For years I thought doing well and doing good were a trade-off.

A Bit Human

I am an incurable optimist, a strategist who loves numbers, and someone who never learned to identify people by their profiles.

Agronomy Engineering · MSc, Biotechnology · MBA · PhD, Finance & Entrepreneurship · AICD · NLP

Born and raised in Venezuela in 1961, I grew up in a small town beside a tropical cloud forest and built my own world of magic long before I built investment vehicles. I studied Agronomy to help solve hunger — the theme never left me, and today it lives on through Box of Life.

In 1994, I moved from Venezuela to the United States and built my career and wealth from the ground up, several times over: creating, closing, and selling companies; investing, losing, and investing again. I've studied continuously, worked across many countries, and spoken and taught in many more — including a TEDx stage.

Much of this journey was shared by my two children, Daniel Chapellin Castillo and Sara Perry, who moved countries with me, learned new languages, and kept me grounded — sometimes confused, and always amused. I'm close to them and to their families now, and together we're rewriting how our family office works, around values we all share.

I started working early — as a research assistant in the summers, a daycare assistant during the school year, doing translations and transcriptions on the side. I played in a band, danced, hiked, and, to this day, still grow vegetables. I presented my first research paper, on plant viruses, at 16 — with no idea I'd eventually trade science for corporate R&D, opera, and entrepreneurship.

I've lived across 4 continents — Latin America, North America, Europe, and Australia — and taught or spoken in many more. Along the way, I helped pioneer Chile's entrepreneurial ecosystem: launching Chile's first Centre for Entrepreneurship and the country's first Seed Capital Fund.

After years across many countries, I eventually landed in Silicon Valley. Shortly after arriving, I joined Sand Hill Angels, co-chairing the life sciences group and serving on the board. I invest in 10–12 companies a year, across life sciences, climate, and disruptive technology. I also launched Women Get Funded, the only program of its kind, and — for reasons that still surprise me — once built a hotel in Sacramento. In 2020, I launched Wealthing VC Club with my son and co-founder, Daniel; I host The Wealthing Podcast, direct the Wealthing Institute, travel constantly, and still make time for my family and my garden. Wealthing has been the guiding principle throughout: choosing to create wealth, not extract it.