Katie Rae

Managing Director, Techstars

Boston

Katie Rae is the Managing Director of Techstars in Boston and is also a founder of Project 11, a firm that invests in and assists early-stage startups. Katie specializes in rapid product development and customer growth strategies for Internet businesses that scale.

She has spent her career building significant Internet businesses in the community, self-publishing and search spaces. Most recently she was the Head of Product for Microsoft Startup Labs, an early stage product development lab focused on collaboration, location-based services and social applications, where concepts were tested for consumer enthusiasm. Before that she was SVP of Product at Eons, a business focused on new products for 50+ community. Katie pioneered early freemium business models at Lycos for the Tripod and Angelfire communities. She learned the ropes of product and business development at AltaVista, RagingBull, Zip2 and Mirror Worlds.

She holds an MBA from Yale University and a BA in Biology from Oberlin College.