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David Cowan (venture capitalist)

January 01, 1970

David Cowan is a prominent Silicon Valley venture capitalist, filmmaker, philanthropist, and company founder. He is in the Forbes Midas List Hall of Fame and has appeared on the Midas List 14 times since 2001.[1][2] He co-founded three companies, including Verisign. He has invested in more than 29 companies that have gone on to IPO.[1] He is also noted for his support of scientific skepticism and of the work of Richard Dawkins and as of 2022 a board member of Center for Inquiry.

David Cowan
David Cowan 2022
Occupation(s)Venture Capitalist, Entrepreneur

Early life and education edit

Cowan was raised in New Rochelle, New York.[3] He earned his undergraduate degree in Computer Science and Mathematics from Harvard University in 1988.[1] He received his MBA from Harvard in 1992.[1]

Career edit

Venture capital and entrepreneurship edit

Cowan joined Bessemer Venture Partners in 1992. His notable investments there include LinkedIn, Qualys, Twitch, Twilio, Rocket Lab, Skybox Imaging, Blue Nile, Verisign, Ciena, LifeLock, Auth0,[4] Zapier,[5] Rigetti, and Spire Global. Of his investments, 29 have gone on to IPO.[1] Bessemer was Twilio’s largest shareholder at the time of its 2016 IPO,[6] a stake worth over $500 million.[1]

In 1995, Cowan co-founded network infrastructure company Verisign and served as its initial chairman.[7] The company went public in 1998 and is currently traded on NASDAQ.[8]

In 1996, Cowan co-founded mobile email software platform Visto, serving as its initial CEO. Visto later purchased Good Technology and the merged company was acquired by Blackberry in 2015.[9]

In 2012, Cowan co-founded DDOS prevention firm Defense.Net.[10][11] It was acquired by F5 Networks in 2014.[12]

He served on the Board of Auth0, which was acquired by Okta for $6.5 billion; Bessemer owned greater than 20% of the company at that time,[13] generating over $1.2 billion in gains for the firm.[14]

Other professional activities edit

In 2006, Cowan published a blog post questioning claims made regarding the dietary supplement Airborne, which he alleged was improperly marketed as a cold remedy.[15] Cowan’s blog post became the primary source for a Scientific American article,[16] which in turn led to a lawsuit against Airborne that caused significant marketing changes and a $23.5 million fine by the Federal Trade Commission.[17][18]

Cowan holds several United States patents, including patents regarding consumer behavior (assigned to Groupon following the acquisition of MashLogic)[19] and network security.[20]

Professional awards and recognition edit

  • Forbes Midas List Hall of Fame[21]
  • Forbes Midas List: Appeared 14 years between 2001 and 2018[22][2]
  • Forbes Midas List 2001 (inaugural list): #6 (tied)[23]

Creative Works edit

Cowan wrote and directed the musical “Lies in the Attic,” which was performed by a capella group Voices in Harmony four times in San Jose alongside other cast members.[24] He co-wrote and starred in the Silicon Valley mockumentary “Bubbleproof,” which was produced by the Femtofilm project in 2017.[25][26] Cowan was Executive Producer of the David Greenwald-directed documentary The Blech Effect, released in 2020.[27]

Cowan was also the Producer of Afghan Dreamers, a documentary about five girls in Afghanistan who were part of the Afghan Girls Robotics Team, an internationally competitive robotics team.[28][29] Afghan Dreamers won the Best Human Rights Film Award at Galway Film Fleadh,[30] Best Documentary Audience Award at Valladolid,[31][32] Best Inspirational Storytelling at Savannah Film Fest,[33] and Honorable Mention for Best Documentary Feature at the 2022 Woodstock Film Festival.[34] In 2022, it joined the MTV Documentary Films slate licensed by Paramount/Viacom.[35] In 2023, it was announced that it would exclusively premiere on May 23 on Paramount+.[36]

