Pharmaceutical venture capital reached new heights in 2025, with phase 2 data driving investment decisions more than ever.
The pharma VC landscape has transformed. Nearly 1,000 life science VCs now actively invest, up from 450 a decade ago. Corporate venture arms compete aggressively with traditional funds.
Cancer therapeutics captured 30% of deals. Neurology and CNS gained momentum. Gene therapy commands premium valuations.
This guide lists 35+ active pharmaceutical investors. Their therapeutic focus, typical check sizes, and what drives their decisions.
Track your pharma pitch deck engagement
Stop attaching PDFs to emails. They disappear. No tracking. No insights.
Clinical data validated. Phase 2 approaching. Yet investors don't respond.
Ellty solves this. Track exactly how pharma VCs engage with your deck. See which data slides get studied. Know when shared with investment committee.
Real engagement data beats blind follow-ups.
Top 35 pharmaceutical investors
1. Pfizer Ventures
$900M capital commitment for pharma innovation.
Investment focus: Early-stage opportunities, 80% therapeutics/20% platforms
Investment range: Seed to late stage, US-focused primarily
Notable investments: Capstan Therapeutics, ReCode Therapeutics, Artios Pharma
Contact: pfizer.com/partners/venture-investments
2. Novo Ventures
Leading life sciences investor backed by Novo Holdings.
Investment focus: Biotech, pharmaceuticals, medtech across all stages
Investment range: $5M-$100M+, global reach
Notable investments: Reunion Neuroscience ($103M co-lead), multiple unicorns
Contact: novoventures.com
3. Roche Venture Fund
Strategic investor in breakthrough therapeutics.
Investment focus: Small molecules, diagnostics, mAbs, microbiome
Investment range: Series A+, strategic partnerships
Notable investments: Tioma Therapeutics, multiple oncology platforms
Contact: roche.com/partnering/venture-fund
4. SR One (GSK)
GSK's venture arm investing in transformative medicines.
Investment focus: Small molecules, cell & gene therapy, infectious disease
Investment range: Early to late stage
Notable investments: Tioma, Auxogyn, emerging biotech leaders
Contact: srone.com
5. Johnson & Johnson Innovation - JJDC
Strategic investor across pharmaceuticals and medtech.
Investment focus: Oncology, immunology, neuroscience, cardiovascular
Investment range: Seed to late stage, global
Notable investments: Celladon, Phasebio, breakthrough therapeutics
Contact: jnjinnovation.com
6. Amgen Ventures
Corporate venture arm of biotech giant Amgen.
Investment focus: Novel therapeutics, platform technologies
Investment range: Early to growth stage
Notable investments: Sutro Biopharma, innovative drug developers
Contact: amgenventures.com
7. Lilly Ventures
Eli Lilly's strategic venture capital arm.
Investment focus: Small molecules, protein therapeutics, CNS, metabolic
Investment range: Series A to late stage
Notable investments: Sutro Biopharma, inflammation-focused companies
Contact: lillyventures.com
8. M Ventures (Merck KGaA)
€750M+ fund for healthcare innovation.
Investment focus: Biopharma, life science tools, digital health
Investment range: €1M-€15M initial, up to €50M lifetime
Notable investments: LabGenius ($44M lead), Theolytics, DISCO Pharmaceuticals
Contact: m-ventures.com
9. Novartis Venture Fund
Strategic investor diversifying beyond small molecules.
Investment focus: Cell & gene therapy, oncology, immunology
Investment range: Early to late stage
Notable investments: Diverse portfolio across modalities
Contact: nvfund.com
10. Sanofi Ventures
Global biopharmaceutical company's venture arm.
Investment focus: Innovative therapeutics, rare diseases, vaccines
Investment range: €3M-€10M initial
Notable investments: Strategic biotech partnerships
Contact: sanofiventures.com
11. Takeda Ventures
Strategic investor in breakthrough therapies.
Investment focus: Oncology, gastroenterology, neuroscience, rare diseases
Investment range: Series A+, strategic partnerships
Notable investments: Emerging therapeutic platforms
Contact: takedaventures.com
12. Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund
€250M fund for innovative therapeutics.
Investment focus: Cell therapies, novel mAbs, drug discovery platforms
Investment range: €1M-€15M initial investment
Notable investments: Oncology and cardiovascular companies
Contact: boehringer-ingelheim-venture-fund.com
13. Astellas Venture Management
15+ years investing in therapeutic innovation.
