a16z partner Kofi Ampadu will leave the firm following the suspension of the TxO program

Kofi Ampadu, a partner at a16z who led the firm’s Talent x Opportunity (TxO) fund and program, has left the firm, according to an email he sent to employees obtained by TechCrunch. This comes months after the company temporarily halted TxO and laid off most of its staff.

“While at the company, I was very grateful for the opportunity and the trust to lead this project,” Ampadu wrote in an email, sent Friday afternoon, with the subject “Closing My a16z Chapter.”

“Identifying entrepreneurs outside the network and supporting them as they sharpen their ideas, raise capital, and grow into confident leaders has been one of the most important things in my life,” he wrote.

Ampadu led the program, which launched in 2020, for more than four years until it was temporarily suspended last November, taking over from the original leader, Nait Jones. After that, Ampadu seems to have worked on the latest a16z accelerator, Speedrun.

Ampadu’s departure perhaps marks the end of TxO’s chapter. The fund and the program focus on supporting underperforming innovators by providing access to technology networks and investment capital through a sponsor-advised fund. Although some of the founders spoke positively of the plan, others criticized the fight over funding. The program also introduced a grant program in 2024 to award $50,000 to non-profit organizations that help various innovators.

Its last group was in March 2025, and its indefinite suspension came as many top names retooled, cut, or removed previous community commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion. We have contacted a16z and Ampadu for comment.

His full note below:

I moved to the United States three months before my 11th birthday. One month later, I started 6th grade at a school more than 5,000 kilometers away from home, my friends, and everything I’m familiar with. Recently, my mother reminded me that my school required me to register as an English as a Second Language student. My memory immediately returned to how confused I was. Even at the age of 10, I knew it was absurd that a child from Ghana, an English-speaking country, was being asked to learn a language he spoke fluently.

This was a programming requirement, a veiled assumption of what students from certain areas could or could not do. That kind of systematic assumption is what we set out to challenge with the Talent x Opportunity Initiative. The business ecosystem often relies on proxies such as schools, networks, and previous information, which can hide exceptional innovators who do not follow the most common paths. TxO invested in and supported these overlooked innovators to bridge the gap between talent and opportunity.

During my time at the company, I was very grateful for the opportunity and the trust to lead this project. Identifying entrepreneurs outside the network and supporting them as they sharpen their ideas, raise capital, and grow into confident leaders was one of the most valuable experiences I have experienced in my career.

As I move on to my next chapter, I leave with pride what we have built and thank everyone who helped shape it. Thank you for your trust, cooperation, and belief in what is possible. There is a lot of work to be done and I am excited to continue building.