The tributes came quickly for S. “Soma” Somasegar, and they came from seemingly everywhere and everyone he touched across the technology and business community.
A consistent picture emerged: Somasegar was kind, generous with his time, humble, and a steadying presence. To many, those qualities mattered even more than the investments and decisions he made.
A key figure in Seattle tech, Somasegar died this week at age 59. His passing sent a wave of shock and grief across Microsoft, where he spent 27 years, Madrona, the VC firm where he worked the past 11 years, the many startups he invested in and guided, and the countless people he befriended and mentored.
Keep reading for remembrances we rounded up from LinkedIn and elsewhere:
Steven Sinofsky, the former Microsoft Windows and Office leader, called Somasegar “a champion of developers and startups” as he reacted to the news about his friend and colleague.
“We started at Microsoft months apart, both grad school dropouts,” Sinofsky wrote on LinkedIn. “Our work paths intertwined for more than two decades on everything from the first NT through dev tools with a good deal of college recruiting all along.”
Sinofsky said Somasegar’s contributions to Microsoft and culture “were as legendary as was the admiration and respect he earned from generations of the Softies he guided and led.”
Brad Anderson, a former Microsoft and Qualtrics executive, said Somasegar was “one of one,” and “the model of being a servant leader” when they were peers reporting to Bob Muglia and Satya Nadella. “Love that man,” Anderson wrote of Somasegar.
Anoop Gupta, co-founder and executive chairman at SeekOut, called Somasegar “endlessly curious” and said that every conversation with him “left you thinking differently” because of a rare combination of intellectual depth, optimism, humility, and genuine kindness.
Over the years, Somasegar became more than an investor to SeekOut.
“He was a trusted friend; someone whose perspective I valued immensely,” Gupta wrote — and someone who wouldn’t hesitate to make time at 10 p.m. on a Saturday to talk through a problem.
Vijaye Raji, CTO of Applications at OpenAI, first got to know Somasegar nearly 20 years ago at Microsoft, and counted him as a good friend, teacher, and important part of his personal and professional life. Somasegar later led Madrona’s investment in Raji’s startup Statsig, which OpenAI acquired last year for $1.1 billion in one of the largest Seattle-area tech exits of 2025.
“Soma was one of the kindest people I have known,” Raji wrote. “He helped everyone around him, gave generously of his time and wisdom, and made people better simply by being in their corner.”
Raji said he learned a lot from Somasegar, and “his impact on Microsoft, the developer ecosystem, Seattle, the startup community, and so many individual lives will endure.”
Vetri Vellore, a Microsoft veteran and startup leader, first met Somasegar in 1991, when Vellore interviewed for a job at Microsoft — the start of a 35-year friendship.
“He was a friend first, but also a mentor through every inflection point,” Vellore wrote, adding that Somasegar invested in his second startup, Ally.io, and led the seed round and joined the board for his third, Rhythms.
“We had just wrapped a board meeting a few days ago. It was energizing, full of ideas, and we somehow ended up bantering about which Indian restaurants we should use for catering,” Vellore said. “That was him: serious about the work, warm about the people, always game for the small joys in between.”
Joe Duffy, founder and CEO of Pulumi, also met Somasegar decades ago at Microsoft. When Somasegar told Duffy he was leaving for Madrona, Duffy confided that he was planning to leave Microsoft, too, and start a company. Somasegar asked to hear the pitch first — and then led Pulumi’s first investment and joined its board.
“Soma was the first person I would call anytime I faced a tough situation,” Duffy wrote. “His calmness and ability to see right through to clarity instantly centered me and revealed the path ahead as though it were sitting there the whole time without me realizing it.
“He was always there, no matter what time, where we were, or what we had going on. That he could do this while also playing that role for countless others is remarkable.”
Nikesh Parekh, a Seattle tech veteran who served with Somasegar on the board of his company Suplari, remembered him as “a true friend and mentor.”
“If you spent any time in Seattle tech over the last 30 years, you knew Soma,” Parekh wrote.
He described Somasegar’s advisory style as almost Socratic.
“Like Yoda or Bodhidharma, he would give you the advice you actually needed, usually framed as a puzzle or question you had to answer yourself: ‘You tried it. What did you learn? Pick yourself up. Try the next thing. Keep moving.'”
For five years, the two co-hosted sessions at Madrona where Microsoft employees donated to the GIVE campaign for time with Soma, discussing careers and entrepreneurship. His advice was characteristically concrete, Parekh said: spend 80% of your time doing your core job exceptionally, 20% on things that help the broader team. His example: standing up Microsoft’s India Development Center in Hyderabad as a side project. It became one of the company’s most important engineering hubs.
Manuela Papadopol, executive director of the Microsoft Alumni Network, told GeekWire that Somasegar “embodied the very best of Microsoft.”
