Washington, D.C. — TechNet, the national, bipartisan network of innovation economy CEOs and senior executives, today announced that Steve Case, one of America’s best known and accomplished entrepreneurs, has joined TechNet’s Executive Council. Case is the chairman and CEO of Revolution, a DC-based venture capital firm long focused on the intersection of technology and policy, and a co-founder of America Online.
Last month, Case joined other TechNet Executive Council members in conversations with various lawmakers, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Senator Steve Daines (R-MN), Representative Michael McCaul (R-TX), Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, about how to best support entrepreneurs scaling startups across the country.
“2021 is a crucial year for our nation as we work to control COVID-19 and rebuild our economy. In our conversations with policymakers last month, I shared why startups, as the true engines of job creation, need to be part of that conversation, and why the future of American competitiveness is linked to the support of innovation outside the coastal tech hubs. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues to advance policies that will bring opportunity, jobs, and prosperity to all parts of our country,” said Steve Case, Chairman and CEO of Revolution.
“Steve is a tech icon whose industry-defining work has enabled millions of Americans to connect to the Internet and expand their personal and professional possibilities. He’s now helping startups grow and thrive, and recognizes the fundamental role these companies play in advancing innovation, spurring economic growth, and creating new jobs. Steve’s voice and expertise will help TechNet advocate for policies that expand opportunity and help our economy grow. We are excited to welcome Steve to TechNet’s Executive Council,” said Linda Moore, President and CEO of TechNet.
“Steve’s talent and accomplishments speak for themselves. Five years ago, he made it clear in his bestselling book, The Third Wave, that policy would become an increasingly important factor in the innovation economy, and he has continued to build his team at Revolution to support that idea. I look forward to working with him to champion policies that create a more equitable economy for all,” said Greg Becker, TechNet Chairman and CEO of Silicon Valley Bank.
Case joins TechNet’s prestigious Executive Council of tech industry leaders, which also includes:
- Greg Becker, CEO, Silicon Valley Bank, TechNet Chairman
- John Chambers, Founder and CEO, JC2 Ventures, Chairman Emeritus, Cisco, TechNet Co-Founder
- John Doerr, Chairman, Kleiner Perkins, TechNet Co-Founder
- Aparna Bawa, COO, Zoom
- Michael Gregoire, Partner and Managing Director, Brighton Park Capital
- Terry Howerton, Co-Founder and CEO, TechNexus
- Ed Knight, Vice Chairman, Nasdaq
- Aaron Levie, CEO, Co-Founder and Chairman, Box
- Kim Polese, Chairman, CrowdSmart
- KR Sridhar, Co-Founder and CEO, Bloom Energy
- Kent Walker, SVP, Google
- Tony Xu, CEO and Co-Founder, DoorDash
About Steve Case: Steve Case is one of America’s best-known and most accomplished entrepreneurs and a pioneer in making the Internet part of everyday life.
For the past 15 years, Steve’s focus has been on starting and scaling Revolution, the Washington, D.C.-based investment firm that now backs entrepreneurs at every stage of their development. Revolution Growth has invested nearly $1 billion in growth-stage companies including Sweetgreen, Tempus, Tala, DraftKings, and Clear. Revolution Ventures has backed more than two dozen venture-stage companies, including Framebridge, Policygenius, and Bloomscape. The Rise of the Rest Seed Fund has invested in more than 130 startups in over 70 U.S. cities, in partnership with many of America’s most successful entrepreneurs and investors.
Steve’s entrepreneurial career began in 1985 when he co-founded America Online (AOL). Under Steve’s leadership, AOL became the world’s largest and most valuable Internet company, helping to drive the worldwide adoption of a medium that has transformed business and society. AOL was the first Internet company to go public, and the best-performing stocks of the 1990s, delivering an 11,616% return to shareholders. At its peak, nearly half of Internet users in the United States used AOL. In 2000, Steve negotiated the largest merger in business history, bringing together AOL and Time Warner in a transaction that gave AOL shareholders a majority stake in the combined company. To facilitate the merger, Steve agreed to step down as CEO when the merger closed.
Steve’s passion for helping entrepreneurs remains his driving force. He was the founding chair of the Startup America Partnership — an effort launched at the White House in 2011 to accelerate high-growth entrepreneurship throughout the nation. Steve also was the founding co-chair of the National Advisory Council on Innovation & Entrepreneurship, and a member of President Obama’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, where he chaired the subcommittee on entrepreneurship.
Steve has been a leading voice in shaping government policy on issues related to entrepreneurship, working across the aisle to advance public policies that expand access to capital and talent. He was instrumental in passing the JOBS (Jumpstart Our Business Startups) Act and the Investing in Opportunities Act, and is active in advocating on behalf of immigration reform and legislation that supports and accelerates the emergence of startup ecosystems in rising cities.
Steve also serves as the Chair of the Smithsonian Institution, the world’s largest museum and research complex. In this role, Steve leads the Board of Regents’ efforts to increase the Institution’s reach, impact, and relevance.
Steve is also Chairman of the Case Foundation, which he established with his wife Jean in 1997. Together the Cases have invested in hundreds of organizations, initiatives, and partnerships with a focus on leveraging the Internet and entrepreneurial approaches to strengthen the social sector.
In 2010, Steve and Jean joined The Giving Pledge, and publicly reaffirmed their commitment to give away the majority of their wealth to philanthropic causes.
Steve is also the author of The New York Times bestselling book, The Third Wave: An Entrepreneur’s Vision of the Future. In it, Case recounted many of the lessons he learned from building businesses, and outlined the growing importance of place, policy, and partnerships.
Steve was born and raised in Hawaii and retains active ties to his home state, but has lived in the Washington, D.C. area for more than 30 years.
About Revolution: A Washington, D.C.-based investment firm founded in 2005, Revolution partners with entrepreneurs to build transformative, category-defining companies. Through its family of funds – The Rise of the Rest Seed Funds, Revolution Ventures, and Revolution Growth – Revolution supports every stage of the startup lifecycle. For more information, please visit: www.revolution.com or follow on Twitter @Revolution.