Vertex Ventures HC

Vertex Ventures HC specializes in investing across multiple sectors of the healthcare industry, including biopharmaceuticals, medical devices, and digital health. Their portfolio encompasses companies at various stages of development, from early-stage enterprises exploring transformative technologies to established firms aiming for further growth. The firm emphasizes areas with significant unmet needs, striving to foster companies that enhance health and improve the quality of life. Vertex Ventures HC actively engages with its portfolio companies, collaborating with exceptional entrepreneurs, industry partners, and fellow investors to generate value. Their global team of investment professionals possesses extensive scientific, medical, and business expertise, which they apply to each investment decision.

Christine Brennan Ph.D

Managing Director

Sahil Chopra

Senior Associate

Shawn Fu

Vice President

Lori Hu

Managing Director

Yoh-Chie Lu

Venture Partner

Jeff Schlosser

Entrepreneur in Residence

48 past transactions

BlackThorn Therapeutics

Private Placement in 2019
BlackThorn Therapeutics operator of a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company intended to develop precision medicine for disorders of the central nervous system (CNS) based on advances in computational and clinical neuroscience. The company leverages a deep understanding of brain and behavior relationships that seeks to overcome historic challenges in drug discovery and development by targeting dysfunctional brain circuits. Its proprietary computational platform, the company seeks to identify novel targets, small molecule drug candidates and biologically-based patient subgroups most likely to respond to treatment.

Boundless Bio

Series C in 2023
Boundless Bio, Inc., biopharma company, develops therapies and medicines for the treatment of cancers. It offers therapeutics based on extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA) one of the drivers of the aggressive cancers, such as cancers characterized by high copy number amplification of oncogenes. The company was formerly known as Pretzel Therapeutics, Inc. Boundless Bio, Inc. was founded in 2018 and is based in LA Jolla, California.

Earlens

Series D in 2018
Earlens is a privately held medical technology company committed to transforming the hearing experience for millions of people who suffer from hearing loss.The company has developed the Earlens Contact Hearing Solution, which directly activates natural hearing, delivering the broadest bandwidth available today and superior sound quality. This revolutionary, non-surgical hearing solution uses a small lens to vibrate the eardrum, replicating the natural hearing process. The Earlens Contact Hearing Solution received FDA clearance in 2019 for a second generation of the Earlens technology. Unlike traditional hearing aids, which are in effect tiny speakers that simply turn up the volume on air conducted sound, the Earlens Contact Hearing Solution™ is the world’s first to deliver sound directly to the eardrum.

Ivantis

Series B in 2014
Ivantis, Inc. is a company focused on developing an innovative treatment for Glaucoma. It is their goal to develop a less invasive, more effective option for the 60+ million people worldwide suffering from Primary Open Angle Glaucoma. As they successfully address this initial goal, it is then there intention to focus on innovative development for the treatment of other debilitating diseases within ophthalmology.

Allay Therapeutics

Series C in 2021
Allay Therapeutics offers analgesic products for post-surgical pain management and recuperation. The company was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Menlo Park, California, United States.

Epirium Bio

Series A in 2019
Cardero Therapeutics is a start-up pharmaceutical company that is developing a novel class of therapeutics that induces the formation of new mitochondria (mitochondrial biogenesis) and enhances mitochondrial function in response to metabolic demand. Chronic depletion of mitochondria, the principal source of cellular ATP, has been directly linked to the progression of heart failure, sarcopenia, and neurodegeneration. Cardero Therapeutics is collaborating with numerous academic medical centers to advance novel drug candidates structurally based on a newly discovered human hormone that appears to fundamentally regulate mitochondrial density and function in all tissues. Cardero Therapeutics believes that enhancing myocyte bioenergetics will comprise an innovative therapeutic approach complementary to currently available cardiovascular drugs. The company’s clinical development focus is the lethal cardiomyopathy associated with orphan diseases characterized by loss of mitochondria in muscle and heart, resulting in heart failure that is poorly responsive to current medical interventions. Initial clinical trials are directed toward Duchenne muscular dystrophy and Friedreich’s ataxia.

