PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 14, 2026--
500 Global, one of the world’s most active venture capital firms 1, today announced the promotion of Mei Chel Tan to Global Managing Partner. Her appointment reflects both her leadership in expanding 500 Global’s footprint across high-growth regions and the accelerating AI transformation that is positioning nascent and emerging markets as central drivers of the next era of global growth.
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Mei Chel joined 500 Global in 2016 and was appointed Partner in 2023. Over the past decade, she has helped shape the firm’s expansion across Asia, Europe, Middle East and Africa — architecting the launch of early Asian investment funds and vehicles, leading market-entry strategies, developing national ecosystem diagnostics, and guiding governments and institutions in translating development priorities into actionable investment and digital transformation roadmaps. She has focused on building tailored early-stage funds, founder programs, and ecosystem infrastructures that help catalyze long-term, technology-led economic growth.
Her promotion comes at a defining moment for global markets. 500 Global has observed that governments, sovereign investors, and development institutions are increasingly prioritizing the integration of entrepreneurship and artificial intelligence as demographic shifts, supply-chain realignment, and rapid digitization reshape national competitiveness. By 2040, 3 billion new internet users are expected to come online 2, the majority from emerging markets. Simultaneously, global economies stand to unlock trillions in additional annual value through AI adoption 3, with emerging markets — projected to account for 65% of global economic growth by 2035 — playing a central role 4. Together, 500 Global believes AI and entrepreneurship generate powerful multiplier effects: creating new industries, boosting productivity, accelerating export growth, and driving long-term economic diversification. As a result, innovation ecosystems are now foundational to national and regional competitiveness.
”As AI becomes the infrastructure layer of the global economy, founders need ecosystems that can support AI-driven scale. Mei Chel has been instrumental in shaping 500 Global’s commercial approach to market development, turning the AI platform shift into investable opportunities and long-term value across high-growth regions,” said Christine Tsai, CEO & Founding Partner, 500 Global.
“Mei Chel has shown how private capital can move beyond company-level investing to help build the market foundations—talent, infrastructure, and policy alignment—that unlock scalable, technology-led growth,” said Courtney Powell, Managing Partner & COO of 500 Global. “Her leadership demonstrates how strategic capital can accelerate the evolution of entire ecosystems into investable innovation hubs.”
500 Global remains committed to investing in high-potential founders and partnering with governments and international organizations to build resilient, competitive innovation ecosystems through venture funds, founder education, and market-building programs that support economic transformation. Institutions interested in strategic collaboration are invited to engage with 500 Global on long-term ecosystem partnerships.
About 500 Global
500 Global is a multi-stage venture capital firm with $2.2B in assets under management 5 that invests in founders building fast-growing technology companies. We focus on markets where technology, innovation, and capital can unlock long-term value and drive economic growth and development. We work closely with key stakeholders and advise governments on how best to support entrepreneurial ecosystems and economic development in emerging markets. 500 Global has backed over 5,000 founders representing more than 3,000 companies operating in 80+ countries. We have invested in more than 35+ companies valued at over $1 billion and 160+ companies valued at over $100 million (including private, public, and exited companies) (as of June 30, 2025). We have launched 200+ startup program batches in 24 markets, accelerated 4,000+ startups and mentored 6,000+ founders. Our 180+ team members are located in more than 23 countries and bring experience as entrepreneurs, investors, and operators from some of the world’s leading technology companies.
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500 Global announces promotion of Mei Chel Tan
Iran's top judge hinted at fast trials and executions for those who were detained in nationwide protests against the country's theocracy, even as activists said Wednesday that the death toll rose to levels unseen in decades, with at least 2,571 people killed so far.
Iran’s judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, made the comments about trials and executions in a video Tuesday, despite a warning from U.S. President Donald Trump that he would “take very strong action” if executions take place.
The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said the number of dead climbed to at least 2,571 early Wednesday. The figure dwarfs the death toll from any other round of protest or unrest in Iran in decades and recalls the chaos surrounding the country’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.
After Trump was informed of the number of deaths, he warned Iran's leaders that he was terminating any negotiations and would “act accordingly.”
Details of the crackdown began emerging Tuesday as Iranians made phone calls abroad for the first time in days after authorities severed communications countrywide when the protests broke out.
Here is the latest:
Tens of thousands of mourners thronged the streets near Tehran University for the funeral of more than 300 security forces and civilians on Wednesday.
