Danielle Strachman

Founder, 1517 Fund

Danielle Strachman is the Founder and General Partner at 1517 Fund, a venture capital firm that backs bold technologists often outside traditional institutions. Since 2015, she’s led 1517’s work supporting hackers, makers, and scientists through grant, pre-seed, and seed funding, with a focus on founders who forge their own path and learn by doing. Before launching 1517, Danielle helped design and lead the Thiel Fellowship, where she worked with Peter Thiel to reimagine what’s possible when young people build instead of enroll. As a founding team member and program director, she helped shape the Fellowship and build the Thiel Foundation Summit community of over 1,000 emerging innovators.

Danielle’s roots are in progressive education: she co-founded Innovations Academy, a charter school that emphasized creative, student-centered learning, and worked across the charter school ecosystem as a consultant and advisor. Her approach across all her ventures, whether education or venture capital, is grounded in helping people pursue ideas that matter, without waiting for permission. 

A Funders’ Fishbowl

The traditional VC playbook doesn’t serve everyone – and it’s time to say that out loud. In this special edition of the Funders’ Fishbowl, join Danielle Strachman (1517 Fund), Eric Bahn (Hustle Fund), and Virginie Raphael (FullCircle) as they ditch the buzzwords and dive deep into how funding can evolve to meet today’s messier, faster-moving world. Together, they’ll explore how to back founders from unconventional backgrounds, build more responsive capital models, and challenge the myth of the “ideal” startup founder. Expect candid takes, surprising stories, and new ideas for where the money should go next.