Palleon Pharmaceuticals

Private Placement in 2020
Palleon Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biotechnology company, focuses on developing drugs that target glycan-mediated immune regulation to treat cancer and inflammatory diseases. It offers therapeutics to treat cancer and inflammatory diseases. The company also develops drugs for inflammatory diseases, such as autoimmunity and fibrosis. Palleon Pharmaceuticals Inc. was formerly known as Palleon Pharma Inc. and changed its name to Palleon Pharmaceuticals Inc. in February 2017. The company was founded in 2015 and is based in Waltham, Massachusetts.

Visterra

Series B in 2014
Visterra, Inc. engages in pharmaceutical drug research and development of therapeutic and diagnostic products for infectious diseases. It also provides structure-based design of therapeutics and diagnostic platforms, based on an understanding of glycobiology and glycochemistry. The company was formerly known as Parasol Therapeutics, Inc. and changed its name in May 2010. Visterra, Inc. was founded in 2007 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Elevation Oncology

Private Placement in 2020
Elevation Oncology, Inc., a biotechnology company, focuses on the development of precision medicines for patients with genomically defined cancers. It offers drugs that inhibit the specific alterations identified as drivers of cancer; and treats solid tumors with the NRG1 genomic fusion. Elevation Oncology, Inc. was formerly known as 14ner Oncology, Inc. The company was incorporated in 2019 and is based in New York, New York.

Palleon Pharmaceuticals

Series A in 2017
Palleon Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biotechnology company, focuses on developing drugs that target glycan-mediated immune regulation to treat cancer and inflammatory diseases. It offers therapeutics to treat cancer and inflammatory diseases. The company also develops drugs for inflammatory diseases, such as autoimmunity and fibrosis. Palleon Pharmaceuticals Inc. was formerly known as Palleon Pharma Inc. and changed its name to Palleon Pharmaceuticals Inc. in February 2017. The company was founded in 2015 and is based in Waltham, Massachusetts.

BlackThorn Therapeutics

Series B in 2019
BlackThorn Therapeutics operator of a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company intended to develop precision medicine for disorders of the central nervous system (CNS) based on advances in computational and clinical neuroscience. The company leverages a deep understanding of brain and behavior relationships that seeks to overcome historic challenges in drug discovery and development by targeting dysfunctional brain circuits. Its proprietary computational platform, the company seeks to identify novel targets, small molecule drug candidates and biologically-based patient subgroups most likely to respond to treatment.

Epirium

Private Placement in 2019
Epirium Bio, Inc. develops compounds for treatment of cardiovascular diseases and metabolic syndrome. Epirium Bio, Inc. was formerly known as Cardero Therapeutics, Inc. The company was incorporated in 2008 and is based in San Diego, California.

Visterra

Series C in 2017
Visterra, Inc. engages in pharmaceutical drug research and development of therapeutic and diagnostic products for infectious diseases. It also provides structure-based design of therapeutics and diagnostic platforms, based on an understanding of glycobiology and glycochemistry. The company was formerly known as Parasol Therapeutics, Inc. and changed its name in May 2010. Visterra, Inc. was founded in 2007 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Kona Medical

Debt Financing in 2015
Kona Medical is committed to alleviating the suffering and health risks associated with drug-resistant hypertension with a more effective, less invasive approach to renal artery denervation. The company was founded in 2009 by Michael Gertner, MD, with seed financing from Essex Woodlands. Kona was formed on the basis of combining Dr. Gertner’s inventions in the field with the assets of Therus Corporation, a predecessor company in the field of therapeutic focused ultrasound.

Nuvaira

Series E in 2019
Nuvaira, Inc. develops medical devices to treat obstructive lung diseases. It offers Lung Denervation System, a novel, catheter-based system designed to treat airway nerve hyperactivity and to address chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases by treating overactive airway nerves during a minimally invasive procedure that targets the parasympathetic innervation of the lungs. Nuvaira, Inc. was formerly known as Holaira, Inc. and changed its name to Nuvaira, Inc. in June 2017. The company was incorporated in 2008 and is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Twentyeight-Seven, Inc.

