The Team

Hillary Talbot | Managing Partner

Hillary is a sailor, surfer, and former competitive Alpine skier who brings her passion to win to être Venture Capital. She co-founded être to remove barriers that stifle innovation: the underfunding of women, minorities and those who work outside of traditional venture capital networks; and the underfunding of startups that tackle real world challenges, particularly those that manufacture. 

Hillary’s work as a consultant with the California Manufacturing and Technology Center and previously at the Sierra Small Business Development Center increases deal flow and validates technical readiness. This work has built deep relationships with subject matter experts and fractional talent. All of this derisks investments and accelerates the time to market for portfolio companies. 

Hillary enjoys being in the trenches, working side by side with startup teams, helping to solve problems, and leveraging her expertise in fundraising, manufacturing, and go-to-market strategy. 

Jenny Kuan, Ph. D | Managing Partner

Jenny co-founded être Venture Capital to put into practice the collaborative model of venture capital investing she discovered in her research on the history of Silicon Valley. She is interested in helping women join this important industry, which underpins the US economy, and launched a fund to lead by example.

She holds a Ph.D. in Business from UC Berkeley and an MS in Industrial Engineering from Stanford University. She has worked in software development and manufacturing at such firms as Apple and Solectron and is now a tenured professor of economics and entrepreneurship at the College of Business at California State University Monterey Bay. She also leads CSUMB's Institute for Innovation and Economic Development. 

Her academic research examines the role of nonprofit organizations as industry scaffolding for emerging and innovative industries, including venture capital, open source software, and fabless semiconductors. In 2021, based on her research, Jenny created a free, online course — "Venture Capital 101 for Women" — to demystify VC investing and to encourage women to establish their own funds. The Institute is now launching a Women in VC Initiative, a member organization to support women venture capitalists.