In a LinkedIn post on Tuesday, Bonatsos said his exit was a mutual decision. “After 15 wonderful years at General Catalyst I am moving on to new adventures. The best days for GC are ahead! Equally importantly, it’s been the privilege of a lifetime to work with so many inspiring tech startup founders from the very early days. More to come soon!”
Bonatsos joined the firm in January 2011 and focused on pre-seed through Series B investing, primarily in consumer and enterprise technology startups.
TechCrunch reported on Wednesday that Bonatsos is now preparing to launch a new venture firm, though key details remain undecided. He has not yet named his new firm or begun fundraising and declined to disclose the size of his future team.
TechCrunch said that the individuals he is considering working with include founders and investors “at the top of their game”.
Bonatsos said his future investment focus will include backing young founders, a group he says he began supporting before it became a broader industry trend. He pointed to the current wave of artificial intelligence (AI) startups as evidence, noting that many prominent founders are relatively young, including college dropouts such as Mercor founder Brendan Foody, according to the report.
The top-level exit comes as General Catalyst continues to expand its global footprint. The firm has raised more than $20 billion across 12 funds and operates offices across the US, Europe, and India.
During Bonatsos’ tenure, GC’s consumer investment bets included music streaming platform Audius, communication app Discord, social media app Snap, fantasy sports & betting app Sleeper, and pet care services platform Wag.
Bonatsos’ exit comes amid a series of senior departures at General Catalyst. Other recent exits include Deep Nishar and Kyle Doherty, who co-led the firm’s late-stage endurance strategy, as well as Adam Valkin, who co-led an early-stage fund alongside Bonatsos and Trevor Oelschig.
