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    Eric Tarczynski

    Based in San Francisco, California, United States

    Eric Tarczynski, Founder and Managing Partner of Contrary

    Eric Tarczynski is the founder and managing partner of Contrary, a San Francisco-based venture capital firm he started in 2016.12 Contrary invests in early-stage technology companies across North America and India, with notable investments in startups like DoorDash, Anduril, Ramp, Zepto, and Vise.2

    Tarczynski was awarded the Forbes 30 Under 30 honor in the Venture Capital category for his work founding Contrary.2 Some of Contrary's high-profile investors include Tesla co-founder Martin Eberhard, Reddit co-founder Steve Huffman, Twitch co-founder Emmett Shear, Twitter ex-CEO Parag Agrawal, Meta Chief Product Officer Chris Cox, and GitHub COO Erica Brescia.2

    Prior to founding Contrary, Tarczynski was an early employee at the mobile game recording startup Kamcord, which raised $35M from investors like a16z, Tencent, Time Warner, and GV before being acquired by Lyft.1 He also co-founded a restaurant mobile payments company called Checkit while at Northeastern University.1

    Tarczynski's LinkedIn username is eric-tarczynski-84880230.4 He has over 500 connections on LinkedIn1 and can also be found on Twitter at @etarczynski.3

    Highlights

    May 12 · Business Insider
    The Seed 100: The best early-stage investors of 2025
    Apr 17 · twitter

    I'm launching Tech Today.

    Check it out and subscribe below or via @techtodaypod.

    Daily episodes start Monday.

    I'm launching Tech Today.

A daily show on the most important stories in tech.
10 minutes per day, 5
    Apr 14 · twitter

    Under-discussed in venture:

    If you’re a mega-fund, you have to invest in hype cycles.

    • Need to capture the 1-3 generational cos to have a chance of putting up decent (~2-3x net) returns.
    • Need to stay relevant/marketing
    • Need to deploy capital

    If you’re not, can avoid entirely and still put up venture-scale (4-5x net+) returns.

    • Find mission-driven founders building for the next decade regardless of cycle
    • Run high-ownership
    • Keep your head down
    Apr 20 · youtube.com
    159 Eric Tarczynski, Founder & Managing Partner of Contrary
    159 Eric Tarczynski, Founder & Managing Partner of Contrary
    Apr 11 · TechCrunch
    Listen to the TechCrunch Live Podcast for top founders and investors giving actionable advice - TechCrunch
    Listen to the TechCrunch Live Podcast for top founders and investors giving actionable advice - Tech

    Related Questions

    What are some of the biggest lessons Eric Tarczynski has learned as an early-stage investor?
    How does Contrary identify and invest in the world’s top talent?
    What makes Contrary's investment strategy unique compared to other venture capital firms?
    Can you share some of the key traits Eric Tarczynski looks for in potential founders?
    What are some of the most successful startups that Contrary has invested in?
    Eric Tarczynski
    Eric Tarczynski, photo 1
    Eric Tarczynski, photo 2
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    Experience

    Contrary

    Education

    Northeastern University

    Location

    San Francisco, California, United States