Michael Dell
About Michael Dell
Michael Dell founded Dell in 1984 with $1,000 while studying at the University of Texas at Austin. He is chairman and CEO of Dell Technologies. In 1992 he became the youngest CEO on the Fortune 500 list. He took the company private in 2013 and oversaw the $67 billion EMC acquisition in 2016 and the VMware spin-off in 2021.
In 1998 he formed MSD Capital, now DFO Management, a private investment firm that manages the Dell family's capital. His LinkedIn also lists him as founder of MSD Partners (2009), and he has chaired the boards of VMware, SecureWorks and Dell Boomi. In 1999 he co-founded the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation.
Dell invests personally and through DFO Management. PitchBook lists him as an active individual angel with 20 recorded investments. Crunchbase lists 12 personal investments, and Tracxn lists 3. The three databases disagree, so treat the counts as approximate.
Recorded deals include SiMa.ai (Series B, October 2022), Samara (Series A, October 2023) and Arena BioWorks (January 2024). PitchBook also records AAI Technologies, a stealth business software company, on 25 September 2025. Crunchbase lists DFO Management as a partner investor in Oura's Series A and Series C. No check sizes are public.
Michael Dell personally invested in June AI, a startup that helps enterprises adopt software for the AI era. On the Lounge deals desk this is a $20M AI pre-seed round dated August 2026. His own check size in it is not public.
Dot.LA reports that his family office took part in the seed and Series A financing of Volta. Volta is an AI infrastructure startup that plans to build and operate large AI data centers, and the round valued it at $2.4B. Crunchbase also lists SiMa.ai, which builds chips for AI at the edge, in the portfolio.
Recorded deals span pre-seed to Series C and include enterprise AI software, AI infrastructure, semiconductors, biotech and consumer health hardware. Tracxn shows the recorded investments as US-based. Dell has not published an angel investing thesis, and typical check sizes and lead or follow behavior are not public.
- June AI: enterprise AI software startup; pre-seed round in August 2026.
- Volta: AI data center infrastructure startup; seed and Series A, with the family office participating (reported August 2026).
- SiMa.ai: machine learning chip company; Series B in October 2022.
- Samara: Series A in October 2023.
- Arena BioWorks: biotechnology company; investment in January 2024.
- Oura: Series A and Series C investments recorded for DFO Management.
- crunchbase.com/person/michael-dell
- pitchbook.com/profiles/investor/106353-28
- tracxn.com/d/people/michael-dell/__JCJcZcAg2HPNYx52-1Xb5Z27QhW8JQK-AYU
- finance.yahoo.com/technology/ai/articles/dell-nyse-dell-just-got-21080
- dot.la/hadrian-valar-ai-infrastructure-funding-2677671747.html
- dell.org/employee/michael-dell
- linkedin.com/in/mdell
- x.com/MichaelDell?lang=en
Investing activity
Michael Dell appears in 1 AI deal tracked by the Lounge deals desk, rounds totalling $20M. The rounds are mostly Pre-seed, with a median round size of $20M. The most recent is June AI (Pre-seed, $20M, Aug 2026).
Michael Dell most often invests alongside Marc Benioff’s TIME Ventures, Conviction Embed, Aaron Levie and SV Angel, and the companies they back on Lounge are mostly in AI.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Michael Dell
Does Michael Dell invest in AI startups?
Yes. He has personally invested in June AI, and his family office took part in Volta's seed and Series A. SiMa.ai, an AI chip company, is also in his recorded portfolio.
What check size does Michael Dell write?
It is not public. Databases list deals, but I found no stated check size or range for him.
What stage does Michael Dell invest in?
Recorded deals range from pre-seed (June AI) to Series C (Oura, through DFO Management). He has no published stage preference.
How do founders reach Michael Dell?
He is on LinkedIn and X. His family office, DFO Management, also manages the Dell family's investments. I found no public pitch process.
Does Michael Dell invest through a fund or personally?
Both. He makes personal angel investments, and DFO Management, formerly MSD Capital, manages the family's capital. Crunchbase attributes some deals to DFO Management.
Is Michael Dell an angel investor?
Yes. Michael Dell invests personally as an angel.
What AI companies has Michael Dell invested in?
Michael Dell's AI investments include June AI. The 1 round on Lounge are listed on this page with amounts, dates and co-investors.
What stage does Michael Dell invest at?
In the rounds tracked on Lounge, Michael Dell has invested at Pre-seed, with a median round of $20M.
Who does Michael Dell co-invest with?
Michael Dell's most frequent co-investors on Lounge are Marc Benioff’s TIME Ventures (1 deal), Conviction Embed (1 deal), Aaron Levie (1 deal), SV Angel (1 deal) and A* (1 deal).
How can founders reach Michael Dell?
Founders on Lounge can see Michael Dell's contact details in AI Investor Contacts (paid plans), check for a warm introduction through members who worked with them under Warm Paths, and add Michael Dell to their Investor Pipeline to track the conversation.