Sign In

Ela Madej

Co-founder and Partner at Fifty Years

Ela Madej: Serial Entrepreneur and VC Investor

Ela Madej is a serial tech entrepreneur and investor who co-founded Fifty Years, an early-stage venture capital firm based in San Francisco. Some key facts about her:

  • Co-founder and Partner at Fifty Years since 2015, a seed-stage VC firm backing founders using technology to solve the world's biggest problems135
  • Y Combinator alum (S12) and previously a Partner at Innovation Nest, a Polish VC fund123
  • Started her first company, Applicake, at age 21, a Ruby on Rails and mobile app development shop based in Krakow, Poland13
  • Co-founded Base CRM, a sales platform acquired by Zendesk in 201813
  • Organized large events for software developers in Europe like the European Rails Conference Railsberry1
  • Passionate about food tech, health tech, and technologies that can positively impact wellbeing24
  • Also runs Impact.tech, a platform for technologists in Silicon Valley who want to combine purpose with profit14
  • Speaks Polish, English, German, and Spanish1

Ela has invested in over 30 private companies at Fifty Years across areas like synthetic biology, energy, space tech, autonomous vehicles and more.4 She believes in the importance of building values into technology and business to create a positive impact.4

Highlights

Aug 18 · twitter

i've been living in this split reality of knowing i should help increase the odds of a happy human/ai future but not knowing where to start

we now have a plan

step 1: we're adding an aligned AI track to U.S. & UK 5050 cohorts

tag your favorite AI researchers / more to come

Apr 9 · twitter
  1. Do you have a large bonsai tree?

  2. Do you love said bonsai tree enough to give it the ride of a lifetime—controlling a robot playing a cello via EEG electrodes?

  3. Do you live in the Bay Area?

(yes, this is real. DM me or share thx!)

Jun 30 · Business Insider
Seed 75: the Best Seed VC Firms for Founders in 2023 - Business Insider
Seed 75: the Best Seed VC Firms for Founders in 2023 - Business Insider
Mar 17 · Forbes
Startups Asked For Help Making Payroll After SVB. VC Responses ... - Forbes
Dec 6 · youtube.com
Sneak Peek Into The Life of Ela Madej and Seth Bannon I ... - YouTube
Sneak Peek Into The Life of Ela Madej and Seth Bannon I ... - YouTube

Related Questions

What inspired Ela Madej to transition from tech entrepreneurship to venture capital?
How does Ela Madej balance her roles at Fifty Years and Rebellyous Foods?
What are some of the biggest challenges Ela Madej has faced in her career?
How does Ela Madej's background in international business influence her investment strategies?
What makes Fifty Years different from other venture capital firms?
Ela Madej
Ela Madej, photo 1
Ela Madej, photo 2
Add to my network

Experience

Co-founder and Partner at Fifty Years, Board Member at Rebellyous Foods, Co-Founder at Impact.tech
Partner at Innovation Nest, Co-Founder & CEO at European Rails Conference Railsberry, Co-Founder & CEO at Applicake, Co-Founder at Base CRM

Education

MA/MBA in Controlling in Finance Management from Krakow University of Economics, MA in International Project Management from Tischner European University, BA in International Relations with Business from Tischner European University, BA in International Business from University of Birmingham, Technology Entrepreneurship from Y Combinator

Location

San Francisco, California, United States