NEWS & EVENTS
Charles River Ventures adds Stanford Professor and Google Principal Engineer Sebastian Thrun as Senior Advisor
Charles River Ventures adds Stanford Professor and Google Principal Engineer Sebastian Thrun as Senior Advisor WALTHAM, Mass. (April 27, 2009) – Charles River Ventures (CRV), one of the nation’s leading early-stage venture capital firms, today announced that Sebastian Thrun has joined the firm as senior advisor. Thrun is a professor of computer science and electrical engineering at Stanford University, where he also directs the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (SAIL). He also serves as a principal engineer at Google where he was a key driver behind Google StreetView. A leading expert on artificial intelligence, robotics, and all things computer, Thrun will work with the partners at CRV to identify new investment opportunities in internet services and technology while also advising the firm’s portfolio company executives on product and technology strategy.
“Sebastian is always on the cutting edge of technology innovation and brings a fresh perspective drawing from his work with students and future innovators,” said George Zachary, partner, Charles River Ventures. “We are happy to have him on board and know that CRV and our portfolio companies will greatly benefit from his experience and know-how in helping entrepreneurs achieve market traction with world-changing ideas.”
Thrun’s research focus includes artificial intelligence, robotics, machine learning, distributed systems, human robot interaction, and programming language design. He is widely acknowledged as a pioneer in the area of probabilistic robotics, which is concerned with applying statistical techniques to problems in real-world perception, planning, and control. Within this area, Thrun has focused on mobile robot exploration, mapping, and multi-robot coordination. Thrun led the Stanford team that won the DARPA $2 million Grand Challenge, an autonomous robot race organized by the U.S. Government.
Robots by Thrun and his students have been deployed in museums as tour guides; in elderly care facilities as personal assistants and walking aids; and in abandoned mines as tools for acquiring mine maps. Other robotic systems include submersible and aerial vehicles, and environments instrumented with many sensors. On the basic research level, he has pursued research on robust statistical programming techniques that scale to complex environments and to large decentralized robot systems. Thrun is the author of eleven books and more than 300 papers. In recognition of his contributions, Thrun was elected into the National Academy of Engineering at age 39. He was named one of 50 technology and policy leaders by Scientific American; and one of seven technology leaders (“the E-Gang”) by Forbes; and his name was included in the 2006 “Brilliant Ten” by Popular Science.
“Companies with groundbreaking technologies continue to emerge at a rapid pace, and it is an exciting time to be advising these companies on product and technology strategy and working with CRV to explore new investment ideas,” said Thrun. “I’ve known CRV for a long time, and I welcome the opportunity to work more closely with the firm’s partners and portfolio companies.”
Thrun holds a M.S. and a Ph.D. in computer science and statistics from the University of Bonn, Germany. He holds a B.S. in computer science, economics, and medicine from the University of Hildesheim, Germany.
About Charles River Ventures
Founded in 1970, Charles River Ventures is one of the nation’s oldest and most successful early-stage venture capital firms with approximately $2.1 billion under management. CRV is dedicated to helping exceptional entrepreneurs turn their ideas into the next category leaders in high growth technology and media sectors. Over the past 10 years, CRV funds have been ranked among the industry’s top performers. CRV has offices in Boston, MA and Menlo Park, CA.