Key facts
- Former Nvidia employees have established EverGreen, a community and investment group for AI startups.
- EverGreen's founding partners include Greg Estes, Devang Sachdev, Vishal Lulla, and Jeff Brown.
- The group focuses on companies that utilize Nvidia technology and are not direct competitors.
- EverGreen provides mentorship and facilitates investment opportunities for startups.
- The initiative spun out of a larger Nvidia alumni community of approximately 30,000 members.
After years working within Nvidia's ecosystem, a group of former employees has launched EverGreen, a new community and investment initiative focused on supporting AI startups. The organization, which formally launched in March, aims to leverage the extensive experience of its founders, including former Vice President of Corporate Marketing and Developer Programs Greg Estes and former General Manager Jeff Brown.
Estes, who previously led Nvidia's Inception startup program, stated that EverGreen allows him to remain connected to the startup world he helped cultivate. The community, named for the enduring loyalty of former employees, draws from a larger Nvidia alumni network of approximately 30,000 individuals. Other founding partners include former product leaders Devang Sachdev and Vishal Lulla.
EverGreen focuses on companies that utilize Nvidia's technology and are not direct competitors, spanning sectors like infrastructure, developer tools, and robotics. The group has already invested in Protopia AI, a security startup co-founded by former Nvidia researcher Eiman Ebrahimi, and Sophia Space, an orbital computing company. Beyond investment, EverGreen emphasizes its network as its primary value, facilitating mentorship and startup showcases.
While the initial goal was for founders to be Nvidia alumni, EverGreen is open to non-Nvidia affiliated founders as well. The initiative is not officially affiliated with Nvidia but has a complementary relationship, with Estes noting that EverGreen can serve as a source of deal flow for Nvidia's NVentures investment arm and connect startups to the company.