Pat Gelsinger Joins Playground Global as General Partner

Gelsinger brings over four decades of technology leadership to Playground to support deep tech founders and scale breakthrough technologies for multi-generational impact

PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Playground Global, a leading venture capital firm focused on early-stage deep tech, today announced that Pat Gelsinger is joining the firm as General Partner. A visionary leader in computing and semiconductor innovation, Gelsinger brings more than 45 years of experience driving technological advancements, most recently as CEO of Intel and previously as CEO of VMware.

At Playground, Gelsinger will invest alongside fellow General Partners Peter Barrett, Jory Bell and Bruce Leak, take board seats, mentor CEOs and lend his technical and operational expertise across the portfolio. Playground has over $1.2B in assets under management. Currently, the team is deploying capital from Fund III, a $410 million fund closed at the end of 2023, focused on Seed and Series A companies across next-gen compute, automation, energy transition, and engineered biology. Gelsinger’s appointment enhances Playground’s ability to identify and scale pioneering technologies, ensuring founders have the resources, expertise, and support needed to push the boundaries of what’s possible.

In addition to his General Partner role at Playground, Gelsinger will become a Board Member and Executive Chair of Playground portfolio company xLight, a pioneer in free electron lasers. xLight is developing an extreme ultraviolet light source to drive the next generation of semiconductor manufacturing with unprecedented precision and efficiency.

Gelsinger’s experience and insights will be instrumental across Playground’s entire portfolio. A standout is PsiQuantum, which is building the world’s first utility-scale, million-qubit quantum computer. Advances in next-generation computing are driving breakthroughs across multiple industries—including engineered biology, a key investment focus at Playground led by Jory Bell and Ben Kim. As one example, Strand Therapeutics is developing programmable mRNA therapies to precisely target cells and enable more effective treatments for cancer and other diseases.

“Deep tech investments are the fuel of tomorrow’s economy and the fuel of US leadership,” said Pat Gelsinger, General Partner at Playground Global. “I couldn't be more excited to partner with the Playground team and this next generation of brilliant founders and technologists as we invest in tomorrow. Together, we will improve the lives of all through the power of technology.”

“Civilization runs on semiconductors, and few people have had as much influence on the evolution of computing as Pat Gelsinger,” said Peter Barrett, Co-Founder and General Partner at Playground Global. “Pat is an engineer’s engineer. He has not only designed and shaped the future of the industry, he has propelled America’s technological leadership. His unique experience and vision make him the perfect fit for Playground’s mission: to advance society by accelerating deep tech innovation.”

Gelsinger’s career has been defined by transformative leadership in the technology industry. As CEO of Intel, he championed efforts to revitalize U.S. semiconductor manufacturing, rebalance the global semiconductor supply chain, and led the company’s strategic pivot to regain process technology leadership. At VMware, he was instrumental in driving the company’s transition to hybrid cloud and software-defined infrastructure. He has played a critical role in many generations of microprocessors driving Intel to unquestioned leadership and in key standards like USB and WiFi. His tenure at both companies solidified his reputation as one of the industry’s most influential leaders.

Outside of Playground, Gelsinger serves as the Executive Chair and Head of Technology at Gloo, a leading technology platform connecting the faith ecosystem to advance human flourishing and the development of values-based AI. He and his wife Linda are also actively engaged in numerous philanthropic efforts around the world.

About Playground Global: Playground Global is a deep tech venture capital firm with $1.2 billion in assets under management, backing early-stage startups solving fundamental challenges in next-generation compute, automation, energy transition, and engineered biology. Started in 2015 and based in Palo Alto, CA., Playground’s mission is to move civilization forward through the power of science and technology. More than just investors, Playground provides hands-on technical and operational support, helping founders turn ideas and innovations into companies with enduring impact. The firm’s portfolio includes PsiQuantum, MosaicML (acquired by Databricks), d-Matrix, Agility Robotics, Ideon, Ultima Genomics, and Strand Therapeutics, among many others. Learn more at www.playground.vc.