Grit is a community of technologists and builders with a vision for a better future.
TEAM Members
Jennifer Gill Roberts
Co-Founder, Managing Partner
Jennifer leads Grit’s investment team and helps build companies that are pioneering automation and logistics and transforming core industries.
Before founding Grit, Jennifer spent several decades as a technologist, repeat entrepreneur and venture capitalist. Jennifer started her venture career at top tier firm, Sevin Rosen Funds, where she co-led the telecom practice, investing in seed-stage market-leading companies in optical and wireless equipment including Ciena (NYSE:CIEN), Diamond Lane Communications (Nokia), Monterey Networks (Cisco), Lightspeed (Cisco), Sentient (Cisco), Metawave communications (MTWV), Everypath, Shomiti (Finisar), and Kabira (Tibco).
Jennifer is devoted to serving universities through formal and informal advisor roles. Jennifer chairs Grit's Academic Council and is on numerous Advisory Councils at the University of Texas at Austin, Indiana University, UC Santa Cruz, and Stanford.
As an early champion of women entrepreneurs, Jennifer co-founded Watermark in 1992. She has been dedicated to creating opportunities for women in technology ever since.
About me:
I grew up in Berkeley in the 70s. In the 5th grade I learned Swahili, Transcendental Meditation, and had a pen pal at San Quentin Prison. I also hung out at the Lawrence Hall of Science where I learned entomology and coding.
My father was one of the original founders and VCs in Silicon Valley and he influenced my passion for technology and entrepreneurship. My parents are Texans and since my mother was a teacher, we spent every summer of my childhood in Houston, Galveston and East Texas.
I have three adult children. None of them have pursued technical or business careers. My husband and I have watched thousands of movies, so maybe we shouldn't be surprised that our son decided to become a screenwriter. I love to cook. Right now, I'm making every recipe in Gaby's three cookbooks. I also love biking, hiking and just enjoying nature. My husband and I are working our way through National Parks in the US.
Current Companies
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Get in touch with Jennifer
Erin Keller
Venture Partner
Erin is a venture partner at Grit where she helps source and diligence deals across sectors, with a particular interest in synthetic biology and automation applied to heavy labor industries. Erin also works with her alma mater's endowment fund, the Georgia Tech Foundation, setting up investment processes and helping the foundation invest in the best Georgia Tech entrepreneurs.
Before joining Grit, Erin spent more than six years in the Bay Area working as an investor for two early stage VCs. She was most recently at Toyota Ventures, where she led deals as a part of their frontier tech fund. Erin started her career at a medtech venture studio in Atlanta, where she is from and currently resides. She has a degree in biomedical engineering from Georgia Tech.
Get in touch with Erin
Adity Sharma
Venture Partner
Adity is a Venture Partner at Grit where she helps source and
diligence deals across various sectors, with a particular interest in mobility,
robotics and manufacturing.
Before joining Grit, Adity spent seven years at Honda Innovations, where she led investments, managed partnerships and built an extensive investor network with VCs and universities on the East Coast. Prior to Honda, Adity worked as a business designer at Goodyear and gained venture experience through JumpStart Inc. and her own medtech startup. She has a degree in biomedical engineering from Case Western Reserve University.
Get in touch with Adity
grit champions
Grit engages industry advisors to collaborate in support of the Grit Ventures portfolio and Grit Labs. Grit Industry Advisors have deep expertise spanning industrial automation, defense, AI, construction and energy.
