Abhijit Solanki

Abhijit Solanki is a tech enthusiast who grew up across three continents, bringing a unique global perspective to identifying emerging markets and technologies. This diverse international experience has shaped his approach to venture capital and his ability to spot promising opportunities in the enterprise technology landscape.

Abhijit holds an MS in Electrical & Computer Engineering from Rutgers University and earned his Bachelor's degree in Electronics & Communication Engineering from Bangalore University. His strong technical foundation has been instrumental in his ability to evaluate and support deep-tech and enterprise software companies.

He began his career at McKinsey & Company, where he worked as a consultant with growth-stage and Fortune 500 companies across IT infrastructure, industrials, and consumer electronics sectors. This early experience gave him invaluable insights into how large enterprises think about technology adoption and what drives their purchasing decisions.

Following McKinsey, Abhijit joined VMware's Strategy & Corporate Development team, where he gained hands-on experience in strategic M&A, product strategy, and business operations initiatives. His time at VMware deepened his understanding of the cloud infrastructure and enterprise software markets.

Before founding Whiteboard Venture Partners, Abhijit had a significant tenure at Symantec, where he led the turnaround of a $100M+ security product portfolio for the company. Concurrently, he directed product development efforts to incubate disruptive security solutions in partnership with multiple startups. During this time, he also created an innovative program that delivered complimentary website security services to startups and nonprofits, demonstrating his commitment to supporting the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Most recently before launching his own firm, Abhijit served as the cybersecurity investment lead at NexStar Partners, where he focused on identifying and supporting emerging cybersecurity companies. This role combined his operational expertise with his growing passion for investing.

In 2017, Abhijit founded Whiteboard Venture Partners with a clear mission: to help entrepreneurs create, build, and scale the next generation of enterprise companies. The firm's name reflects his philosophy of partnering with founders at the earliest stages—when their ideas are still on the whiteboard.

Beyond his professional work, Abhijit is actively involved in giving back to the community. He has served as a Pro Bono Consultant at Taproot Foundation since May 2013 and has been a volunteer with the Rutgers University Alumni Association since August 2006, maintaining a nearly 20-year commitment to supporting his alma mater.

Whiteboard Venture Partners specializes in pre-seed and seed-stage investments, focusing on helping entrepreneurs when their ideas are still nascent and malleable. The firm's investment philosophy centers on partnering with founders early in their brainstorming process, providing not just capital but strategic guidance to help shape their vision into viable businesses.

Abhijit's investment focus reflects his deep expertise in enterprise technology and cybersecurity. His sector interests include payments, robotics, security, developer tools, IoT, cloud infrastructure, marketplaces, enterprise software, and SaaS companies. He has a particular passion for cybersecurity investments, with a keen interest in working with entrepreneurs who are creating value by addressing emerging and disruptive cybersecurity use cases across different industry value chains.

The firm typically invests between $100,000 and $1,000,000, with a sweet spot around $500,000. This check size allows Whiteboard Venture Partners to be a meaningful early investor while maintaining portfolio diversification. Abhijit brings significant value to portfolio companies through his operational experience, having personally led turnarounds of large product portfolios and incubated new security solutions through startup partnerships. His background at McKinsey, VMware, and Symantec gives him a unique ability to help founders navigate enterprise sales cycles and build products that resonate with large corporate buyers.