Private Placement in 2018
Twentyeight-Seven Therapeutics is a developer of microRNAs designed to target regulatory proteins.The company's modulating RNA which are short non-coding RNAs that inhibit target gene expression by suppressing mRNA translation and promoting mRNA decay and develop small molecules that can modulate levels of miRNAs by targeting proteins that interact with these miRNAs, enabling users to target miRNAs are directly involved in cancer initiation, progression, and metastasis.

Epirium

Series A in 2019
Epirium Bio, Inc. develops compounds for treatment of cardiovascular diseases and metabolic syndrome. Epirium Bio, Inc. was formerly known as Cardero Therapeutics, Inc. The company was incorporated in 2008 and is based in San Diego, California.

Eyebiotech

Series A in 2023
Eyebiotech is a privately held ophthalmology biotechnology company working to deliver a new generation of therapies for eye diseases.

Sonoma BioTherapeutics

Series B in 2021
Sonoma Biotherapeutics is a company invloved the development of adoptive Treg therapies cell for autoimmune and degenerative diseases. Using next generation genome editing and target-specific cell therapy, Sonoma is focused on developing its best-in-class platform across the entire spectrum of Treg cell therapeutic capabilities. Founded by pioneers in Treg biology and cell therapy, the company brings together leading expertise and proprietary methodologies for the discovery and development of disease modifying and curative therapies.

Earlens

Series C in 2017
Earlens is a privately held medical technology company committed to transforming the hearing experience for millions of people who suffer from hearing loss.The company has developed the Earlens Contact Hearing Solution, which directly activates natural hearing, delivering the broadest bandwidth available today and superior sound quality. This revolutionary, non-surgical hearing solution uses a small lens to vibrate the eardrum, replicating the natural hearing process. The Earlens Contact Hearing Solution received FDA clearance in 2019 for a second generation of the Earlens technology. Unlike traditional hearing aids, which are in effect tiny speakers that simply turn up the volume on air conducted sound, the Earlens Contact Hearing Solution™ is the world’s first to deliver sound directly to the eardrum.

Obsidian Therapeutics

Series B in 2021
Obsidian Therapeutics is a developer of a next-generation cell and gene therapies created to extend adoptive immunotherapy to every patient with cancer.The company's next-generation cell and gene therapies with pharmacologic operating systems provide exquisite control of protein activity in cells and create adoptive cell therapies with new functions that are under control of the treating physician using simple, safe, orally-active, marketed drugs, enabling patients to improve on the current generation of cell therapies.

Obsidian Therapeutics

Series A in 2017
Obsidian Therapeutics is a developer of a next-generation cell and gene therapies created to extend adoptive immunotherapy to every patient with cancer.The company's next-generation cell and gene therapies with pharmacologic operating systems provide exquisite control of protein activity in cells and create adoptive cell therapies with new functions that are under control of the treating physician using simple, safe, orally-active, marketed drugs, enabling patients to improve on the current generation of cell therapies.

Nuvaira

Series D in 2014
Nuvaira, Inc. develops medical devices to treat obstructive lung diseases. It offers Lung Denervation System, a novel, catheter-based system designed to treat airway nerve hyperactivity and to address chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases by treating overactive airway nerves during a minimally invasive procedure that targets the parasympathetic innervation of the lungs. Nuvaira, Inc. was formerly known as Holaira, Inc. and changed its name to Nuvaira, Inc. in June 2017. The company was incorporated in 2008 and is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Twentyeight-Seven, Inc.

Series A in 2019
Twentyeight-Seven Therapeutics is a developer of microRNAs designed to target regulatory proteins.The company's modulating RNA which are short non-coding RNAs that inhibit target gene expression by suppressing mRNA translation and promoting mRNA decay and develop small molecules that can modulate levels of miRNAs by targeting proteins that interact with these miRNAs, enabling users to target miRNAs are directly involved in cancer initiation, progression, and metastasis.

