Cinnie Huang
Investment Manager
Cinnie started her career as product manager and later product director at ASUS and has 7+ years of experience in team leading, strategy planning and product management in audio entertainment industry.
Since joining ITIC, she has formed a collaborative fund with Carnegie Mellon University to support young startups from her alma mater as a way of giving back to the university. She graduated with a M.S. in Human Computer Interaction (HCI) and a double major in HCI and Business Administration from Tepper Business School.
Her investment focus is on AI, Robotics and advanced materials. She is a Siebel Scholar.
What’s the greatest value you bring to startups?
I don’t mentor from a “god-like” perspective. I’ve rolled up my sleeves and been through it all as an entrepreneur and I like to help startups build from ground zero: forming strategic partnerships with suppliers, manufacturers, channel partners; providing UX design advice and product development insights; and even guerrilla marketing tactics to get the most brand exposure with minimal budget.
To you, what’s the most important trait of a good VC?
Integrity. I don’t believe in shark mentality and zero-sum negotiations. If you work with a venture capitalist who believes in mutual trust, honesty, diligence and compassion, ultimately they also attract teams that embody those characteristics. Teams with integrity don’t go too tangential. They may need guidance on operation and sales but they won’t need guidance on improving personality flaws, which could often become the detrimental cause of a failing company.
