Zak Kukoff

My first exposure to entrepreneurship was in high school, where I launched an ed-tech startup that I later took to Techstars Boulder. That experience taught me a few important lessons: failure teaches as much as success, the founder’s journey can be lonely, and good investors provide a lot more than money. I brought those learnings to the Dorm Room Fund at NYU, which I helped run as an undergrad. That’s where I learned about General Catalyst’s student founder program, Rough Draft Ventures. After graduation, I moved to Silicon Valley to work in operations for a high-growth logistics company. This was the opposite of lonely – the company added 500 employees during my year there. I made the transition to venture shortly after to support founders at the earliest stages of realizing their visions. I came to General Catalyst for the opportunity to partner with founders at the early stages of company building.