Team
We are a diverse group by design and each bring a strong and interesting lens to the table. Our team and network of experts have operating experience and developed local and international relationships across many sectors – agritech, medtech, climate tech & sustainability, AI & machine learning and automation, aerospace and engineering, with a strong background in hardware development.
Carl Jones
Managing Partner
Carl Jones
Managing Partner
Carl is a Managing Partner at WNT Ventures and joined as CEO in 2014 and became managing Partner in 2020. He has experience in private equity, property and investment management in both London and New Zealand. Carl directs our fund activities and is lead investor on Argo Navis, Mint Innovation, Mastaplex, and CarbonCo.
Maria Jose Alvarez
Managing Partner
Maria Jose Alvarez
Managing Partner
Maria Jose is Managing Partner at WNT Ventures. She is a Biotech Engineer with a Masters in Bioscience Enterprise (1st Hons). She co-founded and operated a biotech start-up in the agritech sector and led the Seed and Series A investments at NZGCP. MJ enjoys working with entrepreneurs to help them successfully navigate through the investment, commercialisation and growth phases of their businesses.
Niamh Given
Investment Manager
Niamh Given
Investment Manager
Niamh worked in China for ten years helping Fortune 500 companies and startups with product development and manufacturing. She co-founded an online wine company in China and moved to Hong Kong to supervise accelerator programmes for Nest.vc across Asia, focusing on healthtech, fintech and smart cities. Niamh returned to New Zealand three years ago and worked as a Portfolio Adviser and at Soda Inc to help startups build out their business models and raise capital.
TJ Laurino
Investment Principal
TJ Laurino
Investment Principal
TJ has a Postgraduate Diploma in Bioscience Enterprise and focuses on market validation, IP strategy and valuations. She trained as a medical scientist before working at The Icehouse and enjoys applying analytical skills to help tech entrepreneurs with their early stage investments.
Anna Watson
Fund Operations Officer
Anna Watson
Fund Operations Officer
Anna completing her MSc (Hons) in Nutrition after working in Finance and Operations roles in the UK, Australia and New Zealand. She has a passion for positive change within our communities and for the environment, and has vast experience running interactive wellbeing seminars. Anna started at WNT as the Executive Assistant.
Our Board and Investment Committee
Kerry McIntosh
Independent Chair, Investment Committee Chair
Kerry McIntosh
Independent Chair, Investment Committee Chair
Kerry is an experienced director with exposure to a wide range of industries including tech, healthcare and waste management. His background is in the financial markets, with a career in investment banking and funds management. He worked for Credit Suisse First Boston in New Zealand and Australia and Ironbridge Capital.
Beppie Holm
Director, Investment Committee member
Beppie Holm
Director, Investment Committee member
Beppie is a founding shareholder & Chair of RAM3D, a member of the Enterprise Angels Board and the Acorn Foundation Investment Advisory Committee. Beppie’s career included working in comms and management roles with BP in New Zealand, HR roles with BP in Japan, SE Asia and Angola and returned to NZ to work at the Bay of Plenty Polytechnic.
Steve Saunders
Director, Investment Committee member
Steve Saunders
Director, Investment Committee member
Steve is the founder of the Plus Group of companies, specialising in horticulture management consultancy, global pollen production, robotics development, international joint ventures and applied technology.He is a major stakeholder in the kiwifruit postharvest sector, an active Angel Investor, a SCIF investor representative and an elected member of the Executive Board for Priority One. He is also the co-founder of Newnham Park Horticulture Innovation Centre at Te Puna.
Rob Shaddock
Investment Committee Member
Rob Shaddock
Investment Committee Member
Rob Shaddock is a San Francisco-based, tech executive with a career in CTO and CEO roles for startups to Fortune 500s in computing to consumer electronics. He currently works as an investor, board director for startups, and adviser on hardware technologies, manufacturing, strategy, and mergers and acquisitions. He was CTO of TE Connectivity until 2017, spearheading innovation in a global business that produced 120 billion components a year.
Our history
WNT Ventures was created in 2014 through a Bay of Plenty collaboration of experienced entrepreneurs, organisations, and institutional capital providers. Our name, WNT, is an acronym created from three of the organisations.
We are the only company to be appointed twice to the Callaghan Innovation Technology Incubator Programme.