Swashbuckling across the high seas of tech, etc.

Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer of DAWN and Andrena. Writer of teeny tiny angel checks.

Willem van de Velde the Younger

The Cannon Shot, c. 1680

Oil on canvas. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.

The Captain announces a funding round. Critics have called the gesture excessive. The Captain maintains it was a salute.

Three ways aboard

For founders

Pitch the Captain

Formation and seed. Bring your secret, not just your deck.

Send a message in a bottle

For investors

Inspect the Hold

33 investments, 12 acquisitions, one IPO.

Inspect the Hold

For recruiters

Read the Ship’s Papers

Co-founder, CPO, former COO. Built the ship from the keel up.

See what I’ve built

Ahoy!

I'm James Smits, Co-Founder of Andrena, a New York-based startup that provides instant activation high-speed Internet, and DAWN, creating the category of decentralized broadband. Andrena and DAWN have raised more than $65M from leading venture capital funds.

Since founding Andrena and DAWN, I have worn many hats and am currently Chief Product Officer where I oversee our product direction: software, hardware, and the space in between.

Previously, I served as our Chief Operating Officer and founded our Sales, Marketing, Customer Success, Finance, People, and Deployment departments.

I also write teeny tiny angel checks via El Capitan Capital and moonlight as a Venture Partner for KohFounders, a formation-stage fund.

Before Andrena, I worked in Venture Capital at Beta Bridge Capital, Tigerlabs, and Hypothesis, and am fortunate to be an investor in a host of amazing companies through those funds.

In my spare time I like to spend time with my family, travel, cook, play tennis, and root for the Yankees, Giants, Knicks, and Essendon Bombers — there’s always next season. I’m a proud member of the Melbourne Cricket Club.