Michael Staton

Michael Staton is the Managing Partner at Presence Capital, an early-stage venture capital firm based in New York City. Before transitioning to venture capital, he co-founded and served as CEO of Presence Learning, an education technology company that reached over one million students before its acquisition by WestEd. Staton also co-founded Instructure, the developer of the Canvas learning management system, which completed its initial public offering in 2021 and achieved a peak market capitalization of approximately $3 billion. At Presence Capital, he recently announced a new $50 million fund to support a portfolio of more than twenty companies, including leading a 2024 investment round in Handshake. Holding an MBA from the University of Michigan, Staton currently focuses his investments on early-stage startups operating at the intersection of artificial intelligence, workforce development, and the future of work.