Kofi Ampadu, a partner at a16z who led the firm’s Talent x Opportunity (TxO) fund and program, has left the company, according to an email he sent to employees and obtained by TechCrunch. This comes months after the company temporarily shut down TxO and laid off most of its employees.
“During my time at the company, I have been extremely grateful for the opportunity and trust I have been given to lead this business,” Ampadu wrote in an email sent Friday afternoon, titled “Closing My Chapter a16z.”
“Identifying out-of-the-network entrepreneurs and supporting them as they hone their ideas, raise capital, and grow into confident leaders has been one of the most meaningful experiences of my career,” he wrote.
Ampadu led the program, which launched in 2020, for more than four years until it was discontinued last November, with the program’s initial lead, Nate Jones, taking over. Next, Ampadu It seems to work in the a16z The latest accelerator, Speedrun.
Ampadu’s departure perhaps signals the end of the TxO chapter. The fund and program focused on supporting underserved founders by providing access to technology networks and venture capital through a donor-advised fund. Although some founders praised the program, others criticized the controversial donor-advised structure. The program also launched a grant program in 2024 to provide $50,000 to nonprofits that help diverse founders.
Its last group was in March 2025, and its indefinite hiatus came as several big tech names reworked, scaled back or eliminated previous public commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion. We have reached out to a16z and Ampadu for comment.
His full note is below:
I moved to the United States three months before my eleventh birthday. One month later, I started sixth grade at a school more than 5,000 miles away from my home, my friends, and everything familiar. Recently, my mom reminded me that my school asked me to enroll as an ESL student. My memory immediately flashed back to how confused I felt. Even when I was 10 years old, I knew it didn’t make sense for a kid from Ghana, an English-speaking country, to be asked to learn a language he already spoke fluently.
This was a systems requirement, an overarching assumption about what students from certain places could or could not do. The same kind of methodological assumptions are what we set out to challenge through the Talent x Opportunity initiative. The venture ecosystem often relies on proxies like schools, networks, and previous credentials, which can screen out exceptional founders who don’t follow the most common paths. TxO has invested in these founders and supported them to bridge the gap between talent and opportunity.
During my time at the company, I have been very grateful for the opportunity and trust I have been given to lead this business. Identifying out-of-the-network entrepreneurs and supporting them as they hone their ideas, raise capital, and grow into confident leaders has been one of the most meaningful experiences of my career.
As I move to the next chapter, I leave with pride in what we have built and gratitude to everyone who helped shape it. Thank you for the trust, cooperation and belief in what is possible. There is more work to do and I’m excited to keep building.
