Moritz Baier-Lentz

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Moritz Baier-Lentz
Photo of Moritz Baier-Lentz in 2023, credit: OMR Podcast / Lightspeed Venture Partners
Moritz Baier-Lentz in 2023
Born
Moritz Baier

(1986-01-20) January 20, 1986 (age 38)
Hanover, Germany
NationalityGerman-American
EducationStanford University (M.B.A, M.A.)
Employer(s)Lightspeed Venture Partners, World Economic Forum, Goldman Sachs, IBM
Board member ofInworld AI
The Believer Company
Gardens Interactive
Methodical Games
Lightforge Games
TRIPP
SpouseAlissa Baier-Lentz
Websitegaming.lsvp.com

Moritz Baier-Lentz is a German-American venture capitalist. He is a partner and the head of gaming at Lightspeed Venture Partners,[1] leading the firm's investments in game studios, platforms, and technologies.[2] Previously, Baier-Lentz was a vice president in the investment banking division of Goldman Sachs, where he founded and led the firm's global gaming practice.[3] A former #1 ranked competitive player of Diablo II,[4] he has invested over $100 million[5] into entrepreneurs who have been leading the creation of video games like Fortnite,[6] Call of Duty,[7] League of Legends,[8][9] Halo, Destiny, Overwatch, Valorant,[10] Apex Legends, Sky,[11] StarCraft II, and Warcraft III.[12]

Awards and professional memberships[edit]

In 2016 and 2017, Baier-Lentz was regarded by Forbes (United States) and Capital (Germany) as one of the most influential finance professionals in their 30 Under 30 and 40 Under 40 lists, respectively.[13][14][15] In 2017, he joined the German-American Atlantik-Brücke[16] and in 2023, he was recognized as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum[17] and invited to participate as a delegate in the 54th Annual Meeting in Davos.[18] Baier-Lentz holds an MBA and M.A. from Stanford University, and graduated as an Arjay Miller Scholar.[19]

Early life and education[edit]

Baier-Lentz grew up as a first-generation high school graduate in rural Germany[20] and spent his teenage years playing Blizzard Entertainment’s multiplayer action role-playing game Diablo II, culminating in a global #1 ranking among 13 million active players in 2003.[21] He used a combination of proceeds from virtual goods sales[20][22] and German national academic merit scholarships from Studienstiftung and DAAD to help finance his undergraduate and graduate studies.[23]

Career[edit]

Investment banking[edit]

After starting his career as a data scientist at IBM,[1] Baier-Lentz joined Goldman Sachs as an investment banker, and founded and led the firm's global gaming practice.[24] During his tenure as vice president, he advised gaming and technology corporations on over $300 billion in transaction volume across mergers and acquisitions, initial public offerings, venture capital, and other strategic transactions, including Dell's $67 billion acquisition of EMC and IBM’s $34 billion purchase of Red Hat.[12]

Venture capital[edit]

Baier-Lentz went on to become a partner and management team member at BITKRAFT Ventures,[25] where he invested during the firm's time as the most active gaming venture capital firm and lead investor in 2020, 2021, and 2022[12] before joining Lightspeed in 2023.

Speaking engagements[edit]

Moritz Baier-Lentz in 2024 at the 54th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum.

Baier-Lentz has been featured as a speaker at the World Economic Forum,[26] Goldman Sachs,[27] Stanford University,[28] Harvard University,[29] Massachusetts Institute of Technology,[30] Axios,[31] South by Southwest,[32] Slush,[33] and the Game Developers Conference.[34]

Personal life[edit]

