30-443: Ronald Crawford Conway (born March 9, 1951) is an American venture capitalist and philanthropist. He has been described as one of Silicon Valley's " super angels ". Conway graduated from San Jose State University with a bachelor's degree in political science . Conway worked with National Semiconductor Corporation in marketing positions from 1973 to 1979, and at Altos Computer Systems as president and CEO from 1988 to 1990. He
60-497: A compromise between the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and the tech companies that would be affected by the ban. The initial ordinance was sent back to committee three times for amendments over the course of almost a year. Instead of an outright ban on all sidewalk delivery robots, the board of supervisors agreed, at the end of 2017, to develop a permit process allowing select companies to test courrier bots around
90-424: A gross receipts tax for businesses in selected revenue brackets. Many of the city's business advocates and tech companies claimed that the city's payroll tax was a deterrent to job growth. Proposition E would shift the tax burden from 10% to 90% of San Francisco's businesses and generate an estimated $ 28.5 million in annual revenue to the city. Among its advocacy efforts in favor of Proposition E, sf.citi circulated
120-691: A local nonprofit or tech company. sf.citi's One City Forum is a quarterly event series aimed at uniting various sectors in tackling important challenges facing San Francisco. Launched in 2016, the One City Forum allows the tech community to engage with local nonprofits and community leaders on issues affecting both the Bay Area and the tech industry at large. Past events have included "The Case for Corporate Social Responsibility," "The Techies Project Launch Party," "Tech Votes","One City Standing Together" and "We Are San Francisco". The One City Forum
150-726: A new fund. In March 2022, Conway announced that SV Angel had raised $ 269 million for its first-ever growth equity fund. The new fund will be led by Ashvin Bachireddy, who previously co-founded Geodesic Capital. "A goal of this fund is to take the DNA of the seed fund and bring it to the growth stage," said SV Angel Managing Co-director Topher Conway. "We don't lead rounds, we collaborate and don't want to crowd anyone out." SV Angel also promoted Beth Turner to lead its seed fund, with Ron & Topher Conway overseeing both funds as Managing Co-directors. Among Conway's 650 or more investments are: Conway
180-632: A political action committee that attacked Breed's opponent Jane Kim. Conway serves as co-chair of the COVID-19 Technology Task Force, an technology industry coalition founded in March 2020 collaborating to respond to and recover from the COVID-19 pandemic . In August 2022, Conway contributed $ 50,000 to The Next 50, a liberal political action committee (PAC). In the first quarter of 2024, Conway and his sons contributed half of
210-420: A report, "Taxing Innovation: The Challenge of Regulating Job Automation," which aggregated research on automation and the future of work. The paper concluded that "[r]obots will change the way we work, but they can't replace us." The sf.citi report also offered three recommendations for legislators to consider as they explore future regulation around automation. A "robot tax" has not been carried forward at either
240-506: A venture capital firm. Within two months he had raised $ 30 million for its first fund, Angel Investors I. Angel Investors closed on its second fund, Angel Investors II, at the end of 1999, raising $ 150 million. Angel Investors LP was an early investor in Google , Ask Jeeves , Loudcloud , Napster , and PayPal . Conway was recognized for his success with Angel Investors LP by inclusion in the 2006 Forbes Midas list of top dealmakers. Conway
270-807: A video for Yes on E. The video featured Twitter chairman Jack Dorsey , Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky , and Twitter and Obvious Corp. co-founder Biz Stone . The video was featured on Youtube's homepage. In 2014, sf.citi became involved in San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency's (SFMTA) pilot shuttle program. The program allowed tech companies to transport employees to and from San Francisco and their corporate campuses in Silicon Valley via shuttle buses. In response to opposition, sf.citi organized its members and supporters to attend key board of supervisors meetings and send letters to their supervisors in support of
300-508: Is active in community and philanthropic activities, serving as Vice Chairman of UCSF Medical Foundation in San Francisco and also as co-chair of the "Fight for Mike" Homer and Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease . He is on the development committees of UCLA , St. Francis High School, Sacred Heart Schools, The UCSF Medical Center in San Francisco, Packard Children's Hospital, Legacy Ventures, and Ronald McDonald House at Stanford . He serves on
