Mayfield was founded in 1969, making it one of the oldest continuously operating venture capital firms in the world, with roots tracing directly to the founders of Fairchild Semiconductor. Navin Chaddha, a three-time entrepreneur who took iBeam Broadcasting public before joining Mayfield as Managing Partner in 2006, has led the firm through a 'people first' philosophy that prioritizes backing founders at the inception stage, before the broader market believes in an idea. That approach has produced an early stake in Lyft, still one of the firm's most recognizable public outcomes, alongside HashiCorp and Poshmark. Mayfield closed its Mayfield XVII and Select III funds in 2023 at $955 million combined, bringing total assets under management to $3 billion, and has since launched a dedicated $250 million 'AI Start' seed vehicle for AI-first founders.
Lyft's 2019 IPO - one of Mayfield's most recognizable public outcomes, still held in the firm's portfolio today