Baier-Lentz is an Ironman and ultramarathon runner, including the 251-kilometer long, self-sufficient Marathon des Sables[35] and the World Marathon Challenge (7 marathons on 7 continents within 7 days).[36][37]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Renbarger, Madeline. "How VC Moritz Baier-Lentz went from being one of the world's best professional gamers to the new head of Lightspeed's gaming practice". Business Insider. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  2. ^ Gardner, Matt. "Lightspeed Taps Gamer-Turned-VC To Lead Firm's Debut Gaming Arm". Forbes. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  3. ^ Flynn, Kerry (2023-01-18). "Lightspeed hires Baier-Lentz as head of gaming". Axios. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  4. ^ Renbarger, Madeline. "How VC Moritz Baier-Lentz went from being one of the world's best professional gamers to the new head of Lightspeed's gaming practice". Business Insider. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  5. ^ Gardner, Matt. "Gardens Raises $31 Million, Gets Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft Exec Backing". Forbes. Retrieved 2023-07-26.
  6. ^ Gardner, Matt. "Lightforge Games Raises $15 Million For New RPG From Big-Name Investors". Forbes. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  7. ^ "Methodical Games raises $15M to create multiplayer action-adventure game". VentureBeat. 2022-11-16. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  8. ^ Lunden, Ingrid (2023-03-07). "Believer, a new approach to gaming, raises $55M from Lightspeed, a16z and more". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  9. ^ "Ex-Riot employees raise $55M for new studio The Believer Company". VentureBeat. 2023-03-07. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  10. ^ "Riot veterans raise $37.5 million for Theorycraft Games startup". VentureBeat. 2021-03-04. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  11. ^ "Gardens raises $31.3M for fantasy action role-playing game". VentureBeat. 2021-07-11. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  12. ^ a b c "Lightspeed picks up Moritz Baier-Lentz to lead game investments". VentureBeat. 2023-01-18. Retrieved 2023-05-05.
  13. ^ "30 Under 30 2016: Finance". Forbes. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  14. ^ "Forbes Profile: Moritz Baier-Lentz". Forbes. Retrieved 2023-06-05.
  15. ^ "Das sind die Nachwuchs-Talente der Finanzbranche". capital.de (in German). 20 February 2018. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  16. ^ "Atlantik-Brücke Jahresbericht 2017/18" (PDF). Retrieved 2023-06-05.
  17. ^ "New Class". The Forum of Young Global Leaders. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  18. ^ "World Economic Forum Annual Meeting". World Economic Forum. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
  19. ^ "Past Award & Certificate Recipients". Stanford Graduate School of Business. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  20. ^ a b "Lightspeed's new head of gaming wants to rethink investments in the vertical | PitchBook". pitchbook.com. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  21. ^ Renbarger, Madeline. "How VC Moritz Baier-Lentz went from being one of the world's best professional gamers to the new head of Lightspeed's gaming practice". Business Insider. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  22. ^ "What play-to-earn games mean for the economy - and metaverse". World Economic Forum. 22 November 2021. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  23. ^ "Einer, der auszog". asv.faz.net. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  24. ^ Morrell, Alex. "RISING STARS: Meet 16 investment bankers age 35 and under doing huge deals". Business Insider. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  25. ^ Shieber, Jonathan (2020-02-21). "Gaming-focused investment firm Bitkraft closes in on at least $140 million for its second fund". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  26. ^ "Moritz Baier-Lentz - Agenda Contributor". World Economic Forum. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
  27. ^ "Goldman Sachs | Podcast: 'Exchanges at Goldman Sachs' - Episode 92: eSports: The New Global Pastime". Goldman Sachs. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
  28. ^ "FAME Conference 2022: The Metaverse | FAME Conference 2022". fameconference.sites.stanford.edu. 20 April 2022. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
  29. ^ "Side Program – 2019 German American Conference at Harvard". Retrieved 2023-05-08.
  30. ^ "Guests - MIT Gaming Industry Club | MIT Sloan School of Management". sloangroups.mit.edu. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  31. ^ "Media dealmakers chat AI as a business accelerator | Axios". axios.com. Retrieved 2023-05-18.
  32. ^ "Reality Check: Are VR and AR Ready for Prime Time?". SXSW 2023 Schedule. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
  33. ^ "Slush Nov 30 - Dec 1, Helsinki: Moritz Baier-Lentz, Partner & Head of Gaming at Lightspeed Venture Partners". Slush 2023 Speakers. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  34. ^ "GDC 2023 SESSION VIEWER".
  35. ^ Longman, Jeré (2019-04-25). "An Amputee's Toughest Challenge Yet: Her 140-Mile Run in the Desert". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-06-02.
  36. ^ "World Marathon Challenge 2023 Competitors & Results". World Marathon Challenge. Retrieved 2023-06-02.
  37. ^ "Screentime: The Venture Investor Who Runs Through Antarctica in Silence". The Information. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
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