Wendy Xiao Schadeck Joins Northzone as New York Partner

Wendy Xiao Schadeck is taking on a new role as partner at Northzone, though she initially became part of the team in 2015.

Prior to her venture capital career, Schadeck was a co-founder of CoHatchery, a company focused on co-working spaces combined with childcare solutions. As a principal at Northzone, she has already participated in the firm’s investments in several companies, including Spring Health (focused on mental healthcare), 3box (providing cloud infrastructure), Livepeer (a blockchain-based video transcoding platform), and Magic.link (specializing in user authentication).

Northzone also notes that Schadeck played a key role in shaping the firm’s investment strategies concerning cryptocurrency, consumer technology, healthcare, and infrastructure for developers and Web 3.0.

General Partner Pär-Jörgen Pärson commented, “Wendy has consistently demonstrated valuable, insightful thinking within specific industries and has strengthened our presence within the New York startup environment.” He further added, “She has established a genuine, inspiring, and candid conversation between her role as an investor and the entrepreneurs she backs.”

Schadeck shared that her professional interests have become concentrated in three primary areas: “open data, open finance, and open community.” She also expressed that her advancement to partner will allow for a deeper collaboration with founders, a subject she finds particularly compelling.

“The common question among VCs, ‘How can I help?’ is something I’ve even found myself saying,” Schadeck explained. “However, we genuinely want to know: Beyond providing funding on favorable terms, what additional support can we offer? How can I tailor my involvement to meet the specific needs of each founder?”

Schadeck represents Northzone’s first partner based in New York City, while the firm’s other partners are located in London and Stockholm. Despite this, she intends to pursue investment opportunities beyond the New York region, though with a primary focus on NYC-based companies.

“We aim for a combined strategy, focusing on both specific sectors we are enthusiastic about and developing expertise, alongside building strong relationships,” she stated. “These relationships are most effective when working closely with local entrepreneurs.”