Matt Kraning Joins Menlo Ventures as Partner to Drive AI Investments

Former Expanse Co-founder and CTO Brings Deep Technical Expertise to Menlo Ventures’ Expanding AI, Infrastructure, and SaaS Portfolio

/EIN News/ -- MENLO PARK, Calif., April 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Menlo Ventures, a leading venture capital firm, today announced Matt Kraning as its newest partner. He will invest in AI, enterprise SaaS, national defense, and cybersecurity companies building the next generation of foundational technologies.

A Proven Founder in AI & Cybersecurity

Matt is best known for his work as co-founder and CTO of Expanse, a category-creating data and cybersecurity company that was acquired by Palo Alto Networks for $1.25 billion in 2020. A machine learning PhD and distributed system expert, he spearheaded the development of Expanse’s AI-driven attack surface management technology, creating a new category and selling to Fortune 500 companies, every service branch of the US military, and other large government agencies. Prior to founding Expanse, Kraning worked at DARPA, deploying to Afghanistan as in-country Lead Data Scientist.

The New Era of AI-Driven Startups
Kraning’s move to venture capital comes at a pivotal moment in AI’s evolution. As AI reshapes industries and redefines how startups operate, Matt’s firsthand experience in technical innovation and company-building positions him uniquely to support the next generation of AI-native businesses.

As Matt sees it, "AI’s true promise extends beyond technology—it’s about how companies evolve to harness it. We’re only beginning to understand its full potential, but one thing is clear: AI companies have unprecedented opportunities to scale and deliver outcomes, not only tools. The winners will be those who go beyond software and workflows to deliver holistic solutions that drive real impact for their customers," said Matt. "Menlo Ventures has built a reputation as a home for deeply technical investors who cut through the AI hype. I’m excited to work alongside fellow technologists-turned-investors and roll up my sleeves to help founders build the next generation of AI-native companies. Venky Ganesan, Partner at Menlo Ventures, highlighted the significance of Kraning’s addition to the team: "At Menlo, we are all in on AI, and Matt has the traits the next generation of founders look for in an investor and partner; he’s deeply technical, a proven founder and experienced company builder. Matt understands AI from its core technology to large-scale enterprise adoption. At Expanse, he built category-defining AI-driven security technology, giving him a unique perspective on creating, scaling, and selling AI solutions to the world’s most influential organizations. Founders will benefit from his insights as they navigate the evolving AI landscape."

A Firm Built for the AI Transformation: A Deep Bench of Technical Investors

Menlo Ventures began assembling its deeply technical investment team well before the AI revolution took shape. The firm recognized early that the next generation of great companies would be built on advancements in artificial intelligence, cloud infrastructure, and data. This foresight led the firm to back some of the most technically sophisticated AI startups at their earliest stages, companies that are now defining the AI-native landscape.

“Menlo has been at the forefront of the AI wave backing some of the most technically innovative companies including Anthropic, Abnormal, Neon, and Typeface, as well as over 20 companies in our Anthology Fund. Bringing on another technical partner who is a founder, PhD, and experienced serial angel investor further strengthens our ability to support the next generation of AI-native entrepreneurs,” said Menlo Ventures Partner Matt Murphy.

Matt joins a distinguished team of investors with firsthand experience building and scaling transformative technologies, including:

• Tim Tully, former CTO of Splunk
• Joff Redfern, former VP of Product at LinkedIn and CPO at Atlassian
• Deedy Das, product lead at Glean; and
• Johnny Hu, Harvard PhD in biological sciences.

Their collective experience spans AI, SaaS, cybersecurity, and infrastructure—critical areas shaping the future of innovation. With deep technical expertise, industry thought leadership, and an impressive AI portfolio, Menlo Ventures has a unique advantage in identifying and partnering with the next generation of founders building AI-first businesses.

About Menlo Ventures
Menlo Ventures is a venture capital firm that strives to have a positive impact on everything we do. That’s why we support businesses, including Abnormal Security, Anthropic, Benchling, Carta, Chime, Harness, Poshmark, PillPack, Pinecone, Roku, Rover, Uber, and Warby Parker, that are reimagining life and work for the better. Over 47 years, we’ve grown a portfolio that includes more than 80 public companies, over 165 mergers and acquisitions, and currently have $5.8 billion under management. We invest at every stage and in every sector, with expertise in Consumer, Enterprise, and Healthcare. From developing market strategies to creating communities, we provide real impact where entrepreneurs need it most. When we’re in, we’re ALL IN.

www.menlovc.com
@MenloVentures

Media Contact:
Nectar Communications
menlo@nectarpr.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/e3bc39a4-aac7-4aa2-b39a-95b0bb2fc513