Mar Hershenson

Founder Managing Partner

AI, B2B, Consumer

Mar is Pear’s Founding Managing Partner.

After earning a PhD in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University, Mar developed a groundbreaking technique of optimizing the design of analog semiconductors. Since then, she has accrued over 13 years of founder experience, co-founding three startups in mobile/ecommerce, enterprise software and semiconductor industries and has registered 14 separate patents.

As Pear’s co-founder and managing partner, Mar brings operational and technical expertise to the Investment Team.

Mar is passionate about teaching. She is currently a Lecturer for Stanford University, teaching Lean Launchpad, one of the premier entrepreneurship classes at Stanford. Prior to that, she was a Consulting Professor at Stanford teaching the introductory course in Analog Circuit Design for nearly a decade.

Mar serves on the board of trustees of Harvey Mudd College and the Advisory Board of the Electrical and Computer Engineering department at Carnegie Mellon University. She is a founder of Equity Summit, the premier conference for connecting URM Venture Capital GPs to LPs, and an initial founding member of All Raise.

Mar is based in the Bay Area with her husband Matt and has three children. She has been recognized by MIT Technology Review as a Top Innovator Under 35, named a Champion of Innovation by Fast Company, awarded the Digital Automation Conference’s Marie R. Pistil Achievement Award, and recognized on the Forbes Midas List in 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025.

Outside of work…

You’ll find me hiking with friends, enjoying nature is also one of my favorite hobbies. Show me a great, new hike and I am there.”

most used emoji

💪🍐 – which means “Go Pear!”

favorite book

Perhaps the most influential book I read as a founder was The Four Steps to the Epiphany by Steven Blank.

Childhood dream job

A professor of some kind. My dad was a professor, and I was lucky to sit in the first row of these giant auditoriums when he was giving lectures. He was a rock star!

favorite sports teams

FC Barcelona without a doubt. I was born in Barcelona and I went to soccer games in Camp Nou every other weekend.

Selected Investments

Branch
B2B
Branch

Mobile deep linking and attribution platform for marketers

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Aurora
B2B
Aurora

Software platform for solar PV sales and design

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DoorDash
DoorDash

On-demand food, grocery, and retail delivery platform

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Alpine Bio
Alpine Bio

Molecular farming platform growing animal proteins in plants

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Vanta
Vanta

Automated security compliance and trust management platform

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Gusto
B2B
Gusto

Payroll, benefits, and HR for small businesses

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Kale
Kale

Social commerce platform rewarding everyday customers

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Bobyard
Bobyard

AI takeoff and estimating software for trade contractors

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Cardless
Cardless

The embedded credit card platform

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Hertha Metals
Hertha Metals

Advanced steel solutions to accelerate the growth of the U.S. steel industry

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