GSR Ventures
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Venture capital |
| Founded | 2004 |
| Headquarters | Menlo Park, California , United States |
Area served | China, Singapore, United States |
| Products | Venture capital investments |
GSR Ventures (GSR) is a venture capital firm headquartered in Menlo Park, California, United States, with additional offices located in China and Singapore. The firm concentrates predominantly on investments within the Chinese market.
Background
Established in 2004 by technology entrepreneurs from the U.S., GSR—an acronym for Golden Sands River or Jinsha River—initially collaborated with Mayfield, sharing office facilities and benefiting from Mayfield's venture capital expertise and its Silicon Valley network. Nevertheless, GSR's leadership primarily operated out of Beijing.
In 2005, GSR secured $75 million for its inaugural fund, with Mayfield participating as an investor. The firm's second fund, raised in 2007, amassed $200 million, again including investment from Mayfield. By this stage, GSR had executed 11 direct investments in Chinese companies such as Baihe.com and Qunar.
In July 2014, GSR partnered with Oak Investment Partners to establish Go Scale Capital, a $500 million fund focused on clean technology. In March 2015, Go Scale Capital reached an agreement to purchase Philips' lighting components and automotive lighting divisions in a transaction valued at $3.3 billion; however, this acquisition was ultimately blocked by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States due to national security concerns and was subsequently abandoned.
By July 2015, GSR was in the process of raising a $5 billion fund aimed at acquiring overseas technology assets, aligning with China's strategic initiative to obtain advanced technologies including semiconductors and automotive innovations. GSR’s global investment experience and portfolio companies such as DiDi and Ele.me strengthened its reputation as a valuable partner.
In July 2023, GSR was among several U.S.-based venture capital firms investigated by the United States House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party for financing Chinese technology enterprises involved in artificial intelligence and semiconductor sectors. GSR clarified that the partners responsible for these transactions had departed from the firm. In February 2024, the committee disclosed that five American venture capital firms—including GSR—had invested over $1 billion in China's semiconductor industry since 2001, a field identified by U.S. authorities as posing national security risks.