Primary Job Title Founding Partner Primary Organization Aera VC
Location Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand Regions Asia-Pacific (APAC), Australasia Gender Male
Website aera.vc Facebook View on Facebook LinkedIn View on LinkedIn Twitter View on Twitter
Derek is a futurist, serial entrepreneur and an aspiring civilian astronaut signed up to visit space with Virgin Galactic.
Prior to establishing Aera VC, Derek, alongside Sir Richard Branson, was the Founding CEO of The B Team, a non-profit alliance of global business leaders committed to putting people and the planet at the heart of the economy.
Prior to The B Team, Derek helped found over a dozen start-ups while based in New York, he built the venture-studio Human Ventures and has exited several companies including one acquired by Meredith Corporation/Time Inc for which he was named in the Silicon Alley 100 most influential tech people in NYC, and awarded New Zealand EY Young Entrepreneur of the Year.
Returning to New Zealand, Derek founded the Aera Foundation and Aera VC. Derek is currently studying towards a Masters in Religion at Harvard. Previously he studied at MIT, Singularity University and Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. Derek was appointed the Social Innovator in Residence at Wharton at University of Pennsylvania from 2016-2017. He was a board member of Sky Television from 2013 to 2021.