According to Fortune, Sequoia Capital announced that Roelof Botha is stepping down as the firm’s steward after nearly a decade of leadership, with Alfred Lin and Pat Grady taking over as co-stewards. Botha, who’s only 52, became sole steward in 2022 after previously sharing the role. Lin has led Sequoia’s early stage investing since 2017 while Grady has steered growth stage investing since 2015, with both having longstanding reputations as excellent investors. This marks the fifth generational transfer in Sequoia’s 53-year history for the firm that manages over $50 billion in assets. Both Lin and Grady led Sequoia’s investments in OpenAI and bring complementary backgrounds to the leadership role.
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The Lin Philosophy
Here’s what’s fascinating about this transition. Alfred Lin isn’t just another VC – he’s known for this specific philosophy about “holding things in extreme tension.” Basically, he argues that if you start with extreme positions and work toward the middle, you explore every possible solution. But if you start in the middle, you limit your options from the beginning. It’s a mindset that seems perfectly suited for leading a venture firm through today’s incredibly polarized environment. I mean, how many leaders actually embrace contradiction rather than trying to resolve it immediately?
The Inevitable Generational Shift
Now, this change feels both surprising and inevitable. Surprising because Botha is relatively young at 52 and has been doing a solid job. But inevitable because Sequoia has this well-established pattern of generational transfers – they’ve done this four times before over 53 years. The firm has also had co-stewards more often than not throughout its history. So while the timing might raise eyebrows, the structure is classic Sequoia. And let’s be real – when you’ve got two investors of Lin and Grady’s caliber waiting in the wings, eventually you need to give them the reins.
Walking the Political Tightrope
Here’s the thing – Sequoia is taking over leadership at a moment when venture capital is becoming increasingly politicized. Some firms like a16z have leaned hard into political positioning, while others try to stay completely neutral. Sequoia has historically walked this middle path of “institutional neutrality” while allowing partners to have personal political views. That worked when Don Valentine and Mike Moritz were around, but today’s environment is different. The cracks are showing, and Lin and Grady will need to figure out how to navigate this without alienating founders or limited partners.
What Comes Next for Sequoia
So what does this mean for the most famous tree in venture capital? Lin and Grady bring complementary backgrounds – Lin with his operational experience at Zappos and early-stage focus, Grady with his growth-stage expertise and deals like Snowflake and Zoom. They’re inheriting a firm that’s simultaneously massive ($50+ billion AUM) but still operates with just over 20 investors. That’s intentional – Sequoia has always prized focus over scale. But can that model hold in an industry that’s bifurcating into giant asset managers and tiny specialist shops? Lin’s philosophy of exploring extremes might be exactly what they need to find the right path forward. You can hear more about leadership transitions in this week’s Term Sheet Podcast featuring Cityblock Health’s CEO.