330-599: Is composed of nine volunteer members–four senior leadership representatives from the tech industry and five senior leadership representatives from a local nonprofit. The Forum members meet regularly to discuss difficult issues facing San Franciscans and plan events that further those discussions, as well as build partnerships between tech and the broader community. Sherilyn Adams, Executive Director of Larkin Street Youth Services and Tiffany Apczynski, Vice President of Public Policy and Social Impact at Zendesk, are
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#1732780619974360-1036: Is on the advisory board of Sandy Hook Promise, a nonprofit organization founded by the parents of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting . Conway donated $ 1 million to fund the Firearms Challenge of the Smart Tech Challenges Foundation, a nonprofit organization he founded with the mission to promote firearms safety through technology and innovation. Conway was the single largest campaign contributor to Ed Lee in his successful campaign for Mayor of San Francisco in November 2011; Conway raised $ 600,000 for Lee through independent expenditure committees. Since then questions have been raised about whether Lee has taken actions to benefit companies in which Conway has investments. In 2012, Conway founded
390-658: Is to ensure that the future workforce will have the necessary skills, experience, and resources needed to thrive. To date, Circle the Schools companies have circled 65 schools, provided over 21,092 volunteer hours, and donated over $ 803,035 in resources. Created by sf.citi, the Future Graduates program is a partnership with the San Francisco Police Foundation that offers high-school students in San Francisco an eight-week paid internship at
420-601: The Benefit Committee of the Tiger Woods Foundation . In 2021 Conway joined The Giving Pledge , a campaign established by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett to persuade and recruit extremely wealthy people to contribute a majority of their wealth to philanthropic causes. In 2022 Conway donated $ 2.5 million to Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutchers' 'Stand with Ukraine' GoFundMe as well as $ 25,000 to Ariana Grande's Protect & Defend Trans Youth Fund. Conway
450-628: The San Francisco Citizens Initiative for Technology and Innovation, or sf.citi , a 501(c) organization that advocates for the technology community and is involved in a number of public initiatives, and private/public partnerships involving tech companies partnering with public agencies such as the San Francisco Health Department , the Office of Emergency Management, the police department, and
480-620: The Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.226 via cp1108 cp1108, Varnish XID 220385487 Upstream caches: cp1108 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Thu, 28 Nov 2024 07:57:00 GMT Sf.citi Kate O'Sullivan, Vice Chair Alex Tourk, Public Policy Lead Hayden Anderson, Policy Advisor sf.citi , founded in 2012, is a 501(c)6 nonprofit organization that lobbies for public policies on behalf of San Francisco 's tech community. sf.citi's membership consists of
510-424: The ballot measure lost in a 2-1 vote during a Budget and Finance Committee hearing, with both District 2 and District 4 Supervisors Mark Farrell and Katy Tang voting to table it. In 2017, District 7 Supervisor Norman Yee proposed legislation to prohibit autonomous delivery devices on San Francisco sidewalks, citing concerns around pedestrian safety. sf.citi pushed back against the proposed ordinance, advocating for
540-625: The cash contributions provided to the political committee Oakland United to Recall Sheng Thao, or “OUST.” In 2024, Conway donated $ 250,000 to Clear Choice, a liberal political action committee (PAC), who aims to prevent third-party from undermining Democratic candidates. In September 2010, Ron was involved with Angelgate . Conway currently resides in San Francisco . He has a wife and three children. [REDACTED] Media related to Ron Conway at Wikimedia Commons Venture capitalist Too Many Requests If you report this error to
570-581: The city between $ 1.9 and $ 2.5 billion. At a hearing in May 2018, sf.citi argued that, while "well-intentioned," homelessness and housing are more urgent issues for San Francisco. Mayor Farrell did not pursue a revenue initiative for the project on the November 2018 ballot. Since he was replaced by Mayor London Breed in the June 2018 election, the Request for Proposals needed to implement the city-run internet service,
600-496: The city. The permits went into effect in March 2018. In 2017, District 6 Supervisor Jane Kim pushed for a "robot tax" by launching a statewide campaign called Jobs of the Future Fund. Kim proposed extending a payroll tax to robots that "perform jobs humans currently do." Revenue generated from the tax would fund workforce development programs for workers displaced by automation. In response to Kim's campaign, sf.citi released
