The birth of VC as an asset class is generally considered to be in the mid-1940s and created by Harvard Professor George Doriot. The early employees of Fairchi

The birth of VC as an asset class is generally considered to be in the mid-1940s and created by Harvard Professor George Doriot. The early employees of Fairchild Semiconductor built on the model in the 1960 and helped give birth to Silicon Valley. You're are correct that VC moved into the popular psyche in the 1990s in the run-up to the dot-com boom.