Robert Yang.
About Robert Yang.
Robert (Guangyu) Yang is co-founder and CEO of Fundamental Research Labs, an applied AI research company in San Francisco that was previously called Altera. Crunchbase lists him as a co-founder alongside Andrew Ahn, Nico Christie and Shuying Luo, and it dates his role as CEO from December 2023.
Before that he was a faculty member at MIT. Crunchbase lists him as Silverman (1968) Family Career Development Professor and as an associate member of the McGovern Institute for Brain Research. His published work is in computational neuroscience and AI agents. TechCrunch describes him as a former MIT faculty member.
Fundamental Research Labs builds AI agents. Its products include Fairies, a consumer assistant, and Shortcut, a spreadsheet-based agent. In 2025 it announced a $33M Series A led by Prosus Ventures.
Crunchbase lists one personal investment for Robert Yang: the seed round of Polar. He does not publish a full list of angel investments, and no investment dates beyond Polar's appear in the sources reviewed. Crunchbase classifies him as an individual investor.
Polar is an AI browser for work, led by CEO Kevin Jiang. It raised a $5.7M seed round in July 2026, according to the Lounge deals desk. A Traded VC post says Madrona led the round. It lists Robert Yang among the participating individuals, along with Thomas Dohmke, Erik Bernhardsson and Nico Christie. Christie is also a Fundamental Research Labs co-founder.
Robert Yang has not published a thesis, a check size or a stage preference as an angel. The one recorded investment is a seed-stage AI company building agents for knowledge work. This is close to his own field of AI agents. Founders should treat this as an observation and not as a stated focus. Check size and geography are not public.
- Polar: AI browser for work that automates knowledge work with AI agents. $5.7M seed round led by Madrona, with Robert Yang participating (2026-07).
- crunchbase.com/person/robert-yang-c872
- x.com/TradedVC/status/2082845435119411619
- crunchbase.com/organization/altera-1a59
- techcrunch.com/2025/08/01/fundamental-research-labs-nabs-33-million-fr
- gunder.com/en/news-insights/client-news/fundamental-research-labs-anno
- linkedin.com/in/robert-yang-41a83019
- scholar.google.com/citations?user=hrI8aH8AAAAJ&hl=en
Investing activity
Robert Yang. appears in 1 AI deal tracked by the Lounge deals desk. The rounds are mostly Seed, with a median round size of $6M. The most recent is Polar (Seed, $5.7M, Jul 2026).
Robert Yang. most often invests alongside Madrona, Thomas Dohmke, Phoebe Gates and Benjamin Spector, and the companies they back on Lounge are mostly in AI.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Robert Yang.
Who is Robert Yang, the AI angel investor?
Robert Yang is co-founder and CEO of Fundamental Research Labs (formerly Altera) and a former MIT faculty member. He is also an individual investor in AI startups.
Which AI startups has Robert Yang invested in?
The public record shows the Polar seed round, a $5.7M round led by Madrona in July 2026. Crunchbase lists it as his only personal investment.
What is Robert Yang's angel check size?
It is not public. He has not published a check size, and the Polar round reports only the total raised.
What stage does Robert Yang invest in?
The only recorded investment is a seed round. He has not made a public statement about the stages he prefers.
Should I pitch Robert Yang if I am building AI agents?
His own company works on AI agents, and his one recorded investment is an agent product for knowledge work. That suggests he understands the area, but he has not said what he looks for in pitches.
Where can founders find Robert Yang online?
He has a LinkedIn profile listed under Altera. His Crunchbase profile also links to an X account, but the exact URL was not confirmed.
Is Robert Yang. an angel investor?
Yes. Robert Yang. invests personally as an angel.
What AI companies has Robert Yang. invested in?
Robert Yang.'s AI investments include Polar. The 1 round on Lounge are listed on this page with amounts, dates and co-investors.
What stage does Robert Yang. invest at?
In the rounds tracked on Lounge, Robert Yang. has invested at Seed, with a median round of $6M.
Who does Robert Yang. co-invest with?
Robert Yang.'s most frequent co-investors on Lounge are Madrona (1 deal), Thomas Dohmke (1 deal), Phoebe Gates (1 deal), Benjamin Spector (1 deal) and Erik Bernhardsson (1 deal).