Sequoia partner Michael Moritz stepping back due to illness
One of Silicon Valley's most successful investors will no longer help oversee day-to-day operations but will become chairman of Sequoia.
Michael Moritz, the Welsh-born American who helped turn Sequoia Capital into one of tech's juggernaut venture capital companies, is "stepping back" from day-to-day operations because of a medical condition.
Moritz will become Sequoia's chairman and will continue to take on new companies, Andrew Kovacs, a Sequoia spokesman told CNET today. Moritz said in an e-mail he sent early in the day to friends and colleagues that he feels "fitter than ever."
But Moritz, 57, also said in the note that he has been diagnosed with a rare medical condition that he described as "incurable." He said the disease could slow him down over the next five to 10 years.
"There is no way of predicting this with certainty," Moritz said in his e-mail. "Thus, for me, life has assumed a different meaning and I am making some adjustments."
Moritz has one of the better track records in Silicon Valley. He helped represent Sequoia's investments in Google, Yahoo, PayPal, and LinkedIn among many others.