When we founded Wing, Gaurav and I set out to build a very specific kind of venture firm with a distinctive set of attributes. At the top of the list is thought leadership.
Looking back on our years at Accel and Sequoia, we realized that our best work came when we were able to develop deep and unique insights into the forces reshaping key technology markets. Examples include our early work in broadband, mobility, virtualization, video, storage and cybersecurity long before these neighborhoods became fashionable.
As we brainstormed the new model for Wing, the pursuit of thought leadership emerged as one of our top priorities. We do not intend to be the biggest venture firm on the planet – indeed, we have a well-informed view that scale brings with it significant and unintended consequences. We characterize our goals not in terms of volume but in terms of excellence. Our sole mission is to help build multi-billion-dollar, independent companies in the business markets. Pulling this off requires uncommon insight into the data-mobile-cloud transformation roiling business technology today. Our own long experience in this domain is a rare asset and a great starting point, but we have more in mind.
Today we take the next step in building thought leadership at Wing, as we welcome Martin Giles to the firm as Partner, Intellectual Capital. Martin joins us after more than 25 years at The Economist, where he is widely known as one of the most incisive minds and clearest voices in the business of technology. He will lead a unique research effort that will draw upon the insight of our partners, our companies, our deep networks and the industry at large.
Martin is ideally suited to this endeavor, bringing a formidable combination of mental agility, wisdom, clarity and humor to the role. Working closely with other members of Wing’s team, he will develop insights that are actionable for the firm and for the companies it invests in. Some of these insights will be proprietary, but we intend to share others with the broader community. Our goal is to make a meaningful contribution on the intellectual front in the areas of business technology that we are incredibly passionate about. There is a huge and very exciting opportunity here, and we are delighted that Martin has joined us to help Wing seize it.