Philanthropy edit

Cowan founded the Afghan Rescue Fund, an organization that works to assist and relocate Afghan families and individuals imperiled by the upheaval in Afghanistan and the Taliban regime. Cowan himself has coordinated the rescue of hundreds of endangered Afghans to date.[37]

Cowan previously served as a Trustee of the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science before it merged with the Center for Inquiry.[38] He serves as a board member of the merged organization.[39] He also serves on the Advisory Board of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian as of 2022.[40]

Personal life edit

Cowan is the brother of former New York Times reporter Alison Leigh Cowan.[41] He identifies as atheist.[42]

See also edit

  • Bessemer Venture Partners

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f "David Cowan". Forbes.
  2. ^ a b "The Space Companies Getting A Boost From Midas List Members". Forbes.
  3. ^ "YU Wall Street Group Hosts Community Events".
  4. ^ "Auth0 Raises $2.4M to Help Developers Plug into Identity Platforms Like Facebook".
  5. ^ "Zapier Raises $1.2M Seed Round from Bessemer Venture Partners, Draper Fisher Jurvetson & Others".
  6. ^ "FORM S-1: Twilio Inc".
  7. ^ Shah, Tarang; Shah, Shital (24 January 2012). Venture Capitalists at Work: How VCs Identify and Build Billion-Dollar Successes. Apress. ISBN 9781430238386. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  8. ^ "VeriSign IPO well-received". CNET. 30 January 1998.
  9. ^ "BlackBerry to acquire Good Technology for $425 million". CrackBerry.com. 4 September 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  10. ^ "David Cowan". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  11. ^ "Cyber Security Expert Barrett Lyon Brings Defense.net Out Of Stealth To Battle A New Wave Of DDoS Attacks – TechCrunch". techcrunch.com.
  12. ^ Team, Trefis. "F5 Expands Its Security Portolio With Defense.Net". Forbes. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  13. ^ Chernova, Yuliya (2021-03-05). "Auth0 Backers Projected to See Blockbuster Return From $6.5 Billion Sale to Okta". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2022-08-19.
  14. ^ Chernova, Yuliya (2021-03-05). "Auth0 Backers Projected to See Blockbuster Return From $6.5 Billion Sale to Okta". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2022-12-15.
  15. ^ Cowan, David (19 April 2006). "Who Has Time For This?: CREATED BY A SCHOOL TEACHER!!!!!". Who Has Time For This?. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  16. ^ Shermer, Michael (2007). "Airborne Baloney". Scientific American. 296 (1): 32. Bibcode:2007SciAm.296a..32S. doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0107-32. PMID 17186829. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  17. ^ Shermer, Michael (12 January 2016). Skeptic: Viewing the World with a Rational Eye. Henry Holt and Company. ISBN 9781627791397.
