According to Forbes, Sequoia Capital has replaced its global leader Roelof Botha with longtime partners Alfred Lin and Pat Grady. Botha, who became managing partner in 2022 after joining from PayPal in 2002, led the firm through its complex global split into independent entities in China and India. The leadership change comes after a turbulent period that included the resignation of chief operating officer Sumaiya Balbale following controversy over partner Shaun Maguire’s Islamophobic tweets. Botha announced the transition in a LinkedIn post describing Lin and Grady as Sequoia’s “new stewards,” though the timing suggests urgency rather than a planned succession.
Sponsored content — provided for informational and promotional purposes.
The Cracks in the Facade
Here’s the thing about Sequoia: they’ve always projected this image of being above the fray. The firm that backed Apple and Google seemed untouchable, operating with this quiet power that made them Silicon Valley royalty. But that mythology has been cracking for a while now.
First came the global split in 2023, which fractured their unified brand into HongShan in China and Peak XV Partners in India. Then the Maguire tweet controversy exposed something deeper. When a partner posts Islamophobic content and the firm stays silent, what message does that send? Especially when your COO—one of the highest-ranking Muslim women in VC—quietly exits soon after. That’s not just bad PR, that’s a cultural failure.
The FTX Shadow
And let’s not forget this isn’t Sequoia’s first reputational hit recently. Remember that spectacular FTX flameout? They had to apologize to LPs for that one too. But here’s the difference: the FTX damage was financial. This current crisis is cultural. It’s about who they are as an organization, not just what they invested in.
Basically, Sequoia’s finding out that in today’s world, you can’t just be the quiet money people anymore. When global politics, sovereign wealth funds, and public perception collide, values become business-critical. Silence isn’t neutral—it’s a statement.
What Comes Next
So what does putting Lin and Grady in charge actually mean? It looks like Sequoia’s pulling its center of gravity back to the U.S. Both are known operators—Lin with his Airbnb relationship, Grady with his analytical rigor. They represent continuity, but also containment. Damage control.
Their first job won’t be finding the next unicorn. It’ll be rebuilding trust internally and restoring moral credibility externally. Can they do it? That’s the billion-dollar question. Because in venture capital, trust might be the rarest currency of all—and Sequoia’s balance sheet just took a major hit.