630-578: The issues of gun control and immigration. He was reported to have spent more than $ 1 million and raised millions more to support efforts to win Democratic control of the U.S. House of Representatives in 2018. Recode named him one of ten major Silicon Valley donors and fundraisers for the 2018 November midterm elections Conway was also an early supporter of Mayor London Breed , though in 2018 his focus remained on national issues over local San Francisco elections. However, his wife, Gayle, donated $ 200,500 to
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#1732780619974660-535: The school district. In April 2013, a lobbying group called FWD.us (aimed at lobbying for immigration reform and improvements to education) was launched, with Ron Conway listed as one of the supporters. In 2014, Conway, along with fellow Airbnb investor Reid Hoffman , donated a total of $ 685,000 to David Chiu in support of Chiu's tightly fought Assembly campaign against current San Francisco supervisor and 2015 Prop F supporter David Campos. Conway has been highly critical of President Donald Trump , especially on
690-423: The sf.citi Board of Directors. The other sf.citi board members include the following: The following previously served on the sf.citi Board of Directors: sf.citi lobbied for the passage of Proposition E - San Francisco Gross Receipts Tax on Businesses on the November 2012 San Francisco ballot. Passing with 71% of the public vote, Proposition E phased out the city's payroll tax over five years and replaced it with
720-656: The sf.citi team in directing sf.citi's policy agenda and organizational development. Rebecca Prozan, Director of West Coast Government Affairs and Public Policy for Google , serves as the Board Chair on the sf.citi Board of Directors. Kate O'Sullivan, General Manager of Industry and External Affairs in the Corporate, External and Legal Affairs Department within Microsoft , serves as the Vice Board Chair on
750-632: The shuttles. In 2017, the SFMTA Board of Directors voted unanimously to make the Commuter Shuttle Program permanent. In the summer of 2016, sf.citi coordinated a group of business and tech leaders, including Google and Salesforce, to challenge District 1 Supervisor Eric Mar's "Tech Tax" – a ballot measure that would impose a 1.5% payroll tax on tech companies in San Francisco with gross receipts over $ 1 million. The proposed measure did not make it out of committee. On August 1, 2016,
780-461: The state or local level. In early 2017, the late Mayor Ed Lee and his interim successor, Mayor Mark Farrell, commissioned a report outlining how the City of San Francisco could develop a citywide network to provide fiber-based Internet service to all San Francisco residents. Intended to bridge the digital divide with some 100,000 San Franciscans without home internet, the proposal was estimated to cost
810-506: The world's foremost tech companies, including Microsoft , Google , Meta , LinkedIn , Twitter , Comcast , AT&T , Verizon , Airbnb , Lyft , Uber , Cruise , and Salesforce . The organization's work falls into three primary categories: political advocacy, corporate social responsibility, and events with the broader San Francisco community. The sf.citi Board of Directors includes representatives from San Francisco's technology and business/nonprofit industries. They work closely with
840-413: Was a special partner at Baseline Ventures from 2006 through 2009. In 2009 Conway turned his personal investment vehicle, SV Angel , into a venture capital firm, raising $ 10 million from outside investors. SV Angel raised six funds through 2018. In 2018, Conway announced that SV Angel would retool its investing strategy for a time, returning to a "back to basics" role as individual angels instead of raising
870-706: Was put on hold as the city conducts further research. sf.citi leads two corporate social responsibility programs, Circle the Schools and Future Grads, which connect San Francisco-based companies and the community around them. Circle the Schools is an initiative started by sf.citi in collaboration with the San Francisco Unified School District and the San Francisco Education Fund, that engages local companies to partner with and "adopt" San Francisco public schools. The purported goal of these evolunteer partnerships
900-521: Was the CEO of Personal Training Systems (PTS) from 1991 to 1995. PTS was acquired by SmartForce/SkillSoft . He grew up in an Irish Catholic family. Conway began angel investing in the mid-1990s, with investments in Marimba Systems, Red Herring magazine , and others. He raised $ 4 million for his first venture capital fund, called Adam Ventures, in 1997. In December 1998 he started Angel Investors LP,
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