Jeff Peters

Jeff Peters is a transportation-technology investor whose career blends aerospace engineering, applied economics, and venture capital. He began as an aerospace engineer at Northrop Grumman Space Technology (roughly 2008–2010), later conducted independent transportation research for the U.S. Congress, and served as a James S. McDonnell research fellow at Stanford University (Management Science & Engineering, ~2016–2017), where he studied infrastructure networks. He holds a PhD in Applied Economics, an MS in Economics, and an MSE in Transportation Engineering — all from Purdue University — plus a BSE in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Michigan. He co-founded TEDxPurdueU and has published academic work on mathematical optimization of transportation and energy systems.

Peters moved into venture capital at Autotech Ventures, the Menlo Park mobility-focused firm, where he served as Principal from 2017 to 2021. There he invested in and sat on the boards of more than a dozen early-stage startups spanning AI software, autonomous vehicles, advanced sensors, and electric-vehicle batteries. He has noted that over roughly eight years of early-stage investing all of his portfolio companies remained active — against an industry loss rate for early-stage startups estimated near 60%.

In 2021 he joined Ibex Investors to launch and lead its dedicated Mobility VC practice, becoming Partner and Head of Mobility VC. Ibex is an alternative investment manager headquartered in Denver, CO, with teams across New York, Tel Aviv, and Silicon Valley; Peters serves as the fund's lead investing partner. The mobility fund closed at $113 million (announced February 2022), targeting startups in sharing/connectivity, electrification, and autonomy. Peters supports portfolio founders with recruiting, customer introductions, and investor introductions, drawing on experience across automotive, logistics, mobility, aerospace, defense, natural resources, and agriculture.

• Invests at Inception, Seed, and Series A, writing ~$1M–$8M checks and leading or co-leading rounds.
• Deliberately a specialist, not a generalist — in his words: "We're not generalists. Our focus is our edge."
• Stated personal thesis: "I have a passion for partnering with early-stage startups deploying technology in massive, under-served markets."
• Core sectors: automotive & mobility, logistics & supply chain, and manufacturing, with particular interest in computer vision, unique ADAS/autonomous sensors, vehicle data monetization, EV batteries, and auto repair/retail.
• Thematically aligned to the Ibex mobility view that transportation will see "more change in the next five to 10 years than in the past 100 years."
• Values optionality and backing founders whose visions can move markets quickly — a contrast he has drawn with the slow pace of academic publishing.