The stream of high-profile exits continues for Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) as Bill Maris, founder and CEO of its venture capital arm GV has decided to step down.
Created in 2009 and currently funded entirely by Alphabet, GV has grown to be the most active U.S. corporate venture arm. The company has invested in a number of startups that include big names such as Uber Technologies Inc., Jet.com Inc., Slack Technologies Inc. and Nest (before it was acquired by Alphabet). Currently, GV has 14 partners and 70 employees. It manages more than $2.4 billion.
Formerly known as Google Ventures, the unit was rebranded to GV after the formation of Alphabet last year.
Maris will be replaced by David Krane, a 17-year Google veteran and currently a managing partner at GV. Krane joined Google in 2000 as director of global communications and public affairs and became managing partner of Google Ventures in 2014.
According to Maris, “GV is in great hands and I’m looking forward to a little time off and seeing what the future holds.”
Series of High Profile Departures
Google has lost a number of high level executives in recent months. Chris Urmson, chief technical officer of the company’s self-driving car project, resigned last week. Anthony Levandowski, product manager for the program, had stepped down earlier this year. Tony Fadell, CEO of its home-automation unit Nest, quit in June.
Zacks Rank
Currently, Google has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Better-ranked stocks in the broader technology space are PetMed Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:PETS) , Netgear Inc. (NASDAQ:NTGR) and Amkor Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMKR) , each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
NETGEAR INC (NTGR): Free Stock Analysis Report
PETMED EXPRESS (PETS): Free Stock Analysis Report
AMKOR TECH INC (AMKR): Free Stock Analysis Report
ALPHABET INC-A (GOOGL): Free Stock Analysis Report
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