May 16, 1960 - December 4, 2025
Daniel Irving Rubin, loving husband, devoted father, adoring grandfather, avid runner, loyal friend, trusted advisor, and lifelong learner, passed away peacefully on December 4th, 2025 surrounded by his family.
Daniel, or "Danny" as he was known in his early days, was born in Hollywood, California on May 16th, 1960 to the late Ira & Barbara Rubin. Danny grew up in Manhattan Beach and spent his days doing his homework at the beach, studying as much math and history as possible, collecting Boy Scout badges, and playing competitive badminton (including winning the Junior National Badminton Championship). He attended Pomona College where he was known as the "Freshman Sensation" for his badminton prowess and continued to play competitively all four years, including taking a semester off to play badminton professionally in England. He graduated in 1982 with a Bachelor's degree in Astrophysics. While at Pomona, he met Katharine, his wife of 39 years and the love of his life.
Dan and Katharine married in 1986 and continued to build a life together after moving to Silicon Valley. He started his long career in the semiconductor industry first at Compumetrics and then at Ultratech Stepper, where he was asked to move to Hong Kong to run their APAC business.
Upon return from Hong Kong in 1990, Dan and Katharine began what they would call the most important era of their life: parenthood. Dan loved nothing more than his three children: Caroline, Hannah, and Sam; he spent as much time as he possibly could playing with them, teaching them his favorite math tricks and how to use Excel, instilling a love for classic rock and the 49ers, and raising them with strong Jewish values.
Dan went on to found Artisan Components and was integral to its IPO in 1998, but never missed tucking in his kids or an important family moment. In his next chapter, Dan became a General Partner at Alloy Ventures, where he excelled in advising entrepreneurs and always asking "the right questions."
Outside of work, Dan loved his time as the self-proclaimed "Director of Rubin Family Transportation," where he cherished picking up his kids and their friends from school, driving to every soccer or chess tournament, and taking them on adventures abroad.
In addition to coaching his kids' many sports teams, long runs with friends in Woodside, and reading all the books on his kids' class syllabi, Dan was always on the board of a Jewish non-profit. Dan first joined the board of Gideon Hausner Jewish Day School, where he helped establish their current campus and then joined the board of his synagogue, Congregation Beth Am, where he could be seen doing his favorite job-greeting members and newcomers at High Holiday services.
Finally, Dan spent treasured years on the board of the Shalom Hartman Institute, an organization dedicated to fostering pluralistic Jewish education. He loved sharing his insights from their seminars, podcasts, and articles with his community. Additionally, Dan stayed connected to the Jewish community and fostered new friendships through involvement with the Wexner Foundation, J-Ventures, The Israel Collaborative Network (ICON), JVC, and many more. He was a trusted advisor to every organization he was involved with and never turned down a call if someone wanted to pick his brain. He had over 10,000 contacts in his phone with meticulous notes in each, but fostered deep friendships and connections through weekly "Shabbat Shalom" messages, lunch catch ups, or long runs.
When Dan was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma in 2017, he made it his motto to "Run Towards It" and attacked every round of chemo like it was a mile of a marathon. He wore his Boston Marathon 2016 finisher hat to every treatment as a constant reminder of his motto. In the 8 years he lived with cancer, Dan defied the odds with over 70 rounds of chemo, more than 30 rounds of radiation, 6 surgeries, and 3 clinical trials. He never let his illness slow him down, continuing to travel to 10 more countries (59 total countries and 49 states in his lifetime!), reaching a 2,085-day streak for Hebrew study on the LingQ app, and even running his lifetime marathon PR in between treatments. When Dan relapsed again, he could be seen walking the halls with his chemo infusion while on a board call or Hebrew book club meeting, or ignoring chemo side effects to get on the Peloton after the hospital. As his trips to the hospital became more frequent, Dan fostered a deep connection with the nurses and staff at the Stanford Infusion Center in Redwood City and was forever grateful for their compassionate care. Even in his hardest moments, Dan would always tell jokes to anyone who took care of him and knew everyone's life story--offering life and business advice, as well as unsolicited running tips.
Through his discipline, drive, and the incredible care of Dr. Kristen Ganjoo, he lived to see all his kids graduate from college and grad school, dance at both his daughters' weddings, and see his granddaughter Kit take her first steps in his house. He lived as he died, surrounded by those he loved and those that loved him, and the world will miss him dearly.
He is survived by his wife, Katharine; his children, Caroline (Stephen), Hannah (Kate), and Sam; his granddaughter, Kit; his sister, Regina; his brother, Paul, and the many friends that loved him.
A memorial for Dan will be held on Thursday, December 18th at 10am at Congregation Beth Am with a reception to follow.
To honor Dan, please consider making a donation to the Shalom Hartman Institute <https://www.hartman.org.il/support-the-hartman-institute/> or Stanford Medicine Giving - Dr. Kristen Ganjoo Sarcoma Research Fund <https://give.stanford.edu/med/fund?kwoDCFilter=KDC-3AU9765&kwoDCPreselect=KDC-3AU9765&su_ihmo=In memory&su_ihmo_title=Mr.&su_ihmo_first_name=Dan&su_ihmo_last_name=Rubin>. But, most importantly, reach out to someone you haven't spoken to in a while; go on a run in a new place and strike up a conversation; ask about the life story of your cab driver or tour guide while traveling. He would be honored to know his memory supported deepening relationships and making the world a more connected and welcoming place.
To hear more about Dan's connection to running, travel, and navigating disease, you can read his blog "Running Without a Collarbone" <http://rwoac24.substack.com> or listen to his journey on the "Sarcoma Stories" Podcast <https://rss.com/podcasts/sfasarcomastories/2051973/>.
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