ABOUT
Ethos Fund (“Ethos”) was founded by a pair of serial entrepreneurs who want to prove that founders and venture capitalists don’t need to compromise to build transformative companies — that growth is better, faster, and more fun when startups and investors aren’t afraid to be authentic and share the same ethos.
VALUES
Ethos
We believe the most important foundation of a person’s success is his or her character and spirit, which will manifest in the person’s business, relationships, and actions.
Commitment
We invest in founders from the earliest stages (often, the first check) and continue to support their long term vision. We believe startups are a marathon, not a sprint.
Curiosity
We seek truth. We assume nothing and believe that the best approach is to uncover these truths through experimentation.
Community
We believe that the startup journey is much better when we share it with others. The journey is hard. No need to go through it alone.
Vision
We support founders who are bold and mission-driven to improve the future of humanity. Big dreams inspire and motivate us all to be better.
PORTFOLIO
TEAM
David Yi
Managing Partner
Prior to Ethos, David developed $800M+ business opportunities between Asia and America as an executive at some of the most influential EdTech companies in the world, including as CEO for Riiid Labs, Head of Asia for ACT.org, and Managing Director (of Asia) for K12.com.
As a serial entrepreneur, David has 15 years experience building winning teams and successful companies. He exited twice, selling his US startups to conglomerates in Asia.
Besides business, David has spent over 20 years volunteering his time and resources for the global advancement of human capital development. He served in the Peace Corps and has participated on the boards of World Mathematical Olympiad (WMO), Stanford SMILE, and Gifted And Talented Silicon Valley Institute (GATSVI).
A graduate of Middlebury College, David holds a JD from the University of Chicago Law school and won second place at the 2009 New Venture Challenge at Chicago Booth. He lives in Saigon, Vietnam with his beautiful wife and their amazing sons.
Simon Shin
Managing Partner
Prior to Ethos, Simon founded Cypher Partners, an early stage fund focused on edtech, fintech, and digital health.
Simon spent 5 years in Korea, where he was an investor with Bluepoint Partners, a top accelerator and early stage VC in Korea, leading their global investing team.
In addition to investing in startups, he has spent more than 10 years leading product teams at successful startups like Riiid ($200+ million in funding), Chegg (IPO), Viant (IPO), and true{X] Media (M&A).
Simon studied economics at Harvard and was an investment banker in his past life. The combination of his past experiences in tech, finance, and economics has led to his fascination with blockchain technology and token economies.
In his spare time, he loves spending time with his daughters, rooting for his hometown teams (Lakers and Dodgers), and playing poker.
Gloria Lee
Venture Partner
Gloria has 18 years of legal experience advising over 100 companies in technology, real estate, consumer retail, biotechnology, media, and hospitality. She is also an early stage investor across each of these sectors.
In addition to being the business development partner for one of the largest full service law firms in California, Gloria serves as an independent board member of Hanmi Bank (NASDAQ: HAFC) and has invaluable operating experience as a co-founder of a biotech company.
She is actively involved in the community and serves on the national boards of Council of Korean Americans, LiNK (Liberty in North Korea), and Olive Crest Homes for Abused Children.
Gloria earned two BAs and her MA from Stanford University. She also has a JD from UC Berkeley School of Law. Her hobbies include fantasy football, barre, Korean hip-hop, and cooking for her two teenage sons.
The Era of the Third Culture Leader Has Arrived
WHY THIRD CULTURE
Third Culture is not about geography or skin color. Third culture is the mindset and drive to adapt, grow, and triumph while remaining fiercely authentic even amid pain and discomfort. It is the situation of being in between two or more worlds, and includes the meaning of being located at the periphery or edge of mainstream thinking. It’s the impetus behind the biggest and most important innovations for humanity and the future of our children.