NeuSpera Medical

Series C in 2021
NeuSpera Medical Inc. develops and manufactures ultra-miniaturized implantable devices for neuromodulation therapy. Its Neuspera Mid-Field Powering technology uses the body as a natural waveguide to direct energy. NeuSpera Medical Inc. was formerly known as Vivonda Medical Incorporated. The company was incorporated in 2013 and is based in San Jose, California.

Elevation Oncology

Series B in 2020
Elevation Oncology, Inc., a biotechnology company, focuses on the development of precision medicines for patients with genomically defined cancers. It offers drugs that inhibit the specific alterations identified as drivers of cancer; and treats solid tumors with the NRG1 genomic fusion. Elevation Oncology, Inc. was formerly known as 14ner Oncology, Inc. The company was incorporated in 2019 and is based in New York, New York.

Bicycle Therapeutics

Series B in 2018
Bicycle Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a novel class of medicines which are referred to as Bicycles. The Bicycles are synthetic short peptides constrained to form two loops which stabilize their structural geometry. Its initial internal programs are focused on oncology indications with high unmet medical need. The company's product candidate, BT1718, is a Bicycle Toxin Conjugate, or BTC.

Visterra

Series C in 2016
Visterra, Inc. engages in pharmaceutical drug research and development of therapeutic and diagnostic products for infectious diseases. It also provides structure-based design of therapeutics and diagnostic platforms, based on an understanding of glycobiology and glycochemistry. The company was formerly known as Parasol Therapeutics, Inc. and changed its name in May 2010. Visterra, Inc. was founded in 2007 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Innoventure

Series A in 2016
Innoventure is a startup medical device accelerator which brings US/EU medtech assets to China and get through the local regulatory path to develop further value.

Twentyeight-Seven, Inc.

Series A in 2018
Twentyeight-Seven Therapeutics is a developer of microRNAs designed to target regulatory proteins.The company's modulating RNA which are short non-coding RNAs that inhibit target gene expression by suppressing mRNA translation and promoting mRNA decay and develop small molecules that can modulate levels of miRNAs by targeting proteins that interact with these miRNAs, enabling users to target miRNAs are directly involved in cancer initiation, progression, and metastasis.

SENSIMED

Series C in 2013
Sensimed designs, develops, and commercializes integrated micro-systems for medical devices. The company’s product portfolio includes SENSIMED Triggerfish, a product that offers an automated recoding of continuous ocular dimensional change over 24 hours. Sensimed is now focused on expanding the knowledge of how this individual data can best be used in the clinical setting to deliver customized treatment. The 24 hour profiles are being centralized on a registry together with patient and treatment information. The data is being analyzed and modeled on an ongoing basis in an attempt to identifying pathological patterns that can be used to differentiate indication, personalize treatment and assess efficacy following treatment. Sensimed was founded by Matteo Leonardi and Sacha Cerboni in August 2003 and is based in Lausanne, Switzerland.

EarLens Corporation

Private Placement in 2018
EarLens Corporation develops hearing solutions for hearing impaired patients. It offers Earlens Hearing Aid, a hearing device that uses light to transmit sound. The company was founded in 2005 and is based in Menlo Park, California.

Earlens

Series C in 2016
Earlens is a privately held medical technology company committed to transforming the hearing experience for millions of people who suffer from hearing loss.The company has developed the Earlens Contact Hearing Solution, which directly activates natural hearing, delivering the broadest bandwidth available today and superior sound quality. This revolutionary, non-surgical hearing solution uses a small lens to vibrate the eardrum, replicating the natural hearing process. The Earlens Contact Hearing Solution received FDA clearance in 2019 for a second generation of the Earlens technology. Unlike traditional hearing aids, which are in effect tiny speakers that simply turn up the volume on air conducted sound, the Earlens Contact Hearing Solution™ is the world’s first to deliver sound directly to the eardrum.