Many held Iranian flags and identical photos of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and their relatives. The caskets, covered in Iranian flags, were stacked at least three high in the backs of trucks and covered with red and white roses and framed photographs of people who were killed. The crowd chanted and beat their chests in response to an emcee speaking from a stage.
One man in the crowd held up a photo of U.S. President Donald Trump during the Pennsylvania assassination attempt, emblazoned with: “The arrow doesn’t always miss!”
India's Embassy in Tehran urged Wednesday all Indian nationals to leave Iran, citing what it called an “evolving situation” in the Islamic Republic.
The statement, posted on X, also advised Indian citizens to remain highly vigilant and avoid areas where protests are taking place.
German police said Wednesday the two climbed over a fence into embassy grounds and tore down an Iranian flag. Both wanted to hoist two pre-Islamic Republic flags but failed, German news agency dpa reported.
They left the grounds when guards used pepper spray and were detained on the sidewalk outside.
The incident happened late Tuesday.
Major Middle East governments were discouraging the Trump administration from waging a war with Iran, fearing “unprecedented consequences” in the volatile region, an Arab Gulf diplomat said Wednesday.
The Cairo-based diplomat, who was given anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak to the media, said major governments in the region, including Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, have been “in constant contact” with the U.S. administration over a potential American strike on Iran that could explode into a “full-blown war.”
Such a war will “certainly” have dire repercussions “not only on the Middle East but also on the global economy," he said.
Iranian state television said Wednesday’s mass funeral in Tehran would include 300 bodies of security force members and civilians. The funeral is expected to take place at Tehran University under heavy security.
The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said the crackdown killed at least 2,571 people. It said 2,403 of the dead were protesters and 147 were government-affiliated. Twelve children were killed, along with nine civilians it said were not taking part in protests. More than 18,100 people have been detained, the group said.
Gauging the demonstrations and the death toll from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll, given the communications being disrupted in the country.
Melanie Lidman contributed from Jerusalem.
Trump’s decision to impose a 25% tariff on countries that trade with Iran could impact India, an expert said, as New Delhi already faces existing 50% U.S. trade levies due to its purchases of Russian oil.
Abhijit Mukhopadhyay, a senior economist at the Chintan Research Foundation in New Delhi, said the bigger risk is not India-Iran trade, but India’s access to the U.S. market, as its exports to Iran are modest.
India mainly exports rice, tea, sugar, pharmaceuticals and electrical machinery to Iran, while importing dry fruits and chemical products. Textiles and garments, gems and jewelry and engineering goods are likely to be the most vulnerable sectors, he said.
Trump’s latest move also could affect India’s investments in Iran, including the strategically important Chabahar port, which gives India a trade route to Afghanistan, Central Asia and Europe while bypassing Pakistan, Mukhopadhyay said.
Iran’s judiciary chief signals fast trials and executions for those detained in nationwide protests.
Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei made the comment in a video shared by Iranian state television on Wednesday.
He emphasized the need for swift action, saying delays would lessen the impact.
His remarks challenge Trump, who warned Iran about executions in an interview aired Tuesday.
Trump stated the U.S. would take strong action if Iran proceeded with executions. The situation highlights escalating tensions between the two countries over the handling of the protests.
Dozens of Pakistani students studying in Iran have returned home through a remote southwestern border crossing, a Pakistani immigration official said Wednesday.
Federal Investigation Agency spokesperson in Quetta city, Samina Raisani, said about 60 students crossed into Pakistan on Tuesday through Gabd border in Balochistan province with valid travel documents.
More students were expected to return through the same crossing later Wednesday, she said.
Mudassir Tipu, Pakistan’s ambassador to Iran, said Tuesday that Iranian universities had rescheduled exams and permitted international students to leave the country.
The satellite internet provider Starlink now offers free service to people in Iran who have access to the company's receivers, activists said Wednesday.
Mehdi Yahyanejad, a Los Angeles-based activist who helped get the units into Iran, told The Associated Press that the free service had started. Other activists also confirmed in messages online that the service was free.
Starlink has been the only way for Iranians to communicate with the outside world since authorities shut down the internet Thursday night as nationwide protests swelled and they began a bloody crackdown against demonstrators.
Starlink did not immediately acknowledge the decision.
This frame grab from videos taken between Jan. 9 and Jan. 11, 2026, and circulating on social media purportedly shows images from a morgue with dozens of bodies and mourners after crackdown on the outskirts of Iran's capital, in Kahrizak, Tehran Province. (UGC via AP)
