Adit Singh Joins Mayfield as Infrastructure Partner to Focus on Semiconductor Investments

Adit Singh, previously a partner at Foundation Capital, has joined Mayfield as an infrastructure partner, as announced on Thursday. Singh will focus on investments in hardware, infrastructure software, cybersecurity, and physical AI, citing Mayfield’s strong semiconductor portfolio as a key factor in his decision to join the firm.

During his tenure at Foundation Capital, Singh played a pivotal role in sourcing and co-leading the initial funding round for the chip startup Cerebras, which has since grown significantly. By the time of its IPO in May, Foundation Capital held approximately a 7% stake in Cerebras, positioning it as the company’s third-largest shareholder, with a valuation nearing $50 billion.

Singh expressed confidence in Mayfield’s semiconductor investments, stating, “If you look at Mayfield’s semiconductor portfolio, it’s probably the best in the market right now,” and pointed to the firm’s stakes in Upscale AI, recently valued at $2 billion, and Lumilens, which raised $700 million at a valuation of $5.5 billion.

With a background in electrical engineering and experience as a chip designer, Singh believes he has the ability to assess workloads from the application level down to the transistor level. He attributes his recognition of Cerebras’s potential a decade ago to his technical expertise.

Singh’s career trajectory includes co-founding Neotribe Ventures in 2017, where he spent four years, and then moving to Cota Capital, an early-stage investment firm, before joining Mayfield.

He noted that the landscape for seed infrastructure deals has expanded dramatically in recent years, allowing Mayfield’s $3 billion in assets under management to support seed investments of up to $20 million—an opportunity smaller funds often cannot accommodate.

Navin Chaddha, Mayfield’s Managing Partner, highlighted his long-standing connection with Singh, mentioning their collaboration on three startup boards, including Upscale AI and Velaura AI. Chaddha remarked that it took considerable time to persuade Singh to join Mayfield, saying, “We have been talking for a long time, and this time stars aligned.”