“He was a world-class technologist and investor, but what set him apart was his generosity with his time, wisdom, and encouragement,” Papadopol said. “He was my mentor, advisor, and most of all, a steadfast supporter of the Microsoft Alumni Network, always looking for ways to help others succeed. His impact will live on through the countless founders, developers, leaders, and alumni whose lives he touched.”
Dayakar Puskoor, an entrepreneur and investor who knew Somasegar first as a colleague at Microsoft and later reconnected through the venture ecosystem, called him “a dear friend, a mentor, and one of the finest people I have had the privilege of knowing.”
The two shared many conversations over the years about startups, leadership, and venture capital, and Somasegar was a supporter of Puskoor’s firm, Dallas Venture Capital.
“Whether speaking with first-time founders, engineers, investors, or friends navigating difficult moments, Soma always made people feel supported and encouraged,” Puskoor wrote.
Daniel Dines, founder and CEO of UiPath, called the passing of Somasegar “one of the saddest days” he could remember.
Somasegar “was the most genuine and kind human being I have ever met, and his loss is incalculable,” Dines wrote. “A mind of unparalleled clarity. A sterling reputation. A life that inspired all of us lucky enough to be near him.”
Recalling board meetings and their time together during UiPath’s IPO, Dines said Somasegar was an honest and steady presence.
“He never raised his voice. He never reached for the easy answer. He just thought carefully and told you the truth,” Dines said. “I lost a friend. A mentor. An inspiration. A model for how to live a life. A board member I trusted completely. A human being I trusted completely.”
Jill Ratkevic, a longtime developer tools marketing leader and founder of Silicon Valley strategy firm Black Swans, called Somasegar “one of a kind.”
“I know I’m not alone in my stories of being young [and] gently schooled,” Ratkevic wrote. “His generosity in helping me solve the insolvable. RIP. Love to all.”
Stefan Weitz, a Microsoft vet who is currently co-founder and CEO of HumanX, called Somasegar one of his “favorite managers and human beings on the planet.”
“I am so sad tonight that one of the smartest, hardest working, kindest, and highest integrity people in tech and venture has left us,” Weitz wrote. “Soma was proof positive you didn’t have to be an asshole to be brilliant, nor a braggart to be an inspiring leader. He will be and deserves to be missed by those who will come after him in our increasingly inward looking industry.”
Preeti Suri, founder and CEO of AdventureTripr, said that when she moved from London to Seattle to start her company, she didn’t know anyone. Somasegar was one of the first people she spoke to.
He connected her to people with backgrounds in travel investing and startups, she wrote, and whenever she “needed guidance, felt disillusioned during fundraising or faced predatory terms, he was there — always available, even at short notice, to give wise, honest counsel.”
Somasegar showed her again and again “how someone can rise above selfish motives and genuinely help others,” Suri said. “He restored my faith in humanity when I needed it most.”
Vamshi Reddy, CEO of Bellevue-based Quadrant Technologies, called Somasegar “not only a great technology leader, but also a very humble human being,” crediting him for guiding entrepreneurs, startup founders, developers, and community members.
“Soma always made time to mentor people, encourage founders, and support the community with kindness and simplicity,” Reddy wrote. “So many people grew because of his guidance, advice, and belief in them and his support from Madrona. His impact went far beyond business and technology.”
Sharath Katipally, head of enterprise AI at Cornerstone, knew Somasegar through both the Seattle tech and cricket communities, and remembered him as “a foundation and guiding presence.”
The two first met through a JPMorgan client event, but the relationship deepened over time into genuine mentorship. Katipally recalled a conversation during a period when he was navigating the transition from large leadership roles back to an individual contributor path. Somasegar opened up about going through a similar adjustment after leaving Microsoft.
“It was a simple conversation, but it stayed with me because it came from a place of honesty, humility, and lived experience,” Katipally wrote. “He never made conversations transactional. Be it career, cricket, sponsorships, or simply showing up when someone needed support, he always made time for people.”
Pritam Parvatkar, a tech veteran who is chief alliance officer at AlonOS, said that Somasegar “changed the lives of many” as a brilliant leader, role model, mentor and passionate cricket fan.
“You will be missed but will continue to inspire every young entrepreneur dreaming of future success — whether in AI, cloud, or even the challenging field of cricket,” Parvatkar wrote. “You demonstrated how to turn passion into a successful career and create a bright future.”
At Madrona, where Somasegar joined as venture partner in 2015 and was named managing director in 2017, he was remembered as a brilliant and generous spirit.
“He was unique at every level and raised the bar on what we expected of ourselves professionally and, more importantly, personally,” the firm wrote in a tribute post. “We all loved Soma, as everyone who knew him did.”
https://ift.tt/GnYUOkr May 20, 2026 at 10:41PM GeekWire
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