Ira Ehrenpreis

Ira Ehrenpreis is Founder and Managing Partner of DBL Partners, a leading impact investing venture capital firm, currently managing more than $1 billion of capital.  DBL invests in companies that can deliver top-tier financial returns, while simultaneously driving social or environmental change. Ira is a recognized leader in the venture capital industry, having served on the Board, Executive Committee, and as Annual Meeting Chairman of the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA).  He currently serves as the Chairman of the VCNetwork, the largest and most active California venture capital organization, and the President of the Western Association of Venture Capitalists (WAVC), the oldest venture capital organization in California. Ira was awarded the NACD Directorship 100 for being “one of the most influential leaders in the boardroom and corporate governance community.”  In 2007, he was named one of the “Top 50 Most Influential Men Under 45" (when he was under 45!) and in 2014 was inducted into the International Green Industry Hall of Fame. Ira serves on the board of Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) and currently supports DBL’s investments in several companies including Airspace, Apeel, Better Place Forests, The Boring Company, Mapbox, Menlo Micro, Planet (NYSE: PL), R-Zero, and SpaceX. As one of the pioneering investors in the energy and sustainability innovation sector, Ira has been a leader on several key industry boards.  He is the Founder and Chairman of one of the most prominent annual industry events, the World Energy Innovation Forum (WEIF), which convenes the who's-who in the industry to discuss the important energy issues and opportunities of our time.  In addition, Ira has served on several industry Boards, including the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Advisory Committee (ERAC), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Advisory Council, the Clean-Tech Investor Summit (Chairman for nine years) the Renewable Energy Finance Forum  (REFF) West (Co-Chairman for ten years), the Renewable Energy Finance Forum  (REFF) Wall Street (Co-Chairman for five years), the Cleantech Venture Network (Past Chairman of Advisory Board), and ACORE (American Council on Renewable Energy). Ira also served for several years as the Chairman of the Silicon Valley Technology Innovation & Entrepreneurship Forum (SVIEF).  In addition, he served for many years on the Advisory Board of the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs (FWE). Ira is an active leader at Stanford University, where he has served on the Board of Visitors of Stanford Law School and is currently an advisory board member of the Stanford Precourt Institute for Energy (PIE) Advisory Council and previously the Stanford Global Climate and Energy Project (GCEP).  Ira has also been a frequent guest lecturer, including helping to teach a course on Venture Capital. Ira received his JD/MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business and Stanford Law School, where he was an Associate Editor of Stanford Law Review.  He holds a B.A. from the University of California, Los Angeles, graduating Phi Beta Kappa and Summa Cum Laude. 

Connect on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/iraehrenpreis/
Ira can be reached at: ira@dbl.vc