Michael Moritz

"Since our wealth – like all fortunes – rests so heavily on the intelligence, work and contributions of others it seems only right that we voluntarily give most of it to causes that help improve the lives of people we do not know," billionaire venture capitalist Michael Moritz said in 2012, after he signed the Giving Pledge, an effort spearheaded by Warren Buffett and Bill Gates to donate the majority of one’s wealth to philanthropy. Mortiz is chairman of Sequoia Capital, which he helped grow into one of Silicon Valley’s biggest and most successful venture-capital firms, backing tech industry giants like Apple, PayPal and Google. Moritz, who started his career as a journalist with “Time” magazine, sits on the board of a number of technology companies including LinkedIn and Kayak. He received a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II in 2013 for promoting British economic interests and for his philanthropic work. Updated 2018