David Kwon, Abstract Ventures, Partner on Frontier Seed Investing
Episode description
David Kwon is a Partner at Abstract, a $1.8B AUM venture capital firm and early partner to category-defining companies including xAI, SpaceX, Solana, Rippling, and Cognition. He focuses on frontier AI and next-generation software investments, helping lead backing for high-growth companies such as Polymarket, Decart, Hedra, and Socket, alongside multiple stealth ventures. Previously, he led enterprise software investing at Greycroft, backing breakout companies including Extra Card, ZenBusiness, and MNTN that later reached unicorn status, and began his career at Stripes investing in growth-stage software and consumer companies. Berkeley Economics BA and Forbes 30 Under 30 VC, David spots technical excellence traditional funds miss, bridging research to unicorn trajectories.Topics
- How Abstract sourced xAI SpaceX and Cognition before trillion-dollar narratives too shape
- Lessons carried from Stripes and Greycroft into early-stage investing, and how late-stage metrics inform seed and Series A conviction
- Spotting Polymarket Hedra and Vapi when AI agents were fringe ideas