Rob Coneybeer built his early career as an aerospace engineer at Martin Marietta, helping build the first A2100 satellite platform still in production at Lockheed Martin today, before co-founding Shasta Ventures in 2004 with Tod Francis and Ravi Mohan. A self-described enthusiast for 'anything with motors' - robots, satellites, race cars - Coneybeer personally led Shasta's Series A investment in Nest Labs, a bet that returned roughly 20x when Google acquired the smart thermostat company for $3.2 billion in 2014, almost single-handedly repaying the firm's entire second fund. That conviction that 'hardware is the new software' has anchored Shasta's investing ever since, and Coneybeer has continued backing companies across robotics, aerospace, and autonomous systems including Spire Global, Fetch Robotics, and Vector Launch, in what he describes as a 23-year career in Silicon Valley venture capital.
Education
BS, Mechanical Engineering, University of Virginia
MS, Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology
MBA, The Wharton School
Previous Experience
Engineer, Astro Space division, Martin Marietta (helped build the first A2100 satellite platform, still in production at Lockheed Martin today)
Notable Investments
Nest LabsSpire Global SPIRTuro
Career Timeline
1990s
Works as an engineer in the Astro Space division of Martin Marietta, helping build the first A2100 satellite platform, which remains in production today.
2004
Co-founds Shasta Ventures with Tod Francis and Ravi Mohan in Menlo Park.
2010
Leads Shasta's Series A investment in Nest Labs.
2013
Publicly declares a major bet on hardware startups, arguing Moore's Law-style improvements were making new categories of hardware possible.
2014
Nest Labs is acquired by Google for $3.2 billion in January, a roughly 20x return on Shasta's investment that essentially repaid the firm's entire second fund.