Jesse Draper: Championing Female-Led Consumer Tech Startups

Jesse Draper is a mother of 3 boys, founding partner of Halogen Ventures and focused on early stage investing in consumer technology companies led by female and co-ed teams. Draper is a Kauffman Fellow and 4th generation venture capitalist. She is a fierce advocate for investing in women and the opportunity for using technology and innovation to solve some of the biggest issues facing women and families today. Among her 70+ portfolio companies, are the Skimm, ThirdLove, HopSkipDrive, The Flex Company, Squad (acquired by Twitter), Eloquii (sold to Walmart) and This is L (sold to P&G). She and her team also created the ‘Halogen Fellowship in Venture Capital’ to increase diversity and inclusion in the venture industry. Selected as one of the top 10 early stage female investors by Business Insider, Draper was also listed by Marie Claire magazine as one of the ‘50 Most Connected Women in America’. Draper has been a contributor to Marie Claire, Forbes, and is a regular investor and tech personality showcased on networks such as Cheddar, CNBC & CNN. Following Jesse’s viral Medium piece, Investing in Women Isn’t a Fucking Charity, she’s become a leading voice of women in technology. She proudly sits on the board of directors of Trust & Will, Flex, Mirza, Preemadonna (creator of the Nailbot) and nonprofit advisory boards of PledgeLA an organization created in collaboration with the Mayor's office to increase DEI in Los Angeles Venture Capital, Bizworld and Project Glimmer. Draper is also involved with growing UCLA’s female entrepreneurship community. - The impact of investing in female and co-ed teams on the venture ecosystem - Insights and lessons learned from being a fourth-generation venture capitalist - Emerging trends in consumer technology and female-led startups #WomenInVC #FemaleFounders #TechInnovation #DiversityInTech #VentureCapital