William Henry Draper III (January 1, 1928 – September 8, 2026) was an American venture capitalist who helped shape Silicon Valley before the term existed.
Draper was born in White Plains, New York, the son of banker, general, and diplomat William Henry Draper Jr., who founded Draper, Gaither and Anderson. He attended Yale University with George H. W. Bush, graduated in 1950, and was a member of Skull and Bones. After serving as a second lieutenant in the Korean War, he earned an MBA with distinction from Harvard Business School in 1954, studying under Georges Doriot, often credited with starting the venture capital industry.
After working at Inland Steel, Draper joined his father’s firm Draper, Gaither & Anderson in 1959 — the first venture capital company on the West Coast. In 1962 he co-founded Draper & Johnson Investment Company with Pitch Johnson. In 1965 he founded Sutter Hill Ventures, which remains one of the top venture capital firms in the country. During his twenty years as senior partner, Draper helped organize and finance several hundred high-technology manufacturing companies.
Draper served from 1981 to 1986 as president and Chairman of the Export–Import Bank of the United States under President Ronald Reagan. In 1986 he became head of the United Nations Development Programme, overseeing nearly 10,000 international aid projects. Under Draper, the UNDP’s programs grew in value from 1.5 billion in 1992.
In 1994, Draper and Robin Richards Donohoe founded Draper International, the first U.S. venture capital fund focused on investing in private companies with operations in India. In 2002 he co-founded Draper Richards LP and founded Draper Investment Company. He also co-founded the Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation, a global venture philanthropy firm.
Draper died at his home in Atherton, California, on September 8, 2026, at the age of 98. He is survived by three children, including actress Polly Draper and venture capitalist Timothy C. Draper, founder of Draper Associates and Draper Fisher Jurvetson.
His honors include the Harvard Business School Alumni Achievement Award (1982), induction into the Dow Jones Venture Capital Hall of Fame (2005), and the National Venture Capital Association Lifetime Achievement Award (2017).
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