Chris Rust is Co Founder and Partner of Clear, where he focuses on early stage technology investments. Chris’s operational specialties are recruiting, product marketing, business development, follow-on fund raising, and scaling. He has been the lead investor in over 35 companies.
Prior to founding Clear in 2014 Chris spent 14 years as an early stage technology investor with exceptional mentors at Sequoia Capital and USVP. He also spent 12 years in operating roles as a development engineer, network architect, and product manager.
Chris was a co-founder and Lead Architect of broadband access pioneer Roadrunner, now known as Time Warner Cable Internet. Roadrunner grew to 14 million subscribers, over $4 Billion in 2015 revenue, and is the key driver of Charter Communication’s $56.7 billion acquisition of Time Warner Cable.
Chris also held engineering and product management roles in Carrier Access (IPO CACS) and ComCore (acquired by National Semiconductor), US WEST Advanced Technologies and MITRE Corporation. He has been an invited speaker at over 100 industry conferences on topics related to emerging technology and building great companies.
A life-long learner, Chris earned a B.S.E.E. with distinction as a Massachusetts Board of Regents Honor Scholar and an M.S.E.E from the University of Lowell, an M.S. Telecommunications Engineering and an M.E. Engineering Management from the University of Colorado, Boulder. While at the University of Lowell he was the recipient of the President’s Medal.
When Chris is not working he can be found with his wife and three children, doing outdoor sports (i.e. mountain biking and skiing) with friends, cooking, or reading.
