Mayfield has appointed Adit Singh as a partner as the Silicon Valley venture firm expands its investment activity across artificial intelligence infrastructure and other foundational technologies. Singh will focus on backing technical founders working in AI hardware and software infrastructure, cybersecurity, and physical AI, with an emphasis on companies at the earliest stages of development. The appointment forms part of Mayfield’s broader $3 billion strategy for investing in AI companies.
Expanding AI Infrastructure Focus
Mayfield said advances in artificial intelligence are creating new opportunities for companies developing the core systems required to support increasingly complex AI applications. The firm expects many of the sector’s most significant companies over the coming decade to emerge from technical teams addressing infrastructure bottlenecks across computing, software, security, and physical systems. Singh’s appointment is intended to strengthen Mayfield’s ability to identify and support such founders from inception.
The venture firm has previously backed companies developing technologies across successive computing cycles, including NUVIA, which was acquired by Qualcomm, as well as SambaNova Systems, Frore Systems, Lumilens, and Upscale AI. Mayfield says approximately 70% of its investments begin at the inception stage, often making it the first institutional investor involved with a founding team. The firm combines initial financing with follow-on capital and operational support as portfolio companies expand.
Singh Brings Early-Stage Investing Experience
Singh joins Mayfield after more than a decade of investing in early-stage technology companies, most recently serving as a general partner at Cota Capital. Earlier in his career, he co-founded Neotribe Ventures and was a partner at Foundation Capital, building experience across infrastructure, enterprise technology, and emerging computing categories. His investment track record includes involvement with companies that later completed public listings or acquisitions.
Among those companies is AI chip developer Cerebras, which Mayfield highlighted alongside cybersecurity company Seraphic, acquired by CrowdStrike. Singh’s experience also extends beyond venture capital into operating and company-building roles, giving him direct exposure to the challenges faced by early-stage technical founders. That background is expected to complement Mayfield’s strategy of partnering with entrepreneurs before their businesses have fully matured.
Operating Background Strengthens Investment Role
Before becoming a full-time investor, Singh co-founded networking startup Bitsplay Systems and later served as the first product manager at solar technology company Enphase Energy. He joined Enphase before its initial public offering and helped the company scale during an important period of commercial development. Earlier, Singh also held technical leadership positions at Cisco, adding experience within large-scale technology organizations.
His relationship with Mayfield Managing Partner Navin Chaddha stretches back roughly 15 years and includes work across three companies. Chaddha said Singh has demonstrated strong judgment in inception-stage investing while combining technical knowledge with hands-on operating experience. Mayfield expects those qualities to increase its capacity to support founders building capital-intensive and technically complex AI infrastructure businesses.
Long-Term Approach to Technical Founders
Singh said the next generation of AI infrastructure companies will require substantial capital, technical understanding, and long-term conviction from investors. He emphasized the importance of supporting founders through periods of uncertainty as they build companies whose development paths may not follow a predictable trajectory. His role at Mayfield will center on identifying teams tackling difficult infrastructure problems and working with them from the earliest stages.
The addition of Adit Singh strengthens Mayfield’s push into foundational AI technologies at a time when infrastructure has become an increasingly important area of venture investment. By adding an investor with experience across both company building and early-stage financing, the firm is positioning itself to deepen its involvement in AI hardware, software infrastructure, cybersecurity, and physical AI. The appointment also reinforces Mayfield’s broader strategy of backing technical founders from inception and supporting them with long-term capital as their companies scale.