Peter Bicknell Kellner

Peter Bicknell Kellner, 56, passed away on July 10, 2026. Peter was a powerful force of nature who touched countless lives, and he will be profoundly missed.

Born in New York City on September 5, 1969, Peter grew up in Manhattan, where he attended the Allen-Stevenson School followed by Milton Academy in Milton, MA for high school. He was a graduate of Princeton University (AB, School of Public & International Affairs), Harvard Business School (MBA), and Yale Law School (JD). Over the course of his career, he invested, worked, and lived across five continents.

Peter was a visionary entrepreneur and leader who repeatedly saw opportunities before others did, and who poured his own life force into creating and building what he envisioned. His sheer audacity, courage, and powerful conviction made the impossible seem - and then become - possible, over and over again.

Peter also delighted in mentoring and supporting other entrepreneurs and builders, sharing his hard-earned insights and extraordinary human connections as widely as he could, with incredible generosity. He didn't just advise other entrepreneurs; he invested his personal belief in them, providing a bedrock upon which other founders built their own self-belief.

After college, Peter served as a Fulbright Scholar in Hungary, where he co-founded the Environmental Management & Law Association (EMLA), modeled on the NRDC. In 1996, he founded Endeavor Global, an organization supporting the development of entrepreneurial ecosystems across 49 countries, which he got off the ground by taking a leave of absence from Yale Law School to move to Chile to establish the first country office. He has served on several Endeavor boards including Chile, Global, Jordan, Miami, and Midwest. Peter’s inspiration for Endeavor came from his close mentor, Bill Drayton, founder and leader of Ashoka, which supports social entrepreneurs around the world.

Peter was founder and Managing Partner of Richmond Global LLC, which he created nearly three decades ago to partner with and invest in entrepreneurs building transformative technologies, with a focus on early- and growth-stage companies pursuing global opportunities. Peter was the first investor in three unicorns and an early investor in numerous successful companies, including Salesforce, Toast, Compass, Dataminr, Rubicon, aQuantive, Bols, CAIS, and Americanas.

In 2017, Peter founded Richmond Global Compass, a macro fund dedicated to proving the value of investing in alignment with positive environmental, social and governance standards.

In 2025, Peter founded Richmond Global Delta to develop a transformative frontier approach to AI governance. Peter was deeply engaged in this work at the time of his passing, drawing upon his entire life history to fuel his insights about what is needed for humanity to navigate the age of AI.

Peter’s ability to focus intensely and his sheer will power, determination and perseverance were unparalleled. His enthusiasm and optimism were infectious to all who came into contact with him. In everything he took on, Peter gave his all, doing nothing by half-measures, and he did so consistently in pursuit of bending the arc of the future toward the good of all.

Peter was a Henry Crown Fellow of the 2003 Discovery Class at the Aspen Institute and a member of the 2009 class of World Economic Forum Young Global Leaders. He was a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations, as well as a member of The Explorers Club, the Pacific Council on International Policy, and the International Institute for Strategic Studies. He served on the boards of America Media | The Jesuit Review and the Yale Law School Fund.

Peter converted to Roman Catholicism in his 40s. He became a Knight of Malta and built close relationships within the Dominican and Jesuit orders of the Catholic Church.

Peter was also a beloved son who was deeply dedicated to his grandparents, father, mother and sister, and a beloved friend to so many. His smile always lit up the room with his unique mix of intensity, humor and charm, and his inimitable, full-bellied laugh instantly invited everyone else to join in. Across many decades, geographies and settings, Peter formed lasting relationships through his genuine inquisitiveness, warmth, and generosity of spirit. He was a friend who either led or said “yes” to wild adventures and made sure to include the widest group imaginable, to the benefit of all. He was fiercely loyal and unfailingly generous.

Peter is survived by his father, George Kellner, and sister, Catherine Kellner, his wife, Meredith Kellner, and his beloved children, Morgan Kellner (7) and Grayson Kellner (6), who brought him more joy than anything else in his life. His mother, Martha “Bicky” Bicknell Kellner, whom Peter cherished, predeceased him in January 2025.

Morgan and Grayson were Peter’s north star, and his 1000-watt smile always bumped to 2000 watts whenever he locked eyes with them. There is no question they always felt deeply the love in his gaze. Peter loved to play “monster” and tickle and chase, and he teased and joked with impish energy that Morgan and Grayson loved. He took enormous pride in Morgan and Grayson’s independent pursuits, especially, not surprisingly, as they took to the ski hill with the same ferocity that he did. Peter consistently explained things about how the world worked that were at least one decade ahead of Morgan and Grayson’s comprehension levels, and he was so excited to teach them as they grew, to share all that he had learned throughout his life.

Peter was bottled lightning, and the energy he unleashed lives on in everyone he touched.