Founders Fund, one of the world’s most prominent venture funds, will have a Miami office.
The Silicon Valley venture capital firm with more than $6 billion under management signed a one-year lease at Brickell City Tower at 80 Southwest Eighth Street, taking 2,073 square feet, The Real Deal Miami first reported. Founders Fund’s investments include SpaceX, Stripe, Airbnb, Facebook, Palantir Technologies and Postmates, and the move marks a milestone for the Miami metro area that has long hoped to lure offices of prominent VC firms.
Founders Fund General Partner Keith Rabois signaled imminent office news in a #CafecitoTalk with Miami Mayor Francis Suarez on Tuesday, although he said the office was going to be built out in Wynwood. Change in plans? Perhaps. But a press release from Blanca Commercial Real Estate, which brokered the one-year Brickell lease, said Founders Fund will occupy its move-in ready office at Brickell City Tower “while expanding its business operations in Miami over the course of the next year.” This may signal that Founders Fund may still be planning to build out in Wynwood, which will take time.
“We’re looking forward to the grand opening. It’s going to be great, we’re going to host entrepreneurs … we’re going to be part of the community,” Rabois, who moved to Miami last year, said on the #CafecitoTalk.
I had the chance to sit down with one of the pioneers of the Miami tech movement @rabois on our latest #CafecitoTalk. He made a big bet on our City so check out the show and hear why you should too. pic.twitter.com/MEX1yNj51L
— Mayor Francis Suarez (@FrancisSuarez) February 2, 2021
About Miami’s momentum, Rabois added: “I think we tapped into more momentum than we expected … we’re way ahead of the curve.” Rabois, co-founder of Opendoor, also purchased a Venetian Islands mansion for $29 million, according to The Real Deal Miami..
Rabois has been an avid promoter for Miami and the Miami mayor’s campaign that has brought at least 200 VCs and founders from Silicon Valley and NYC to the Magic City for at least extended stays over the past couple of months.
The Founders Fund connections don’t stop there.
Peter Thiel, another Founders Fund partner and part of the PayPal Mafia along with Rabois, is here and also bought a house – actually two – in Miami’s Venetian Islands.
And there’s this full-circle moment. Suarez’s original, viral “How can I help?” tweet Dec 4 that kicked off his social media campaign was in response to Delian Asparouhov’s tweet proposing moving Silicon Valley to Miami, Asparouhov is a principal at Founders Fund.
So Asparouhov’s tweet helped open the floodgates for hundreds of new residents — and he’s visiting in March.
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