Ellen Pao , 45 , accused venture capital firm Kleiner , Perkins , Caulfield & Byers of discriminating against her other female colleagues in a $ 16m suit . The CEO of Reddit has told a court how she was pursued 'relentlessly ' by a male colleague at a major venture capital firm before being frozen out after breaking off the affair . Ellen Pao is seeking $ 16million after filing a sex discrimination suit against prestigious Silicon Valley business Kleiner , Perkins , Caulfield & Byers . The 45-year-old told jurors how she was excluded from an all-male dinner with Al Gore and felt 'very uncomfortable ' hearing male guests of the firm talking about pornography on a private jet . In her first day of testimony , the plaintiff testified that one male colleague was 'relentless ' in his pursuit of her and cut her out of email chains and meetings when she ended the affair . Pao is seeking damages from her former employer after claiming she was passed over for a promotion because she is a woman and then fired in 2012 after she complained . Kleiner Perkins has denied wrongdoing and says Pao did not get along with her colleagues and performed poorly after she became a junior partner around 2010 . In her testimony , Pao said she was given a poetry book by a senior partner in 2007 that featured drawings of naked women and poems on topics such as the longings of an older man for younger women . The partner also invited her to dinner one weekend while noting his wife would be out of town , she said . ' I thought it was strange , and it made me uncomfortable , ' she said . Pao acknowledged having the affair with a male colleague , but said she broke it off when she learned he had lied that his wife had left him . She said the colleague later retaliated by shutting her out of emails and meetings . 'He was relentless and eventually told me that his wife had left him , ' Pao told jurors , explaining why she got into the relationship with him . The 45-year-old told jurors how she was excluded from an all-male dinner at Vice President Al Gore 's apartment . When she raised the retaliation issue with management , a senior partner explained how he had met his wife at another company while he was married , and perhaps Pao could have the same outcome with her colleague , she testified . She said she repeatedly complained that the colleague was retaliating against her , but 'Kleiner Perkins continued to do nothing . ' Pao , who became interim CEO at Reddit after top executive Yishan Wong resigned , said it was humiliating not to be invited to an all-male dinner at Vice President Al Gore 's apartment and have to explain to executives she ran into that she would n't be attending . Pao lived in the same building as Gore . John Doerr ( left ) previously took the stand during the trial and discussed whether the firm discriminated against Pao , his former chief of staff . At one point , she said , she felt 'very uncomfortable ' about a conversation men were having about pornography aboard a private plane . The men were not Kleiner employees , but had been invited by a senior Kleiner manager , who Pao 's attorneys say was present but did nothing to stop the conversation . Kleiner Perkins ' attorneys have tried to portray Pao as a chronic complainer who demanded credit for work done by a team , clashed with her colleagues , and twisted facts and circumstances . Her attorneys tried Monday to dispute that portrayal and establish their client 's credibility and likeability with the jury . During her testimony , Pao said she had a disagreement with a female colleague , but they improved their communication after spending more time together outside the office , as Kleiner Perkins management had suggested . Steve Hirschfeld , an investigator hired by the firm to look into Pao 's bias complaint , testified Monday that she told him that her relationship with the male colleague was not consensual - a contention Hirschfeld did not find truthful . The civil trial is taking place in California Superior Court in San Francisco county . Pao became interim CEO at Reddit after top executive Yishan Wong resigned .
sue Pao is seeking $ 16million after filing a sex discrimination lawsuit . Case is against Silicon Valley company Kleiner , Perkins , Caulfield & Byers . Pao , 45 , took the case on Monday and testified against former employers . among jurors in the trial how one male colleague pursued her ' relentlessly ' But she was frozen out after breaking off the affair , the witness testified . Felt ' very uncomfortable ' hearing male guests of the firm talk about sex on a private jet . The high - profile suit is taking place in county of San Francisco , California .