Neha Khera

Worth knowing

Few people in Canada have written as many first cheques: thirteen years of seed investing across the country, from Toronto, with an engineer's read on hardware, sensors and other technically hard products. She rebuilt a fund around a clear thesis and knows what a Canadian deep tech company needs to be fundable.

Story

Neha trained as an electrical engineer at the University of Waterloo and began her career as a software developer, working in circuitry design, telecom and banking innovation before crossing over to venture capital. She built her investing track record at the MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund, then co-founded 500 Startups Canada, leading the Silicon Valley firm's early-stage Canadian investments from Toronto, and later joined 2048 Ventures as general partner. In 2025 she took over Innovobot Resonance Ventures, the early-stage deep tech arm of Montréal-based Innovobot, restructuring a fund that had been chasing $40 million into a focused CAD $11 million vehicle. The plan is 25 to 30 early-stage deep tech startups across Canada.

Highlights

• Co-founder and General Partner, 500 Startups Canada
• Former General Partner, 2048 Ventures
• Built VC track record at MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund
• Investor in ApplyBoard, Mejuri and BenchSci
• Dean's Advisory Council, Faculty of Engineering, University of Waterloo