Ryan Hoover

Ryan Hoover is the founder of Product Hunt and founder/GP of Weekend Fund. He started Product Hunt in November 2013 after experimenting with a small email list for sharing new products; it became a prominent launch and discovery platform for startups and makers. AngelList acquired Product Hunt in December 2016, and Hoover continued as CEO until October 2020.

Before Product Hunt, Hoover worked in product roles in the gaming industry. His LinkedIn profile lists roles at InstantAction from 2009 to 2010 and PlayHaven from 2010 to 2014, including Director of Product. He also served as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Tradecraft from 2013 to 2014 and co-created Startup Edition, a curated startup blogging project.

Hoover founded Weekend Fund in 2017, shortly after Product Hunt’s acquisition by AngelList. Weekend Fund is now run by Hoover and Vedika Jain and describes itself as an early-stage fund backing “what’s next.” The firm writes $200K-$500K checks into early-stage companies across consumer and B2B, and supports founders with product, community building, GTM, fundraising, and an LP network of more than 400 founders and operators.

Hoover studied at the University of Oregon’s Lundquist College of Business, where his LinkedIn profile lists a B.S. with an entrepreneurship concentration and a minor in Computer Information Technology, 2005-2009. He also helped write Nir Eyal’s *Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products* and publishes essays/newsletters on technology, startups, investing, and product trends.

• Weekend Fund says it invests in “early-stage startups around the world across consumer and B2B.”
• The firm’s stated check size is $200K-$500K on its current website; a 2026 hiring post says Weekend Fund writes $300K-$500K checks and moves quickly.
• Hoover has described Weekend Fund’s target as “early-stage companies capitalizing on consumer behavior or technology shifts.”
• Weekend Fund prefers to invest early: in a 2026 partner-hiring post, Hoover wrote that they invest “early, ideally in the first round,” and that their job is to “notice exceptional people early.”
• The firm’s value-add is tied to Hoover’s Product Hunt background: product judgment, launch/community strategy, GTM help, fundraising support, and access to a 400+ LP collective of founders and operators.
• Weekend Fund says it spends at least 25% of its time building software for founders and investors, reflecting a product-led approach to venture rather than a purely relationship-driven model.