Ian Kennedy

Ian is Chief of Staff to Khosla Ventures’ Founding Partner and Managing Director Samir Kaul.

After graduating from college, Ian enlisted in the U.S. Army. He completed Special Forces training and then joined the 1st Special Forces Group. As a Green Beret, he trained and advised elite counterterrorism and counter narcotics units in Iraq, Thailand, South Korea, and the Philippines.

While in the Army, Ian became fascinated with the possibilities of deep technology, particularly AI/ML and quantum computing, and learned to code through MOOCs on Udacity and Coursera. After leaving the Army, he spent a year at Columbia University studying physics and researching the properties of 2D superconductors in a condensed matter physics lab. He then enrolled in a joint MBA/MS in Electrical Engineering program at Stanford University, where he continued to explore both the business and technical sides of quantum computing.

During this time, he managed technology projects at Goldman Sachs; evaluated quantitative trading strategies at Virtu Financial; performed macroeconomic research at Bridgewater Associates; and explored the potential for quantum computing in the pharmaceutical industry at Rigetti Computing. Through Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, he also created the Contemplative Leadership Program, a student-led organization applying meditation and other contemplative practices to business leadership.