Laura Swan built more than a decade of hands-on engineering experience in early networking hardware before moving into semiconductor investing, and she now combines that background with roles as General Partner at Silicon Catalyst Ventures, VP/Treasurer of Silicon Catalyst Angels, an investor with Sand Hill Angels, and founding partner of The Batchery, while also leading Silicon Catalyst's university-to-startup pipeline and portfolio company management. She's known for arguing that chip startups need to be judged differently than software companies—pointing to timing, manufacturing readiness, and Taiwan's supply chain—and for using the image of a TSMC vending machine to describe how AI could make chip prototyping far easier for startups, all while holding an MSEE from the University of Wyoming.
About their Fund
Silicon Catalyst
Silicon Catalyst is the only accelerator focused exclusively on the global semiconductor industry, giving startups working on chips, chiplets, materials, silicon photonics, MEMS, sensors, life science, and quantum access to a semiconductor-specific stack of foundry access, EDA tools, IP, packaging, and testing worth millions of dollars, plus a 24-month incubation program, strategic partners like TI, Arm, and NXP who help select and work with startups, and its own investment arms, Silicon Catalyst Angels and Silicon Catalyst Ventures. It operates this model through localized programs in the UK, EU, Israel, Japan, Australia, and Malaysia, connecting local startups to Silicon Valley networks and mentors, and has built an ecosystem that has engaged with over 1,500 semiconductor startups, admitted more than 150, and facilitated over $150 million in in-kind support, $600 million in venture investment, and $100 million in grants.
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