David Lee

A veteran venture capitalist, entrepreneur, and technology investor, David Lee is widely recognised for his early-stage investments in some of the most influential technology companies of the past two decades, including Twitter, Airbnb, Dropbox, and Pinterest. His career spans law, entrepreneurship, corporate innovation, and venture capital, providing him with a unique perspective on building and scaling transformative businesses.

Lee began his career as a corporate attorney specialising in technology transactions before moving into business development roles at StumbleUpon and Google. He later joined Baseline Ventures before co-founding SV Angel in 2007. As Managing Partner, he helped establish the firm as one of Silicon Valley’s most active seed-stage investors, leading investments in more than 100 startups annually and contributing to numerous successful outcomes, including Twitter’s IPO and the acquisitions of Buddy Media and The Climate Corporation. In 2016, Lee co-founded Refactor Capital, a seed-stage venture firm focused on healthcare, biotechnology, and life sciences innovation. As Managing Partner, he helped back entrepreneurs advancing technologies aimed at improving human health and longevity, later transitioning to Chairman in 2019.

Since joining Samsung Electronics in 2021, Lee has expanded Samsung Next’s investment activities globally, supporting entrepreneurs developing next-generation technologies. Under his leadership, Samsung Next has invested in hundreds of startups across sectors including AI, cloud security, digital infrastructure, and decentralised technologies.

Lee holds a Bachelor of Arts in Physics from Johns Hopkins University, a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University, where he was a National Science Foundation Graduate Fellow, and a Juris Doctor from New York University School of Law. During his graduate studies, he overcame stage IV Hodgkin’s lymphoma, an experience that profoundly shaped his perspective on resilience, innovation, and the impact of technology on human lives.