  18. ^ "Makers of Airborne Settle FTC Charges of Deceptive Advertising; Agreement Brings Total Settlement Funds to $30 Million". Federal Trade Commission. 14 August 2008. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  19. ^ US 9489352, "System and method for providing content to users based on interactions by similar other users" 
  20. ^ US 7039679B2, "System and method for globally and securely accessing unified information in a computer network" 
  21. ^ Upbin, Bruce. "Who's Been On The Midas List More Than Anyone?". Forbes. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  22. ^ Upbin, Bruce. "Who's Been On The Midas List More Than Anyone?". Forbes.
  23. ^ "Midas List". Forbes. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  24. ^ "Beatles and barbershop blend in 'Lies in the Attic' musical". The Mercury News. 10 February 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  25. ^ "David Cowan". IMDb. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  26. ^ "Silicon Valley mockumentary 'Bubbleproof'". Bubbleproof.TV. Retrieved 27 January 2019.
  27. ^ "The Blech Effect - Cast | IMDbPro". pro.imdb.com. Retrieved 2022-12-15.
  28. ^ Ravindran, Manori (2021-08-25). "'Afghan Dreamers' Film, on Female Robotics Team, Underway as Producer Describes 'White-Knuckle Panic' Around Evacuation (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 2022-12-15.
  29. ^ Ide2022-07-07T18:15:00+01:00, Wendy. "'Afghan Dreamers': Galway Review". Screen. Retrieved 2022-12-15.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  30. ^ ciaraod (2022-07-11). "2022 Award Winners Announced". Galway Film Fleadh. Retrieved 2022-12-15.
  31. ^ Carey, Matthew (2023-05-09). "Paramount+ To Debut 'Afghan Dreamers' May 23, "Harrowing Story" Of All-Girls Robotics Team Menaced By Taliban Rule". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-05-16.
  32. ^ "Review: Afghan Dreamers / It's Just Movies". itsjustmovies.com. Retrieved 2023-07-02.
  33. ^ "Film showcases and specialty series". SCAD Savannah Film Festival. Retrieved 2023-05-20.
  34. ^ "Award Winners from the 23rd Annual Woodstock Film Festival". Woodstock Film Festival. Retrieved 2022-12-15.
  35. ^ "MTV Documentary Films Unveils Full Slate and Trailer for Ondi Timoner's 'Last Flight Home' (EXCLUSIVE)". www.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2022-12-15.
  36. ^ Major, Michael. "Paramount+ to Exclusively Debut MTV's AFGHAN DREAMERS Documentary Film". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2023-05-16.
  37. ^ kreidler, Marc (2022-04-19). "Afghan Rescue Fund | Secular Rescue". Retrieved 2022-12-15.
  38. ^ kreidler, Marc (2016-12-31). "Two Great Freethought Organizations Are Now One | Center for Inquiry". Retrieved 2022-12-15.
  39. ^ kreidler, Marc (2018-04-12). "Board | Center for Inquiry". Retrieved 2022-12-15.
  40. ^ . 2019-11-07. Archived from the original on 2019-11-07. Retrieved 2022-12-15.
  41. ^ "Alison Leigh Cowan". The School of The New York Times. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  42. ^ . www.richarddawkins.net. Archived from the original on 1 April 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2018.

