ARCH Venture Partners
One of the most prolific and successful life sciences venture capital firms, known for company creation and backing transformative scientific innovations. Legendary track record including Illumina, Grail, Unity Biotechnology, and numerous breakthrough companies.
Website
https://www.archventure.comLocation
Chicago, USA
Founded
1986
AUM
$7B+
Investment Range
$5M - $100M
Portfolio Companies
6
Focus
biotech-focused
Fund Stages
seed, series-a, series-b, series-c, growth
Investment Thesis
ARCH Venture Partners invests at the intersection of technology and life sciences, with a focus on company creation around breakthrough scientific discoveries. They take a hands-on company-building approach, often co-founding companies with scientists and providing extensive operational support from inception through IPO.
Team
Partners / Managing Directors (Health & Bio Focus)
- Robert Nelsen - Co-Founder & Managing Director
- Keith Crandell - Co-Founder & Managing Director
- Kristina Burow - Managing Director
- Clinton Bybee - Managing Director
Other Key Team Members
- Steve Gillis, PhD - Managing Director
- Bob Tabb - Managing Director
Focus Areas
- Biotechnology
- Genomics
- Life Sciences
- Physical Sciences
- Drug Discovery
- Platform Technologies
- Company Creation
Notable Exits
- Illumina - IPO (2000, NASDAQ: ILMN) - founded by ARCH
- Grail - Acquired (2021, by Illumina for $8B)
- Juno Therapeutics - Acquired (2018, by Celgene for $9B)
- Kite Pharma - Acquired (2017, by Gilead for $11.9B)
- Unity Biotechnology - IPO (2018, NASDAQ: UBX)
- Alnylam Pharmaceuticals - IPO (2004, NASDAQ: ALNY)
Sources
Portfolio Companies
| Name | Location | Founded | Categories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mirador Therapeutics | San Diego, California, USA | 2023 | therapeuticsbiotech+3 |
| Illumina | San Diego, California, USA | 1998 | genomics-sequencingbiotech+3 |
| Alnylam Pharmaceuticals | Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA | 2002 | biotechrna-therapeutics+3 |
| bluebird bio | Somerville, Massachusetts, USA | 2010 | biotechgene-therapy+4 |
| Metsera | New York, New York, USA | 2022 | therapeuticsbiotech+5 |
| Prime Medicine | Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA | 2019 | biotechgene-editing+2 |