《财富》杂志（Fortune）获悉，美国著名科技博客TechCrunch创始人兼联合主编迈克尔•阿灵顿正在募集一只风险投资基金，主要投资于初创科技公司。与他合作的是美国优点资本投资公司（VantagePoint Venture Partners）的帕特里克•加林格尔，基金投资者将包括硅谷多家知名风险投资公司和科技界名人。

    有消息称，该基金计划募集2,000万美元资金。美国在线（AOL）将是该基金的有限合伙人之一。去年秋年，美国在线收购了TechCrunch，目前阿灵顿依然留任。该基金的其他有限合伙人包括知名的凯鹏华盈风险投资公司（Kleiner Perkins）、格雷洛克风险投资公司（Greylock ）和红杉资本投资公司（Sequoia Capital）。

    阿灵顿与美国在线均未就此事发表意见。在接受电话采访时，加林格尔的回答是“无可奉告”。

    这只基金横空出世，市场作何反应？这一点确实非常值得期待。毕竟，阿灵顿曾因之前的投资活动而引火烧身。

    阿灵顿曾是硅谷的一名律师，2005年创办TechCrunch之前，也曾是一名天使投资人。虽然之后他也进行了几笔投资，但由于外界多次质疑他的报道存在利益冲突，因此他在2009年停止了投资活动。毕竟，涉及到阿灵顿投资对象的文章是否存在利益冲突，TechCrunch的读者无从判断。

    今年年初，阿灵顿宣布，他将重操旧业，继续进行投资活动——并为初创公司纳普斯特（Napster）的创始人肖恩•范宁与掘客网（Digg）创始人凯文•罗斯提供了资助。他还称，自己已经成为基准投资公司（Benchmark Capital）与风险投资公司SoftTechVC旗下风投基金的有限合伙人。

    据报道，阿灵顿的这些行为违反了美国在线的员工行为规范，但却平安无事。之后在接受美国科技博客商业内线（Business Insider）采访时，当被问及风险投资是否会成为他的下一个职业选择时，他并未正面回答，而是重申他并没有离开美国在线的打算（但他并未提及美国在线可能会支持他自己的风投基金——尽管当时这只基金是否正在筹备当中目前依然不明确）。如果他真的投身基金行业，那么随着美国在线和TechCrunch的不断发展，他在其中的角色会发生怎样的变化？且让我们拭目以待。

    翻译：刘进龙/汪皓

    Michael Arrington, founder and co-editor of TechCrunch, is raising a venture capital fund to invest in early-stage technology companies, Fortune has learned. His partner will be Patrick Gallagher of VantagePoint Venture Partners, while investors will include many of Silicon Valley's top venture capital firms and tech luminaries.

    One source says that the plan is to raise around $20 million. The cornerstone limited partner will be AOL (AOL), which acquired TechCrunch last fall and where Arrington is now an employee. Others will include VC firms like Kleiner Perkins, Greylock and Sequoia Capital.

    Neither Arrington nor AOL responded to requests for comment. Gallagher said "no comment" when reached via phone.

    It should be interesting to watch market reaction to news of this fund, since Arrington's prior investment activities have been something of a lightning rod.

    Arrington, a onetime Silicon Valley attorney, was an occasional angel investor before founding TechCrunch in 2005. He subsequently did a few more deals, but in 2009 stopped investing after being accused one too many times of having a conflict of interest. After all, how were TechCrunch readers to judge the coverage that Arrington's portfolio companies did, or didn't, receive?

    Then, earlier this year, Arrington announced that he was back in the investing game -- backing new start-ups from Napster founder Shawn Fanning and Digg creator Kevin Rose. He also said that he had become a limited partner in VC funds managed by Benchmark Capital and SoftTechVC.

    Such moves reportedly violated AOL's code of employee conduct, but Arrington received an exemption. In a subsequent interview with Business Insider, he side-stepped a question about whether venture capital investing was his next career move -- instead reiterating how he had no plans to leave AOL (without mentioning that AOL might be backing his very own VC fund -- although it's unclear if this fund was yet in the works). It will be interesting to see how, if at all, his role will change with AOL and TechCrunch going forward.