Getting personal with PR Yu

PR Yu, founder of Yu Galaxy, talks about his unique infrared therapy device, the kind of legacy he wants to leave and the convergence of the digital and physical worlds. Ryan Hibbison reports

Venture Capital Journal • August 2025

PR Yu sees his career in three distinct phases. He started out as a scientist, transitioned to a company founder and is now a venture capitalist. Yu serves as founder and managing partner of Yu Galaxy, investing selectively in the early-stage rounds of companies across verticals focused on impact. He also continues as co-founder and managing partner of SV Tech Ventures, an early-stage firm focused on healthcare and technology.

The firms collectively manage in excess of $400 million and have invested in more than 100 start-ups. He began his career as a researcher at the National Renewable Energy Lab after earning a bachelor's in chemistry from Peking University and a doctorate in physical chemistry from the University of Colorado Boulder. He went on to found Optony, a developer of solar technologies and power plants, in 2007. Yu made the leap to investing in 2014 as founding managing partner of SV Tech.

What is the best gift you ever received?

I think it's the genes that I have. The older I get the more grateful I am to have received the set of genes I did from my parents and ancestors. They gave me a healthy body and I feel like my brain works well for me and the work I do.

What do you think about most every day?

Outside of work and family I constantly think about what kind of life legacy I will leave. I'm always trying to improve

Favorite travel destination?

Vail, Colorado. I went to school in Boulder so that's like my hometown in the States.

What's the most unusual thing in your home?

I have an infrared therapy device that I helped design. It's manufactured by a startup I invested in 10 years ago; it's unusual... you can't buy it anywhere. The CEO brought it to me.

What career advice would you give your younger self?

To follow my heart more aggressively. My brain is very analytical, logical, and I wish I'd followed my heart and ignored the logic aspect a little bit more.

What have you accomplished in your career that you're most proud of?

‍The non-profit organization I started. It was the first solar decathlon in Asia. We got more than 20 teams from 11 countries to build homes that can supply 100 percent of their own energy. We raised [over] $100 million for the event and hundreds of millions of people were able to learn about how new energy technologies can be applied in the real world.

What do you think is the most exciting space to be investing in right now?

‍The convergence of the physical and digital worlds. A lot of the exciting investments I have are something you can see, you can build and it doesn't have to be a robot. It can be something like biotechnology, but it's something in the physical world that may than bring in the digital aspect.