SAN FRANCISCO — Prominent technology investor Dave McClure has been demoted by the start-up incubator he co-founded for engaging in “inappropriate interactions with women in the tech community,” 500 Startups said in a statement late Friday.
McClure stepped down as CEO and was replaced by Christine Tsai, who now directs the management team and runs day-to-day operations.
“I sincerely apologize for the choices he made and the pain and stress they’ve caused people. But apologies aren’t enough without meaningful actions and change. Because of this, we made the decision a few months ago to change the leadership structure at 500,” Tsai said in a blog post.
McClure’s role is now limited to “fulfilling his obligations to our investors as a general partner,” Tsai said. “In addition, he’s been attending counseling to work on changing his perspectives and preventing his previous unacceptable behavior.”
McClure declined to comment for this article. He retweeted the 500 Startups statement, then on Saturday published a blog post entitled “I’m a creep. I’m sorry.”
“I made advances towards multiple women in work-related situations, where it was clearly inappropriate. I put people in compromising and inappropriate situations,…