John Chambers is the founder and CEO of JC2 Ventures. Chambers focuses on helping disruptive startups from around the world build and scale, while also promoting the broader development of startup nations and a startup world. He invests in companies across categories and geographies that are leading market transitions, such as AltimateAI, ASAPP, Aspire Food Group, Balbix, BigSpring, Dedrone, Denim, Humane, Nile, ParkourSC, PeopleReign, Pindrop, Privoro, Quantum Metric, SAFE Security, SparkCognition, Uniphore, and Virsec. John also invested in several companies that have since IPO’d or been acquired, including, Bloom Energy, Lilac, OpenGov, Pensando, Rubrik, and Sprinklr. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for Bloom Energy, Humane, Pindrop, Sprinklr, and Uniphore. In addition to his work with JC2 Ventures, Chambers is the Chairman of the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) and Global Ambassador of the French Tech, as appointed by President Emmanuel Macron of France.
Prior to founding JC2 Ventures in 2018, Chambers spent 25+ years with Cisco, serving as CEO, Chairman and Executive Chairman. He currently holds the title of Chairman Emeritus with the organization. With countless lessons learned during his tenure at Cisco and working with startups, Chambers wrote Connecting the Dots: Lessons for Leadership in a Startup World in 2018, sharing his management, leadership, and business principles.
Chambers has received numerous awards for his leadership, including being named the number two “Best-Performing CEOs in the World” in 2015 from Harvard Business Review, the Edison Achievement Award for Innovation, Time Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People,” the “Best Boss in America” by 20/20, and one of BusinessWeek’s “Top 25 Executives Worldwide.” Additionally, Chambers has received several international honors, including France's National Defense Gold Medal and India’s Padma Bhushan Award.
