Kofi Ampadu, the partner at a16z who led the firm’s Talent x Opportunity (TxO) fund and program, has left the firm, according to an email he sent to staff obtained by TechCrunch. This comes months after the firm put TxO on hold and laid off most of its staff.
“During my time at the firm, I was deeply grateful for the opportunity and trust to lead this work,” Ampadu wrote in the email sent Friday afternoon with the subject line “Closing My a16z Chapter.”
“Identifying entrepreneurs outside the network and supporting them as they sharpened their ideas, raised capital and grew into confident leaders was one of the most meaningful experiences of my career,” he wrote.
Ampadu led the programme, which launched in 2020, for over four years until its hiatus in November last year, taking over from the first leader, Nait Jones. Afterwards, it appears that Ampadu has been working on a16z’s latest accelerator, Speedrun.
Ampadu’s departure may signal the end of the TxO chapter. The foundation and program focused on supporting underserved founders by providing access to technology networks and investment capital through a donor-advised fund. Although some founders spoke highly of 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 various founders.
Its last cohort was in March 2025, and its indefinite hiatus came as many top tech names reworded, cut or eliminated previous public commitments to diversity, equality and inclusion. We’ve reached out to a16z and Ampadu for comment.
His full note below:
I moved to the US three months before my 11th birthday. A month later, I started 6th grade at a school more than 5,000 miles from my home, my friends, and everything I know. Recently, my mom reminded me that my school required me to register as an English-as-a-second-language learner. My memory immediately returned 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 was already fluent in.
This was a system requirement, a blanket assumption about what students from certain places could or could not do. The same type of systemic assumptions are what we set out to challenge through the Talent x Opportunity Initiative. The venture ecosystem often relies on proxies such as schools, networks, and past credentials, which can hide exceptional founders who don’t follow the most common paths. TxO invested in and supported these overlooked founders to bridge the gap between talent and opportunity.
During my time at the company, I was deeply grateful for the opportunity and trust to lead this work. Identifying entrepreneurs outside the network and supporting them as they sharpened their ideas, raised capital and grew into confident leaders was one of the most meaningful experiences of my career.
As I move on to my next chapter, I leave with pride in what we have built and gratitude for everyone who has helped shape it. Thank you for the trust, cooperation and belief in what is possible. There is more work to do and I am excited to continue building.