Observed Signal · Sep 13, 2026 · Interview / Commentary · Source: techcrunch · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Neutral
Investment Strategy Market: Insight Partners' Deven Parekh on Diversification Amid AI Concentration
In an interview at TechCrunch's StrictlyVC event, Insight Partners' co-leader Deven Parekh discussed the firm's diversified investment strategy, contrasting with rivals' heavy concentration in frontier AI labs like OpenAI and Anthropic. Parekh highlighted Insight's $90 billion in assets under management, its approach to early-stage investing, and its recent returns of over $20 billion to LPs. He noted that the firm holds stakes in both OpenAI and Anthropic, seeing them as complementary plays. Parekh also commented on the competitive landscape, losing the Legora deal to General Catalyst, and expressed caution on physical AI. He discussed the upcoming IPOs of Anthropic and OpenAI, the concentration risk in venture funding, and the importance of liquidity. The interview covered Insight's portfolio reviews, its investment in Armis, and its philosophy of letting performance speak rather than being loud on social media.
Insight from a major VC investor on AI market concentration and strategy, relevant to AdTech's funding landscape but not directly actionable.
Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Insight Partners manages $90 billion in assets under management.
- Insight Partners has returned over $20 billion to LPs over the past two years.
- Insight Partners owns stakes in OpenAI and Anthropic, viewing them as consumer and enterprise plays respectively.
- Insight Partners lost the investment in Legora to General Catalyst.
- Insight Partners wrote a Series A in Wiz and continued to invest, gaining a larger return.
Connected Companies & Entities
13 Entities mappedServiceNow
Enterprise workflow automation software for IT, operations, and service teams.
“ServiceNow acquired Armis for $7 billion....”
Founders Fund
Venture capital firm investing from early to late stage.
“Mentioned as a firm running a concentrated strategy that has done well....”
Anthropic
Foundation model company selling AI assistants and model APIs.
“Insight Partners owns stakes in OpenAI and Anthropic; Anthropic is expected to IPO soon....”
Sequoia Capital
Venture capital firm investing in technology companies across stages.
“Sequoia won the initial Armis deal but later sold its stake to Insight Partners....”
Wiz
Cloud security SaaS for code, cloud and runtime risk.
“Insight Partners wrote a Series A in Wiz and kept investing, leading to a large gain....”
Thrive Capital
Venture capital firm investing in internet and software companies.
“Mentioned as a firm running a concentrated strategy that has done well....”
Khosla Ventures
Investor / PEVenture capital firm investing from seed to growth stages.
“Khosla did OpenAI's Series A....”
Insight Partners
Software-focused private equity and venture investment firm.
“Deven Parekh discusses the firm's diversified strategy and $90 billion AUM....”
General Catalyst
Venture capital firm investing in start-ups and sector transformation platforms.
“General Catalyst won the investment in Legora....”
OpenAI
Foundation model company selling AI software, APIs and subscriptions.
“Insight Partners owns stakes in OpenAI and Anthropic....”
Ramp
Finance automation platform for cards, spend, payments and procurement.
“Mentioned as a financial services company with talent concentrated in New York....”
ARMIS
Retail adtech platform for multilocal campaign orchestration and measurement.
“Insight Partners initially lost the deal to Sequoia, later bought out the cap table and sold to ServiceNow for $7 billion....”
Databricks
Enterprise lakehouse platform for data, analytics and AI.
“Insight Partners led and co-led numerous rounds in Databricks....”
Ontology Mapping & Concepts
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