External links edit

January 01, 1970
david, cowan, venture, capitalist, david, cowan, prominent, silicon, valley, venture, capitalist, filmmaker, philanthropist, company, founder, forbes, midas, list, hall, fame, appeared, midas, list, times, since, 2001, founded, three, companies, including, ver. David Cowan is a prominent Silicon Valley venture capitalist filmmaker philanthropist and company founder He is in the Forbes Midas List Hall of Fame and has appeared on the Midas List 14 times since 2001 1 2 He co founded three companies including Verisign He has invested in more than 29 companies that have gone on to IPO 1 He is also noted for his support of scientific skepticism and of the work of Richard Dawkins and as of 2022 a board member of Center for Inquiry David CowanDavid Cowan 2022Occupation s Venture Capitalist Entrepreneur Contents 1 Early life and education 2 Career 2 1 Venture capital and entrepreneurship 2 2 Other professional activities 2 3 Professional awards and recognition 3 Creative Works 4 Philanthropy 5 Personal life 6 See also 7 References 8 External linksEarly life and education editCowan was raised in New Rochelle New York 3 He earned his undergraduate degree in Computer Science and Mathematics from Harvard University in 1988 1 He received his MBA from Harvard in 1992 1 Career editVenture capital and entrepreneurship edit Cowan joined Bessemer Venture Partners in 1992 His notable investments there include LinkedIn Qualys Twitch Twilio Rocket Lab Skybox Imaging Blue Nile Verisign Ciena LifeLock Auth0 4 Zapier 5 Rigetti and Spire Global Of his investments 29 have gone on to IPO 1 Bessemer was Twilio s largest shareholder at the time of its 2016 IPO 6 a stake worth over 500 million 1 In 1995 Cowan co founded network infrastructure company Verisign and served as its initial chairman 7 The company went public in 1998 and is currently traded on NASDAQ 8 In 1996 Cowan co founded mobile email software platform Visto serving as its initial CEO Visto later purchased Good Technology and the merged company was acquired by Blackberry in 2015 9 In 2012 Cowan co founded DDOS prevention firm Defense Net 10 11 It was acquired by F5 Networks in 2014 12 He served on the Board of Auth0 which was acquired by Okta for 6 5 billion Bessemer owned greater than 20 of the company at that time 13 generating over 1 2 billion in gains for the firm 14 Other professional activities edit In 2006 Cowan published a blog post questioning claims made regarding the dietary supplement Airborne which he alleged was improperly marketed as a cold remedy 15 Cowan s blog post became the primary source for a Scientific American article 16 which in turn led to a lawsuit against Airborne that caused significant marketing changes and a 23 5 million fine by the Federal Trade Commission 17 18 Cowan holds several United States patents including patents regarding consumer behavior assigned to Groupon following the acquisition of MashLogic 19 and network security 20 Professional awards and recognition edit Forbes Midas List Hall of Fame 21 Forbes Midas List Appeared 14 years between 2001 and 2018 22 2 Forbes Midas List 2001 inaugural list 6 tied 23 Creative Works editCowan wrote and directed the musical Lies in the Attic which was performed by a capella group Voices in Harmony four times in San Jose alongside other cast members 24 He co wrote and starred in the Silicon Valley mockumentary Bubbleproof which was produced by the Femtofilm project in 2017 25 26 Cowan was Executive Producer of the David Greenwald directed documentary The Blech Effect released in 2020 27 Cowan was also the Producer of Afghan Dreamers a documentary about five girls in Afghanistan who were part of the Afghan Girls Robotics Team an internationally competitive robotics team 28 29 Afghan Dreamers won the Best Human Rights Film Award at Galway Film Fleadh 30 Best Documentary Audience Award at Valladolid 31 32 Best Inspirational Storytelling at Savannah Film Fest 33 and Honorable Mention for Best Documentary Feature at the 2022 Woodstock Film Festival 34 In 2022 it joined the MTV Documentary Films slate licensed by Paramount Viacom 35 In 2023 it was announced that it would exclusively premiere on May 23 on Paramount 36 Philanthropy editCowan founded the Afghan Rescue Fund an organization that works to assist and relocate Afghan families and individuals imperiled by the upheaval in Afghanistan and the Taliban regime Cowan himself has coordinated the rescue of hundreds of endangered Afghans to date 37 Cowan previously served as a Trustee of the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science before it merged with the Center for Inquiry 38 He serves as a board member of the merged organization 39 He also serves on the Advisory Board of the Center for Astrophysics Harvard amp Smithsonian as of 2022 40 Personal