfolio companies. Her primary focus involved advising startups on critical aspects of design, user experience (UX), and product strategy. She helped founders understand the profound impact of thoughtful design on market adoption, customer satisfaction, and overall business success, ensuring that user-centricity was woven into the fabric of their products from conception.
Au's illustrious career background laid the foundation for her influential role in venture capital. She began her journey at Netscape and Hotmail, contributing to early internet innovations. Her most notable contributions came during her tenure at Google, where she built and led the user experience team for iconic products such as Search, Gmail, Maps, and YouTube. Her leadership at Google was instrumental in establishing UX as a core discipline within the company, setting industry standards for intuitive and engaging digital experiences. Following Google, she served as the Vice President of User Experience at Yahoo! and later as the Head of Design at Udacity, further cementing her reputation as a visionary in the design field.
As an angel investor, Irene Au's investment focus areas are deeply informed by her operational background. She actively seeks out and supports startups that demonstrate a strong commitment to design-led innovation, exceptional user experience, and a clear product vision. Her investment interests span a diverse range of sectors, including artificial intelligence (AI), consumer technology, health and wellness, and enterprise software. She looks for companies that not only have groundbreaking technology but also possess a deep understanding of their users' needs and a strategic approach to product development. While specific angel investments are often private, her influence is felt across the startup ecosystem through her advisory roles and mentorship, guiding founders to build sustainable, user-loved products.
Irene Au's impact extends beyond capital investment; she is a strong advocate for the strategic importance of design in achieving market leadership. Her work continues to shape how startups approach product development, emphasizing that great design is not merely aesthetic but a fundamental driver of business value and user loyalty.
