Chip Meakem

Chip Meakem is a co-founder of Tribeca Venture Partners, the New York–focused venture firm he launched in 2011 alongside fellow long-time NYC investor Brian Hirsch. Together the partners bring more than 25 years of experience operating and investing in New York technology companies. Chip has been building and backing NYC startups since 1996, and today serves in a Board Partner / Managing Partner capacity, sitting on several boards while sourcing and stewarding investments.

His operating roots run deep in the early commercial internet. Chip was a founding employee at Interactive Imaginations, where he started Commonwealth Network (launched in the first quarter of 1996), described as one of the internet's first advertising networks. That business became part of 24/7 Media, which went public in 1998. Over his career he has been a founder, operating executive, or lead investor in a string of well-known NYC companies including 24/7 Media, N2K, Massive Inc., and AppNexus.

Before co-founding Tribeca, Chip was an active New York venture capitalist at both Kodiak Venture Partners and DFJ Gotham. He was also associated with FreeMarkets Inc., which went public and peaked at a roughly $12B market capitalization.

Chip earned a B.A. from Cornell University, where he was a member of the varsity basketball team, and an M.B.A. from Columbia Business School.

• People first: "We invest in people first, second and third. People that inspire us and inspire those around them." Tribeca prioritizes founders over sector or thesis.
• Fund-returners only: They invest only when they believe "their company alone can return our entire fund or more," seeking founders with the "passion and obsession to see their vision through to the end no matter the obstacles."
• Ideal "sector": "A strong founding team applying technology at the confluence of macro trends" — sector-agnostic but with a track record in fintech, enterprise software, AI/ML, marketplaces, and healthcare.
• Stage & checks: Seed through growth, majority Series A leads; $1–6M initial early-stage checks (rounds of $3–15M) and $5–15M growth checks. Early-stage targets need "products in market with real customer feedback."
• Highly selective & hands-on: Only ~5–6 new investments per year, offering founders "full access to our partners and all our resources," with a "NY hustle for NY founders" identity.
• Geography discipline: U.S.-only — "We do not invest outside the United States" — anchored in New York.