Maria Shen

Maria Shen is a General Partner at Electric Capital, a venture capital firm that focuses on early-stage investments in the cryptocurrency and blockchain sectors. She has been with Electric Capital since August 2018 and was recently promoted to General Partner in June 2023, alongside Ken Deeter.4

Professional Background

Before joining Electric Capital, Maria co-founded and served as the CTO of Bambify, a startup aimed at helping e-commerce businesses connect with manufacturers globally. She has also worked at Microsoft, where she contributed to search technologies that were integrated into over a billion devices, including features for Windows 10 and the Cortana search assistant.23

Maria holds an A.B. in Government from Harvard University and a Master of Engineering in Computer Science from Cornell University. She is particularly interested in supporting women, minority, and immigrant founders in the tech industry.23

Investment Focus

At Electric Capital, Maria specializes in sectors such as Web3, blockchain, fintech, and marketplaces, primarily focusing on seed and Series A investments. Her investment range typically falls between $1 million to $5 million, with a sweet spot around $2.5 million.12

Contributions to the Ecosystem

Maria is known for her efforts in promoting open-source development within the crypto space and has been involved in creating resources like the Developer Report, which tracks the activities of developers in the blockchain ecosystem.5 She actively encourages engagement from diverse founders and is reachable via her Twitter handle, @MariaShen.23