Deena Shakir
Deena Shakir is an American venture capitalist and Partner at Lux Capital, where she invests in emerging technologies with a focus on digital health and AI for analog industries. Deena was previously a Partner at GV, a New Business Development Executive at Google, and a Presidential Management Fellow in Secretary Clinton’s office at the U.S. State Department during the Obama administration. A Forbes contributor,[1] Shakir is also a frequent speaker, podcast guest, and has been featured in TechCrunch,[2] The Wall Street Journal,[3] Fortune[4] and Crunchbase,[5] among others.
Deena Shakir | |
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Born | October 20, 1985 |
Alma mater | Harvard University (BA) Georgetown School of Foreign Service (MA) |
Occupation | Venture capitalist |
Known for | Venture Capital, Diversity and Inclusion, Impact Investing, ESG, Health informatics, Digital therapeutics, Health technology, AI |
Title | Partner at Lux Capital |
Board member of | H1, Shiru, Allstripes, Tarjimly, AMIDEAST, TechWadi |
Spouse(s) | Mehdi Alhassani |
Children | 2 |
Website | https://luxcapital.com/team/deena-shakir/ |
Education
Shakir earned a joint Bachelors of Art with honors in Social Studies and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations from Harvard and an MA from Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service.
Early life
Shakir was born to Iraqi immigrants[6] and grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area[7] before attending Harvard for her undergraduate education. She self-funded her undergraduate and graduate degrees. Shakir was elected by her peers to deliver the Harvard 2008 Class Day speech: "From Baghdad to Boston: Dropping the Global H-Bomb".[8]
Career
After a brief career in journalism anchoring[9] a bilingual Arabic-English news show for Al-Arabiya and interning with the BBC, Shakir served as a Presidential Management Fellow at the U.S. State Department under Secretary Clinton, where she led public-private partnerships and helped launch Global Entrepreneurship Summit. She was previously an Aga Khan Fellow at The Aspen Institute and an advisor at USAID.
Shakir joined Google in 2012, leading product partnerships for civic innovation at Google.org. From 2012-2017, she led product partnerships for early-stage products in healthcare, machine learning, Fiber, jobs, and search at Google, and also directed social impact investments at Google.org before joining GV as a Partner in 2017.
Shakir joined Lux Capital as a Partner in late 2019. She has led Lux’s investments in H1,[10] Shiru,[11] Mos,[12] and Neo.tax,[13] among others. She is a founding VC member[14] of the Valence Funding Network for Black entrepreneurs, and a public commentator on diversity and inclusion in venture capital and technology. Shakir's investment interests are mainly in emerging technologies with a focus on digital health and AI for analog industries.
Board roles
Shakir currently serves on the Boards of Directors of H1,[10] Allstripes,[15] and Shiru.[11] Shakir also serves on the Boards of several non-profits including Tarjimly,[16] TechWadi, Technovation[17] and AMIDEAST. She has also previously served on the boards of the Arab Film Festival, the Asian University for Women, and The Harvard Arab Alumni Association.
Honors and affiliations
Shakir is a Kauffman Fellow (Class 23), a Council on Foreign Relations Term Member, a member of the Leadership Now Project,[18] a founding VC member of the Valence Network[19] for Black Entrepreneurs, and a VC Champion for All Raise.[20] She was the first Arab-American to be accepted to the Mellon Mays Fellowship[21] at Harvard.
Speaking and commentary
Select conferences
Select podcast interviews
- Venture Stories: Solving The Student Debt Crisis with Amira Yahyaoui and Deena Shakir (2020[27])
- CC: Investing in Category Defining, Frontier Industries with Rina Onur (2020[28])
- Venture Stories: How COVID-19 is Transforming Digital Health with Erik Torenberg and Kristin Baker Spohn (2020[29])
- Something Ventured: Deena Shakir of Lux Capital on her Amazing Journey; The Post-COVID Future (2020[30])
- Venture Unlocked: Deena Shakir from Lux Capital speaks about firm culture, solving the diversity issue, and how portfolio management is a team sport. (2020[31])
- Strictly VC: Frontier Tech Is Going Mainstream (2020[32])
Select profile features
- Forbes: “How This Lux Capital GP Went From The Obama Administration To Google To Investor—Plus, The Top 3 Characteristics Founders Should Look For In Investors” (2020[33])
- TechCrunch: Lux Capital's Deena Shakir Sees Space and Frontier Tech Going Mainstream Right Now (2020[34])
- Kauffman Fellows: Deena Shakir on Embracing Entrepreneurship for Global Impact (2020[35])
- Her Agenda: Bridging The Gap Between Ambition and Achievement for Millennial Women (2020[36])
- Lux Capital Partner Deena Shakir's Unconventional Path (2020[37])
Select commentary
- Crunchbase: Why More Startups And VCs Are Finally Pursuing the Menopause Market: ‘$600B Is Not ‘Niche’’ (2021[38])
- TechCrunch: VCs dispense with niceties during Capitol riots: ‘Never talk to me again’ (2021[39])
- Wall Street Journal: Health-Tech Startup H1 Grabs $58 Million in Second Venture Financing This Year (2020[40])
- Forbes: Unlocking A Post-Covid Startup ‘She-Covery’ (2020[41])
- Forbes: Motherhood As A Startup Superpower: A Playbook Inspired By The Legacy Of RBG (2020[1])
- Forbes: Once Upon A Term Sheet: 5 Fairytale VC Tactics As Taught By Toddlers (2020[42])
- TechCrunch: Leading VC’s Discuss How COVID-19 Has Impacted the Future of Healthcare (2020[43])
- Orrick: Learning from 2020: We Can't Lose Ground, Three leaders in the tech and venture ecosystem connect with Orrick’s Kate O’Laughlin to discuss the year of stunning change, its impact on women and PitchBook’s recent All In takeaways. (2020[44])
- Shakir, Deena (2019[45]) "Chapter 10: Technology for Impact: Exponential innovation and cautious optimism". In Montgomery, Nina (ed.) Perspectives on Impact: Leading Voices On Making Systemic Change in the Twenty-First Century. Routledge. pp. 122-130. ISBN 978-1138321199.
