Ven Raju

Ven Raju is the President and Chief Executive Officer at Innovation Works, an early-stage venture capital firm and startup accelerator based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Prior to assuming his current leadership position, he served as the organization's Chief Investment Officer, overseeing seed-stage funding initiatives and portfolio management strategies. Before joining Innovation Works, Raju held prominent investment roles across the venture ecosystem, including serving as a Managing Director at Chestnut Street Ventures, a specialized fund operating under the Alumni Ventures umbrella. His academic credentials include advanced degrees from the University of Oxford and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, providing a strong foundation in corporate finance and strategic management. Raju currently focuses on deploying capital into emerging technology and software enterprises while building comprehensive support systems for regional founders and entrepreneurs navigating the early-stage startup lifecycle.