Morgan Fong

General Counsel & Secretary, MAPLEBEAR INC

Search every verified Morgan Fong interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Morgan Fong, General Counsel and Secretary at Maplebear (Instacart), discussed his career path and current role in a September 2024 interview. Fong said he attended law school because he enjoyed college and wanted to delay entering the workforce, and he initially worked at a law firm before moving in-house. He noted that his first summer in law school included an externship with a federal judge in the Northern District of California. Fong stated that he was more interested in deal making than litigation, and he described his experience at Wilson Sonsini in 1999 during the first internet boom. Fong said that when he joined Trulia, the company had just become public, which he described as a bridge between law firm work and the in-house role. He noted that at Instacart, the early legal team faced "three years of legal debt" and had to rebuild structures. Fong emphasized that a general counsel must ensure the business receives the best legal advice and that hiring people who are better than oneself is key. He also expressed interest in teaching about law as a tool in entrepreneurship and in mentoring, particularly through Asian-American and LGBTQ legal organizations.