Mark Bivens

Mark Bivens is a Silicon Valley native and serial entrepreneur turned venture capitalist with over two decades of investing experience across three continents -- Europe, the United States, and Japan. He holds a BS/MS in Electrical Engineering from Northwestern University (1994) and an MBA in Marketing, Finance, and Strategy from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern (2000). Before transitioning to venture capital, Bivens founded three technology startups, including BirdView Technologies (1995-1998), which he successfully exited via acquisition by Constellation Software.

Bivens began his VC career in Europe, spending roughly 15 years investing from Paris, where he joined Truffle Capital in 2005 as an Investment Manager in Information Technology and rose to Operating Partner and Board Partner. At Truffle, he focused on disruptive technologies across FinTech, InsurTech, and enterprise SaaS. He also made prolific angel investments across the continent, building a career investment IRR reported to exceed 150% annually. One of his earliest and most notable investments was in Cerent Corporation, an optical networking startup acquired by Cisco Systems in 1999 for $7.2 billion.

In 2018 Bivens co-founded Shizen Capital with Matt Romaine, an early-stage venture fund focused exclusively on Japanese startups. Shizen has since raised six funds (with a seventh underway) and invests across enterprise applications, climate and sustainability solutions, deep tech, and tools that improve the way people work, live, and learn. Bivens splits his time between Paris and Tokyo and is also the Founder and Managing Director of Tachi.ai Ventures, his personal investment vehicle. Beyond investing, he is an author ("Japan: Bitcoin #1" and "Land of the Rising Blockchain"), an avid sumo wrestling enthusiast, triathlete, and supporter of the AfricaTri Foundation.

Bivens is a thesis-driven, early-stage investor who backs ambitious founders building globally scalable technology companies. His core investment themes include:

He emphasizes founder quality, global ambition, and capital efficiency. Through Shizen Capital, he primarily targets Seed-stage investments in Japan-based startups, while his personal angel investments and Tachi.ai Ventures span a broader geographic range across Europe, the US, and Asia.

• Enterprise Software & SaaS: Disruptive B2B platforms with clear product-market fit and strong unit economics.
• AI & Deep Tech: Companies leveraging artificial intelligence, machine learning, business intelligence, and advanced engineering to solve hard problems.
• FinTech & InsurTech: Innovative financial technology platforms, a focus carried from his long tenure at Truffle Capital.
• Climate & Sustainability: Through Shizen Capital, he invests in startups tackling sustainability challenges, particularly in the Japanese market.
• Blockchain & Crypto: A longstanding interest demonstrated by his authored books on Japan's leadership in cryptocurrency and blockchain adoption.