J. Skyler Fernandes

About J. Skyler Fernandes

J. Skyler (Sky) Fernandes, a Powerlist 100 VC Investor, is the Founder & General Partner of VU, a global venture capital and real estate private equity firm with offices in San Francisco, Hong Kong, Munich, and São Paulo.Sky has over 15 years of venture capital experience, with 150+ portfolio companies, including 10+ unicorns valued at $1B+, such as SpaceX, OpenAI, Figure AI, Neuralink, Anduril, Erebor, Beyond Meat, FabFitFun, Flyr Labs, Tyme Group, and Wayflyer. His portfolio also includes numerous acquisitions and IPOs ranging from $200M to $9B.He has built one of the most scaled venture capital funds globally, with a 70+ person investment team. VU’s six senior partners collectively bring more than 100 years of investment experience across venture capital and real estate, having managed $2B+ in venture and $7B+ in real estate. Together, they were early investors in 25+ unicorns and have had 20+ multi-billion-dollar exits, including Facebook (Meta), Twitter (X), Uber, Oculus, Oscar, and Palantir.Previously, Sky was Managing Director of Investments at Cleveland Avenue, a fund focused on food and beverage technology and brands, co-founded by the former CEO of McDonald’s. Before that, he founded and led Simon Venture Group, the investment arm of Simon Property Group, an S&P 100 company and the largest retail real estate owner in the world.Fun Facts- Sky\'s digital twin was the first in history to raise capital from investors, using Touchcast, a portfolio company acquired for $500M within 12 months of investing- Author of \"The Best Startup Pitch Deck\", the #1 pitch deck template online, with 1M+ downloads- Creator of \"The Next Big Thing: The Game of Entrepreneurship\", the #1 startup and VC board game, backed by 25+ top VC funds and accelerators- Sky graduated early from New York University (summa cum laude) due to his studies at Harvard University in Physics and Foreign Policy.VU’s investment platform includes- VU Venture Partners: Global venture capital fund, led by managers formerly at RRE, Khosla Ventures, 8VC, Softbank, & Deloitte- VU Capital Partners: Real estate private equity fund, co-led by the former Head of Goldman Sachs Global REIT team and a senior executive at Brookfield Properties and AvalonBay- Bonded Capital: Investor syndicate of investors- Venture University: The world’s leading investor accelerator, combining an investor education program with an investment apprenticeship, which has graduated over 750+ global alumni- Finally Admin: Investment administration platform for SPVs and funds.

Experience

1. Founder & General Partner

   Venture University

   Jan 2018 — Present · San Francisco, CA, US

   Venture University is the world\'s leading global investor accelerator for individuals looking to break into and professionalize their skills in venture capital, private equity, and angel investing. Venture University\'s investor accelerator includes an Academic Program and a VC/PE Investment Apprenticeship. The Academic Program includes a one week VC/PE Masterclass, 20 Advanced VC/PE Modules, and weekly Fireside Chats. The VC/PE Investment Apprenticeship includes joining one of VU\'s vertical teams (Consumer, Enterprise, Fintech, Frontier, Healthcare, PropTech, Web3), sourcing investment opportunities, conducting due diligence, presenting at weekly Partner Meetings, presenting and participating on Investment Committees, making 2-7 investments per quarter, and a profit sharing agreement. Venture University accepts ~1% of the applications it receives, making it more competitive to get into than the top Ivy League schools and MBA programs.Venture University is ideal for individuals who aim to join venture capital and private equity funds, angel investors and family offices who seek to professionalize their direct investment strategies, aspiring emerging fund managers, entrepreneurs who want to learn to think like investors, experienced professionals who would like to make career transitions, and undergraduate and graduate students.

Education

• New York University

  Bachelor of Arts - BA, Economics & International Relations

• Harvard University

  Foreign Policy & Physics

Skills

• Product Management
• Emerging Markets
• Strategic Planning
• Angel Investing
• Deal Structuring
• Management
• Private Equity
• Asset Allocation
• Banking
• Mutual Funds
• Mergers & Acquisitions
• Entrepreneurship
• Finance
• Billiards
• Lbo
• Business Development
• M&a Experience
• Corporate Development
• Venture Capital
• Securities
• Valuation
• Financial Modeling
• Negotiation
• Business Strategy
• Analysis
• Quantum Physics
• Quantum Mechanics
• Investment Banking
• Strategy
• Competitive Analysis
• Start-Ups
• Program Management