Sarah Tavel, who joined Benchmark eight years ago as the firm’s first female general partner, has announced a transition to a more limited role at the company. This announcement was made on the platform X.
In her new capacity as a venture partner, Tavel will continue to invest and serve on existing company boards. However, this role will allow her additional time to explore advancements in “AI tools at the edge” and contemplate the future of AI.
Tavel became part of Benchmark in 2017 after a tenure of one and a half years as a partner at Greylock and three years in product management at Pinterest. Prior to her role at Pinterest, she was an investor at Bessemer Venture Partners, where she contributed to identifying opportunities like Pinterest and GitHub.
Benchmark, since its establishment in 1995, has intentionally kept a small team of six or fewer general partners. Unlike many venture capital firms, where senior partners usually claim a larger share of management fees and profits, Benchmark follows an equal partnership model, with fees and returns divided equally among all general partners.
During her time as Benchmark’s general partner, Tavel invested in multiple companies such as Hipcamp, a campsite marketplace; Chainalysis, a cryptocurrency intelligence startup; and the beauty platform Supergreat, which was acquired by Whatnot in 2023. Additionally, she supported the photo-sharing app Paparazzi, which closed down two years ago, and the AI sales platform 11X, recently covered by TechCrunch.