Palleon Pharmaceuticals

Series B in 2020
Palleon Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biotechnology company, focuses on developing drugs that target glycan-mediated immune regulation to treat cancer and inflammatory diseases. It offers therapeutics to treat cancer and inflammatory diseases. The company also develops drugs for inflammatory diseases, such as autoimmunity and fibrosis. Palleon Pharmaceuticals Inc. was formerly known as Palleon Pharma Inc. and changed its name to Palleon Pharmaceuticals Inc. in February 2017. The company was founded in 2015 and is based in Waltham, Massachusetts.

Elevation Oncology

Private Placement in 2020
Elevation Oncology, Inc., a biotechnology company, focuses on the development of precision medicines for patients with genomically defined cancers. It offers drugs that inhibit the specific alterations identified as drivers of cancer; and treats solid tumors with the NRG1 genomic fusion. Elevation Oncology, Inc. was formerly known as 14ner Oncology, Inc. The company was incorporated in 2019 and is based in New York, New York.

Twelve

Series C in 2015
Twelve manufactures medical devices. It was formerly known as Foundry Newco XII, Inc. The company was incorporated in 2009 and is based in Menlo Park, California.

Elevation Oncology

Series A in 2020
Elevation Oncology, Inc., a biotechnology company, focuses on the development of precision medicines for patients with genomically defined cancers. It offers drugs that inhibit the specific alterations identified as drivers of cancer; and treats solid tumors with the NRG1 genomic fusion. Elevation Oncology, Inc. was formerly known as 14ner Oncology, Inc. The company was incorporated in 2019 and is based in New York, New York.

Moximed

Series C in 2017
Moximed, Inc. develops a joint preserving option for patients with knee osteoarthritis. The company offers Atlas System, an implantable joint unloader that works like a shock absorber for a patient with medial compartment knee osteoarthritis, or suffering from pain on the medial (inner) side of the knee, or desire to maintain high activity or productivity levels. It serves patients and medical professionals worldwide. Moximed, Inc. was formerly known as ExploraMed NC4, Inc. The company was incorporated in 2006 and is based in Hayward, California.

Moximed

Series B in 2015
Moximed, Inc. develops a joint preserving option for patients with knee osteoarthritis. The company offers Atlas System, an implantable joint unloader that works like a shock absorber for a patient with medial compartment knee osteoarthritis, or suffering from pain on the medial (inner) side of the knee, or desire to maintain high activity or productivity levels. It serves patients and medical professionals worldwide. Moximed, Inc. was formerly known as ExploraMed NC4, Inc. The company was incorporated in 2006 and is based in Hayward, California.

Matchpoint Therapeutics

Series A in 2022
Matchpoint is a biotechnology company harnessing the power of covalency to discover precision covalent medicines to transform the treatment of immune diseases and other serious illnesses. The company's proprietary Advanced Covalent Exploration (ACE) platform integrates advanced chemoproteomics, machine learning, and covalent chemistry library evolution. Matchpoint has an emerging pipeline of novel covalent medicines, initially focused on immunology.

Moximed

Series C in 2017
Moximed, Inc. develops a joint preserving option for patients with knee osteoarthritis. The company offers Atlas System, an implantable joint unloader that works like a shock absorber for a patient with medial compartment knee osteoarthritis, or suffering from pain on the medial (inner) side of the knee, or desire to maintain high activity or productivity levels. It serves patients and medical professionals worldwide. Moximed, Inc. was formerly known as ExploraMed NC4, Inc. The company was incorporated in 2006 and is based in Hayward, California.

NeuSpera Medical

Series D in 2024
NeuSpera Medical Inc. develops and manufactures ultra-miniaturized implantable devices for neuromodulation therapy. Its Neuspera Mid-Field Powering technology uses the body as a natural waveguide to direct energy. NeuSpera Medical Inc. was formerly known as Vivonda Medical Incorporated. The company was incorporated in 2013 and is based in San Jose, California.