Investment expert Lachy Groom: What's the logic behind the "miracle project" that crashes immediately upon connection?

Speaking of Lachy Groom, many people’s first reaction is “the former partner of a tech celebrity,” but if you only stay at this level of understanding, you’re really missing out. This 31-year-old Australian guy is actually an “invisible big shot” in the Silicon Valley investment circle—almost every project he invests in can “hit the jackpot immediately,” from Figma to Notion to Ramp, with an astonishing success rate.

From Programming Teen to Core Executive at Stripe

Lachy Groom’s resume reads like a feel-good story. Born in Perth, Australia, he learned HTML and CSS from his grandfather at age 10, diving into the world of code and never coming out. Even crazier, between ages 13 and 17, he founded and sold three companies: PSDtoWP, PAGGStack.com, and iPadCaseFinder.com. His fourth startup, Cardnap, allowed users to search for discounted gift cards and resell them.

After graduating high school, Lachy Groom made a life-changing decision: skip college and go straight to San Francisco. He saw through a business truth—US valuations are much higher than Australia’s, and Silicon Valley is the heart of innovation.

In 2012, he joined Stripe, which was still in its growth phase, as the 30th employee. These seven years (2012-2018) were like an MBA in real combat. He was responsible for growth, global expansion, and operations management, participating in Stripe’s expansion into Singapore, Hong Kong, and New Zealand, and leading the card issuing business. Under his witness, Stripe grew into a Silicon Valley giant, and he accumulated core operational experience from zero to hundreds of millions in B2B SaaS. More importantly, this experience made him an important member of the “Stripe Mafia,” which later dominated much of the Silicon Valley venture capital scene.

The “Sniper” Investment Method of Independent Capitalists

In 2018, Lachy Groom decided to go solo. Instead of joining a big-name fund, he adopted the “lone wolf” model, turning to full-time angel investing.

His investment style is completely different from traditional angel investors. Most angels use a “scattergun” approach—invest in 100 companies, $5,000 each, and pray for a few successes. Lachy Groom, on the other hand, is a “sniper.” When he spots a promising opportunity, he dares to write big checks of $100,000 to $500,000, with lightning-fast decision-making and an astonishing accuracy rate.

According to PitchBook statistics, Lachy Groom has made 204 investments, with a portfolio including 122 companies, currently managed through multiple funds. His core investment logic is simple: invest in tools that users or developers will love voluntarily, rather than software they are forced to use. Bottom-up adoption models and solving real workflow problems are key criteria for his project evaluations.

Just look at the projects he has invested in that “hit the jackpot immediately”:

Figma is the most dazzling example. Lachy Groom invested in this design tool’s seed round in 2018, when it was valued at $94 million. Today, Figma is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, with a market cap that once soared to $67.6 billion. Based on current market value, this investment has yielded an 185x return.

Notion is equally impressive. Lachy Groom was one of the lead investors in Notion’s 2019 funding, at a valuation of $800 million. Just two years later, Notion’s valuation skyrocketed to $10 billion. Reports indicate that Notion’s annual revenue has surpassed $500 million.

In addition, there are cross-border fintech companies like Ramp, and talent management platforms like Lattice. Lachy Groom was willing to heavily invest when they were still exploring product-market fit.

The common thread behind his investment logic: these are products that can reshape how people work, driven by entrepreneurs who, like young Lachy Groom, are eager to change the world.

Entering the AI Robot Arena: The Next Hardcore Battlefield

Having made enough money in software, Lachy Groom turned his attention to a more hardcore field—AI robots.

He began pondering a bigger question: as the boundaries between AI and hardware become blurred, where will the next internet-scale innovation come from? The answer is bringing general AI into the physical world.

In March 2024, he no longer just acts as a behind-the-scenes investor but co-founded Physical Intelligence (Pi) with several top scientists. This “dream team” lineup is truly luxurious: Karol Hausman, a former senior research scientist at Google DeepMind; Chelsea Finn from Google Brain; Adnan Esmail, a former Tesla employee and chief architect at Anduril Industries; and Brian Ichter, a research scientist at Google DeepMind and Google Brain.

Physical Intelligence aims to develop a universal foundational model as the “brain” for robots, enabling them to go beyond just screwing in bolts and adapt to complex environments like humans. The capital market is crazy about this team. The company completed a $70 million seed round in its founding month; seven months later, it raised another $400 million; just a week ago, it completed a $600 million financing, reaching a valuation of $5.6 billion.

Investors include OpenAI, Sequoia Capital, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Alphabet’s CapitalG, and other top industry players. Clearly, the “hit the jackpot immediately” effect of Lachy Groom’s investments is now attracting the smartest money worldwide to follow his new projects.

Summary

From a self-taught programming teen in Perth, Australia, to a core executive at Stripe, and now a Silicon Valley mogul holding huge checks and building the future of AI robots, Lachy Groom has crafted an impressive track record. His ability to “hit the jackpot immediately” is not luck but stems from a deep understanding of product essence, keen talent insight, and business acumen accumulated during his years at Stripe. This is his true superpower.