Key Takeaways
- • National Pension Service signed memorandums of understanding with six major Silicon Valley venture capital firms—Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, Khosla Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, General Catalyst, and New Enterprise Associates—at a San Francisco event on July 25, 2026.
- • The six partner firms collectively manage $313 billion in assets under management, positioning NPS to access deal flow and market intelligence from the world's most influential venture investors.
- • The partnership establishes long-term cooperation channels focused on identifying global venture investment opportunities, enhancing market information exchange, and supporting Korean startup internationalization rather than pursuing short-term capital deployment.
- • The signatory firms include industry architects with proven track records: Sequoia Capital (early Apple, Nvidia, Google investor), Andreessen Horowitz (Instagram, Meta, Anduril), and Khosla Ventures (OpenAI investor), collectively known as current "kingmakers" in big tech venture capital.
- • NPS intends to gradually expand venture investment through cooperative relationships with these local Silicon Valley firms while closely examining investment opportunities, market conditions, and risk factors from a strategic, long-term perspective.
Summary
South Korea's National Pension Service formalized its venture capital strategy by signing separate investment cooperation memorandums with six of Silicon Valley's most prominent venture capital firms during a July 25 event in San Francisco. The six firms—Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, Khosla Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, General Catalyst, and New Enterprise Associates—collectively manage $313 billion in assets under management, providing NPS with direct access to elite venture investment networks and market intelligence.
The agreements establish long-term cooperation channels centered on three core objectives: identifying global venture investment opportunities, enhancing market information exchange, and supporting Korean startups' entry into international markets. Notably, NPS frames this initiative as a strategic long-term investment priority rather than a vehicle for immediate capital deployment. This measured approach reflects institutional investor discipline, with NPS planning to gradually expand venture exposure while conducting rigorous due diligence on opportunities, market conditions, and risk factors.
The partner firms represent the current leadership tier of technology venture capital. Sequoia Capital established early positions in foundational technology companies including Apple (1978), Nvidia (1993), and Google (1999). Andreessen Horowitz has backed Instagram (2010), Meta (2011), and Anduril (2019), and recently expanded its geographic footprint by opening a Seoul office. Khosla Ventures backed OpenAI (2019), underscoring these firms' track records as reliable early-stage identifiers of transformational technology companies. Following the MOU signing, participants convened at a roundtable with the Ministry of SMEs and Startups to discuss global and Silicon Valley venture investment trends and comparative Korea-U.S. market dynamics.
The agreements establish long-term cooperation channels centered on three core objectives: identifying global venture investment opportunities, enhancing market information exchange, and supporting Korean startups' entry into international markets. Notably, NPS frames this initiative as a strategic long-term investment priority rather than a vehicle for immediate capital deployment. This measured approach reflects institutional investor discipline, with NPS planning to gradually expand venture exposure while conducting rigorous due diligence on opportunities, market conditions, and risk factors.
The partner firms represent the current leadership tier of technology venture capital. Sequoia Capital established early positions in foundational technology companies including Apple (1978), Nvidia (1993), and Google (1999). Andreessen Horowitz has backed Instagram (2010), Meta (2011), and Anduril (2019), and recently expanded its geographic footprint by opening a Seoul office. Khosla Ventures backed OpenAI (2019), underscoring these firms' track records as reliable early-stage identifiers of transformational technology companies. Following the MOU signing, participants convened at a roundtable with the Ministry of SMEs and Startups to discuss global and Silicon Valley venture investment trends and comparative Korea-U.S. market dynamics.
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