Paul Madera

Former U.S. Air Force pilot flies under the radar. Founded late-stage venture capital firm Meritech in 1999. Led firm’s early investment in Facebook, which earned him a board observer seat. Little known fact: Meritech owns a larger stake in Facebook than Greylock. Also led investments in Acopia (acquired for $210 million), 2Wire (acquired for $475 million) and Riverbed Technologies (current market cap: $6.2 billion). Focused on storage, e-commerce and digital consumer space. Current portfolio includes: Force10 Networks (network equipment), BlueArc (storage), Glaukos (devices to treat glaucoma), Prosper Marketplace (online loan service). Serves on the board of the U.S. Air Force Academy endowment.