Ali Ghodsi
About Ali Ghodsi
Ali Ghodsi is a computer scientist and entrepreneur who specializes in distributed systems, big data and data management. He holds a PhD from KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden (thesis 2006). He is also an adjunct professor at UC Berkeley.
Before Databricks he co-founded Peerialism AB, a Stockholm-based peer-to-peer data transfer company. He co-authored research papers on Apache Mesos and Apache Spark SQL.
He is co-founder and CEO of Databricks, the data and AI platform, which was founded in 2013 with Ion Stoica and others. In August 2026 Databricks said it closed a $5 billion funding round at a $190 billion valuation. Crunchbase lists him in San Francisco.
Ali Ghodsi invests personally alongside his role at Databricks. Crunchbase lists two personal investments: a seed round in Factory and a seed round in Sycamore. Crunchbase and CB Insights record him as one of the investors in Factory's $5M seed round announced on November 2, 2023.
Crunchbase also shows partner investments made through Databricks Ventures, a separate corporate vehicle. These are Replit (Series D), Immuta (Series E) and dbt Labs (Series D). They are not personal angel checks.
Factory, a 2023 seed investment, appears in both Crunchbase and CB Insights. The Lounge deals desk also records Ghodsi's AI rounds: Sycamore Seed, $65M (March 2026); SkyPilot Seed, $20M (July 2026); and Runta Seed, $20M (July 2026).
The amount he put into any of these rounds is not public.
Ghodsi's investments concentrate on AI and data infrastructure, which matches what Databricks builds. The recorded personal rounds are all seed stage. No check size, fund size or stated investment thesis from him was found in public sources, so none is given here.
- Factory: AI software development company; seed round announced November 2023, alongside Sequoia Capital, Lux Capital and others.
- Sycamore: seed round recorded on Crunchbase and on the Lounge deals desk ($65M, March 2026).
- SkyPilot: $20M seed round on the Lounge deals desk (July 2026).
- Runta: $20M seed round on the Lounge deals desk (July 2026).
Investing activity
Ali Ghodsi appears in 3 AI deals tracked by the Lounge deals desk, rounds totalling $105M. The rounds are mostly Seed, with a median round size of $20M and the largest at $65M. The most recent are SkyPilot (Seed, $20M, Jul 2026), Runta (Seed, $20M, Jul 2026) and Sycamore (Seed, $65M, Mar 2026).
Ali Ghodsi most often invests alongside Jeffrey Dean, Coatue, Lux Capital and Clem Delangue, and the companies they back on Lounge are mostly in AI.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Ali Ghodsi
Does Ali Ghodsi invest as an angel?
Yes. Crunchbase lists two personal investments, in Factory and Sycamore, and the Lounge deals desk records him in AI seed rounds.
What stage does Ali Ghodsi invest in?
His recorded personal investments are seed rounds. The rounds on the Lounge deals desk range from $20M to $65M.
What is Ali Ghodsi's check size?
It is not public. No source found states his personal check size.
What sectors does Ali Ghodsi back?
He backs AI and data infrastructure startups. His main role is co-founder and CEO of Databricks, the data and AI platform.
Is Ali Ghodsi's investing separate from Databricks Ventures?
Crunchbase lists them separately. His personal investments are Factory and Sycamore, while Replit, Immuta and dbt Labs are listed as Databricks Ventures investments.
How can founders contact Ali Ghodsi?
He is on X at @alighodsi and on LinkedIn. He does not publish a stated pitch process, so warm introductions through his network are the likelier route.
Is Ali Ghodsi an angel investor?
Yes. Ali Ghodsi invests personally as an angel.
What AI companies has Ali Ghodsi invested in?
Ali Ghodsi's AI investments include SkyPilot, Runta and Sycamore. The 3 rounds on Lounge are listed on this page with amounts, dates and co-investors.
Where is Ali Ghodsi based?
Ali Ghodsi is based in San Francisco, CA.
What stage does Ali Ghodsi invest at?
In the rounds tracked on Lounge, Ali Ghodsi has invested at Seed, with a median round of $20M.