References
- Shakir, Deena. "Motherhood As A Startup Superpower: A Playbook Inspired By The Legacy Of RBG". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "Lux Capital's Deena Shakir sees space and frontier tech going mainstream right now". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
- Gormley, Brian (2020-12-17). "Health-Tech Startup H1 Grabs $58 Million in Second Venture Financing This Year". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
- "5 Tips for Giving the Perfect Pitch, According to Experts". Fortune. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
- Hall, Christine (2020-12-17). "Doctor Database: H1 Closes On $58M Series B For Identification Platform". Crunchbase News. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
- Karmo, Maimah; ContributorPublisher; Author, Bliss Magazine; Fearless; CEO; Foundation, Tigerlily (2017-08-16). "10 Inspiring Arab-American Leaders To Watch In 2017". HuffPost. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "In the Ever-Evolving Bay Area, These Six Women Lead by Example". Golden State. 2020-01-21. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "Iraqi-American Deena Shakir "From Baghdad to Boston: Dropping the Global H-Bomb" - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
- "Al-Sa'at (The Hour)". Layalina Productions. 2008-01-01. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
- "H1: Creating a Healthier Future". www.h1insights.com. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
- "Home". Shiru. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
- "Mos - Fill your FAFSA® and all 500+ State aid". www.mos.com. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
- "neo.tax". neo.tax. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
- "Partners at Sequoia, GGV, General Catalyst and Greylock join Valence's VC initiative for Black founders". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "AllStripes - Be part of the solution for your rare disease". www.allstripes.com. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
- "Tarjimly". tarjimly.org. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
- "Technovation – Technology and AI Education for everyone". Technovation. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
- "Leadership Now Project". Leadership Now Project. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "Valence Network".
- "All Raise VC Summit 2020". All Raise. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "MMUF | Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship Program". www.mmuf.org. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
- "Who's coming to Davos 2019?". World Economic Forum. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "5 Tips for Giving the Perfect Pitch, According to Experts". Fortune. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "Empowering Businesses for Big Impact - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "UPDATE in Description | INVESTING IN OUR FUTURE - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "Failure Points w/Ha Nguyen, Deena Shakir, Khalid Halim, Eva Ho, & Aman Verjee - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "Village Global's Venture Stories: Solving The Student Debt Crisis with Amira Yahyaoui and Deena Shakir on Apple Podcasts". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
- "Lux Capital: Investing in Category Defining, Frontier Industries – cc". Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "How Covid is Transforming Digital Health".
- "143 Deena Shakir of Lux Capital on her Amazing Journey; The Post-COVID Future". Something Ventured. 2020-08-27. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- Unlocked, Venture. "Venture Unlocked - Venture Unlocked ep 14 - Deena Shakir from Lux Capital speaks about firm culture, solving the diversity issue, and how portfolio management is a team sport". Google Podcasts. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "StrictlyVC Download: Lux Capital's Deena Shakir: Frontier Tech Is Going Mainstream on Apple Podcasts". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- Karpis, Paulina. "How This Lux Capital GP Went From The Obama Administration To Google To Investor—Plus, The Top 3 Characteristics Founders Should Look For In Investors". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "Lux Capital's Deena Shakir sees space and frontier tech going mainstream right now". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- Fellows, Kauffman (2020-11-09). "Deena Shakir on Embracing Entrepreneurship for Global Impact". Medium. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "Her Agenda | Bridging The Gap Between Ambition and Achievement for Millennial Women". heragenda.com. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- Muppidi, Sri (2020-08-18). "Lux Capital Partner Deena Shakir's Unconventional Path". Medium. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- Hall, Christine (2021-01-21). "Why More Startups And VCs Are Finally Pursuing the Menopause Market: '$600B Is Not 'Niche". Crunchbase News. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
- "VCs dispense with niceties during Capitol riots: 'Never talk to me again'". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2021-01-07.
- Gormley, Brian (2020-12-17). "Health-Tech Startup H1 Grabs $58 Million in Second Venture Financing This Year". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- Shakir, Deena. "Unlocking A Post-Covid Startup 'She-Covery'". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- Shakir, Deena. "Once Upon A Term Sheet: 5 Fairytale VC Tactics As Taught By Toddlers". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "Leading VCs discuss how COVID-19 has impacted the world of digital health". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- "Learning from 2020: We Can't Lose Ground". www.orrick.com. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
- Montgomery, Nina. Perspectives on impact : leading voices on making systemic change in the twenty-first century. London. ISBN 978-0-429-45279-6. OCLC 1086308717.