Sign In

James Wu

Infrastructure & AI/ML Investor at First Round Capital

James C. Wu is the co-founder and former CEO of AdaptiLab, a startup focused on helping companies build and evaluate machine learning teams through automated technical screening tools. Here's a detailed overview:

Background and Education

  • Education:
    • Duke University: Bachelor’s in Computer Science and Statistical Science (graduated in 3 years with honors).13
    • Stanford Graduate School of Business: Dropped out of the MBA program.3
  • Early Career:
    • Worked on machine learning at startups and as a Freestyle Venture Capital Engineering Fellow (2017–2018).13
    • Co-authored research in machine learning during his time at Duke, including projects on resource-constrained ML and IoT signal processing.3

AdaptiLab (2018–2021)

  • Role: Co-founded AdaptiLab with Allen Lu, serving as CEO.13
  • Product: Developed an automated technical screening platform for ML roles, generating customized coding assessments and grading submissions.14
  • Growth:
    • Graduated from Techstars Seattle (2019) and raised a $1.8M seed round led by Trilogy Equity Partners.1
    • Later raised $2.5M total and built a product dubbed "Replit for ML" before the company was acquired by CoderPad.3

Post-AdaptiLab Career

  • First Round Capital: Joined as an Infrastructure & AI/ML Investor in 2023, focusing on early-stage startups in AI/ML, data, dev tools, and security.35
  • Other Roles:
    • Amperity: Lead Applied Data Scientist (2021–2022), where he co-authored a patent and research paper on customer lifetime value modeling.3
    • LUCAS: Lead Machine Learning Developer (2015–2018), contributing to AI-powered security tools for the Department of Defense.3

Key Traits and Philosophy

  • Emphasizes open-mindedness and flexibility in startup environments, prioritizing rapid iteration based on user feedback.14
  • Advocates for structured approaches to co-founder relationships, viewing them as strategic partnerships rather than "games of chance".2

For more details, visit his LinkedIn profile or AdaptiLab’s legacy site.1

Highlights

Team – Vista Equity Partners
Jim Queen, Information Technology and Services
Apr 22 · employbl.com
AdaptiLab - Company Profile - Employbl
Jul 12 · GeekWire
Seattle startup AdaptiLab sells interviewing software to CoderPad as ... - GeekWire
Seattle startup AdaptiLab sells interviewing software to CoderPad as ... - GeekWire
Jan 7 · Forbes
AdaptiLab, A Techstars Software Hiring Startup, Helps Tech Companies Acquire The Best Machine Learning Talent - Forbes
AdaptiLab, A Techstars Software Hiring Startup, Helps Tech Companies Acquire The Best Machine Learni
Jan 1 · appengine.ai
AdaptiLab | Save Time on Interviewing, AI Startup at appengine.ai

Related Questions

What inspired James Wu to transition from machine learning research to entrepreneurship?
How did James Wu's experience at Techstars Seattle impact AdaptiLab's growth?
What are some key challenges James Wu faced while building AdaptiLab?
How does AdaptiLab's automated technical screening tool work?
What are James Wu's future plans for AdaptiLab?
James Wu
James Wu, photo 1
James Wu, photo 2
Add to my network

Location

San Francisco Bay Area