| Human Profile | |
| Name: | Chamath Palihapitiya SPAC investor |
| Birthday: | September 3, 1976 (age 49 years), Born in Galle, Sri Lanka |
| Height: | 6'1" (185 cm) |
| Education: | Lisgar Collegiate Institute (Diploma) University of Waterloo (BASc), Electrical Engineering |
Overview
Chamath Palihapitiya is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian venture capitalist and prominent SPAC investor, recognized for his early executive role at Facebook leading user growth, founding the venture capital firm Social Capital, and pioneering the use of special-purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) to take companies like Virgin Galactic public.
Latest News (Feb 21, 2026): Chamath Palihapitiya co-hosted Episode 261 of the All-In Podcast on February 14, 2026, analyzing the U.S. national debt and potential economic shifts. He also recently critiqued California’s fiscal policies on social media and signaled a strategic return to public markets with his $345 million acquisition vehicle, American Exceptionalism Acquisition Corp.
Early Life and Education
Chamath Palihapitiya SPAC investor was born in Galle, Sri Lanka, on September 3, 1976. At the age of five, his family relocated to Canada after his father was assigned to the Sri Lankan High Commission in Ottawa. The family sought asylum in Canada in 1986 when his father’s diplomatic post concluded.
Growing up, the family faced financial difficulties. His mother worked in housekeeping to support the family. To help with household expenses, Palihapitiya SPAC investor began working at a Burger King at the age of 14. He attended the Lisgar Collegiate Institute. Following high school, he enrolled at the University of Waterloo and graduated in 1999 with a degree in electrical engineering.
Career Beginnings
After graduating from the University of Waterloo, Chamath Palihapitiya SPAC investor’s first role was as a derivatives trader at BMO Nesbitt Burns. He then moved to California and joined the media player startup Winamp. When AOL acquired Winamp, he transitioned to the new parent company and eventually became its youngest vice president, leading the instant messaging division in 2004.
In 2005, he left AOL for a position at the Mayfield Fund, a venture capital firm. His tenure there was brief, and in 2007 he joined Facebook. At Facebook, he was a senior executive tasked with leading user growth. During his four years at the company, he was instrumental in expanding the platform’s user base to one billion. He also led the rollout of the advertising system Facebook Beacon and was involved with the Facebook Phone and Facebook Home initiatives before his departure in 2011.
Founding of Social Capital
After leaving Facebook in 2011, Chamath Palihapitiya SPAC investor founded the venture capital firm Social Capital. The firm’s initial mission was to invest in and support entrepreneurs aiming to address significant global challenges through technology, with a focus on sectors like healthcare and education. Social Capital invested in a number of technology companies, including Slack, Box, and Yammer.
In 2018, Social Capital underwent a significant restructuring, transitioning from a traditional venture capital model that managed outside investor capital to a technology holding company primarily focused on deploying Palihapitiya SPAC investor’s personal wealth. This change allowed him greater flexibility in investment strategy, expanding into areas such as climate science and life sciences.
Prominence in SPAC Investing
Chamath Palihapitiya SPAC investor became a prominent figure in the world of special-purpose acquisition companies (SPACs). He utilized these “blank-check” companies as a mechanism to take private companies public, a process he promoted as a way to give smaller investors access to high-growth tech companies.
Beginning in 2019, he sponsored a series of high-profile SPACs. The first of these took commercial spaceflight company Virgin Galactic public in 2019. This was followed by mergers with companies such as Opendoor, a real estate technology firm, and Clover Health in 2020. In 2021, he facilitated the public offering of SoFi, a personal finance company, through another SPAC.
He launched multiple series of SPACs, including the “IPO” series in partnership with Hedosophia and the “DNA” series with Suvretta Capital, which was aimed at the biotech sector. While some of his SPACs successfully merged with target companies, others were liquidated, returning the raised capital to investors.
Personal Life
Chamath Palihapitiya SPAC investor was previously married to Brigette Lau, with whom he has three children. They divorced in 2018. In 2023, he married Nathalie Dompé, an Italian business executive, and they have two children together.
He was a minority investor in the Golden State Warriors basketball team starting in 2010, selling his stake in 2023. Palihapitiya SPAC investor has also made philanthropic contributions, including a $25 million donation to the engineering department of his alma mater, the University of Waterloo, in 2018. He is a co-host of the technology and business podcast, All-In.
I own a company - @Hustle - that makes enterprise software. I recently added the responsibility of being their CEO (I'm still CEO of @socialcapital ). I did this because I felt I was losing the specific details of how to build well-run companies in 2023. I was becoming too much…
— Chamath Palihapitiya (@chamath) December 8, 2023