life editCowan is the brother of former New York Times reporter Alison Leigh Cowan 41 He identifies as atheist 42 See also editBessemer Venture PartnersReferences edit a b c d e f David Cowan Forbes a b The Space Companies Getting A Boost From Midas List Members Forbes YU Wall Street Group Hosts Community Events Auth0 Raises 2 4M to Help Developers Plug into Identity Platforms Like Facebook Zapier Raises 1 2M Seed Round from Bessemer Venture Partners Draper Fisher Jurvetson amp Others FORM S 1 Twilio Inc Shah Tarang Shah Shital 24 January 2012 Venture Capitalists at Work How VCs Identify and Build Billion Dollar Successes Apress ISBN 9781430238386 Retrieved 31 March 2018 VeriSign IPO well received CNET 30 January 1998 BlackBerry to acquire Good Technology for 425 million CrackBerry com 4 September 2015 Retrieved 31 March 2018 David Cowan Bloomberg com Retrieved 31 March 2018 Cyber Security Expert Barrett Lyon Brings Defense net Out Of Stealth To Battle A New Wave Of DDoS Attacks TechCrunch techcrunch com Team Trefis F5 Expands Its Security Portolio With Defense Net Forbes Retrieved 31 March 2018 Chernova Yuliya 2021 03 05 Auth0 Backers Projected to See Blockbuster Return From 6 5 Billion Sale to Okta Wall Street Journal ISSN 0099 9660 Retrieved 2022 08 19 Chernova Yuliya 2021 03 05 Auth0 Backers Projected to See Blockbuster Return From 6 5 Billion Sale to Okta Wall Street Journal ISSN 0099 9660 Retrieved 2022 12 15 Cowan David 19 April 2006 Who Has Time For This CREATED BY A SCHOOL TEACHER Who Has Time For This Retrieved 31 March 2018 Shermer Michael 2007 Airborne Baloney Scientific American 296 1 32 Bibcode 2007SciAm 296a 32S doi 10 1038 scientificamerican0107 32 PMID 17186829 Retrieved 31 March 2018 Shermer Michael 12 January 2016 Skeptic Viewing the World with a Rational Eye Henry Holt and Company ISBN 9781627791397 Makers of Airborne Settle FTC Charges of Deceptive Advertising Agreement Brings Total Settlement Funds to 30 Million Federal Trade Commission 14 August 2008 Retrieved 31 March 2018 US 9489352 System and method for providing content to users based on interactions by similar other users US 7039679B2 System and method for globally and securely accessing unified information in a computer network Upbin Bruce Who s Been On The Midas List More Than Anyone Forbes Retrieved 31 March 2018 Upbin Bruce Who s Been On The Midas List More Than Anyone Forbes Midas List Forbes Retrieved 31 March 2018 Beatles and barbershop blend in Lies in the Attic musical The Mercury News 10 February 2016 Retrieved 31 March 2018 David Cowan IMDb Retrieved 31 March 2018 Silicon Valley mockumentary Bubbleproof Bubbleproof TV Retrieved 27 January 2019 The Blech Effect Cast IMDbPro pro imdb com Retrieved 2022 12 15 Ravindran Manori 2021 08 25 Afghan Dreamers Film on Female Robotics Team Underway as Producer Describes White Knuckle Panic Around Evacuation EXCLUSIVE Variety Retrieved 2022 12 15 Ide2022 07 07T18 15 00 01 00 Wendy Afghan Dreamers Galway Review Screen Retrieved 2022 12 15 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint numeric names authors list link ciaraod 2022 07 11 2022 Award Winners Announced Galway Film Fleadh Retrieved 2022 12 15 Carey Matthew 2023 05 09 Paramount To Debut Afghan Dreamers May 23 Harrowing Story Of All Girls Robotics Team Menaced By Taliban Rule Deadline Retrieved 2023 05 16 Review Afghan Dreamers It s Just Movies itsjustmovies com Retrieved 2023 07 02 Film showcases and specialty series SCAD Savannah Film Festival Retrieved 2023 05 20 Award Winners from the 23rd Annual Woodstock Film Festival Woodstock Film Festival Retrieved 2022 12 15 MTV Documentary Films Unveils Full Slate and Trailer for Ondi Timoner s Last Flight Home EXCLUSIVE www yahoo com Retrieved 2022 12 15 Major Michael Paramount to Exclusively Debut MTV s AFGHAN DREAMERS Documentary Film BroadwayWorld com Retrieved 2023 05 16 kreidler Marc 2022 04 19 Afghan Rescue Fund Secular Rescue Retrieved 2022 12 15 kreidler Marc 2016 12 31 Two Great Freethought Organizations Are Now One Center for Inquiry Retrieved 2022 12 15 kreidler Marc 2018 04 12 Board Center for Inquiry Retrieved 2022 12 15 Advisory Board www cfa harvard edu 2019 11 07 Archived from the original on 2019 11 07 Retrieved 2022 12 15 Alison Leigh Cowan The School of The New York Times Retrieved 31 March 2018 Board and Staff Richard Dawkins Foundation www richarddawkins net Archived from the original on 1 April 2018 Retrieved 31 March 2018 External links edit Who Has Time for This blog http whohastimeforthis blogspot com Bessemer Venture Partners https www bvp com team david cowan David Cowan on Twitter Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title David Cowan venture capitalist amp oldid 1196412208, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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