Investment focus: Gene therapy, cell engineering, novel modalities
Investment range: Seed to Series B
Notable investments: Orna Therapeutics, Carbon Biosciences, NeoPhore
Contact: astellas.com/en/science/astellas-venture-management
14. Regeneron Ventures
$500M commitment launched in 2024.
Investment focus: Promising biotech innovations, genetic medicines
Investment range: Early to late stage
Notable investments: Building portfolio of breakthrough companies
Contact: regeneron.com/ventures
15. AbbVie Ventures
Strategic investor in transformative therapies.
Investment focus: Immunology, oncology, neuroscience
Investment range: Early to late stage
Notable investments: DISCO Pharmaceuticals (co-investor)
Contact: abbvie.com/partnering/ventures
16. OrbiMed
Leading healthcare investment firm.
Investment focus: Biopharmaceuticals across all stages
Investment range: $5M-$200M+
Notable investments: CHARM Therapeutics, Minghui Pharmaceutical
Contact: orbimed.com
17. Atlas Venture
Building biotech companies from inception.
Investment focus: Company creation, drug discovery
Investment range: Seed to Series B, hands-on approach
Notable investments: Multiple biotech unicorns
Contact: atlasventure.com
18. Third Rock Ventures
Company builders in life sciences.
Investment focus: Transformative companies, novel platforms
Investment range: Company creation to growth
Notable investments: Revolutionary therapeutic companies
Contact: thirdrockventures.com
19. Flagship Pioneering
Innovation enterprise creating breakthrough companies.
Investment focus: Platform companies, novel modalities
Investment range: Company creation to late stage
Notable investments: Moderna, multiple platform companies
Contact: flagshippioneering.com
20. 5AM Ventures
Early-stage life sciences investor.
Investment focus: Innovative therapeutics, breakthrough science
Investment range: Seed to Series B
Notable investments: Successful drug developers
Contact: 5amventures.com
21. Versant Ventures
Healthcare investment firm building companies.
Investment focus: Drug discovery, novel platforms
Investment range: Company creation to growth
Notable investments: Multiple successful biotechs
Contact: versantventures.com
22. MPM Capital
Life sciences investment leader.
Investment focus: Transformative medicines
Investment range: Early to late stage
Notable investments: Epizyme, numerous successes
Contact: mpmcapital.com
23. RA Capital Management
Crossover investor in drug development.
Investment focus: Clinical-stage therapeutics
Investment range: Private and public investments
Notable investments: Leading biotech companies
Contact: racap.com
24. Arch Venture Partners
Early-stage technology and life sciences.
Investment focus: Breakthrough therapeutics
Investment range: Seed to late stage
Notable investments: Revolutionary platforms
Contact: archventure.com
25. Polaris Partners
Healthcare-focused venture capital.
Investment focus: Biopharmaceuticals, medtech
Investment range: Early to growth stage
Notable investments: Successful drug developers
Contact: polarispartners.com
26. Omega Funds
Life sciences venture capital.
Investment focus: Innovative therapeutics
Investment range: Early to late stage
Notable investments: Aviceda Therapeutics ($207M co-lead)
Contact: omegafunds.com
27. Longitude Capital
Healthcare growth investor.
Investment focus: Biopharmaceuticals, drug development
Investment range: Growth equity
Notable investments: Late-stage therapeutics
Contact: longitudecapital.com
28. Deerfield Management
Healthcare investment firm.
Investment focus: All stages of drug development
Investment range: $10M-$200M+
Notable investments: Broad therapeutic portfolio
Contact: deerfield.com
29. Venrock
Early-stage healthcare investor.
Investment focus: Breakthrough therapeutics
Investment range: Seed to Series B
Notable investments: Innovative drug platforms
Contact: venrock.com
30. NEA
Global venture capital firm.
Investment focus: Life sciences, therapeutics
Investment range: Early to late stage
Notable investments: CHARM Therapeutics lead investor
Contact: nea.com
31. Sofinnova Partners
European life sciences investor.
Investment focus: Biopharmaceuticals, industrial biotech
Investment range: Early to late stage
Notable investments: European biotech leaders
Contact: sofinnovapartners.com
32. TCGX
Life sciences growth investor.
Investment focus: Clinical-stage companies
Investment range: Series B+
Notable investments: Aviceda co-lead
Contact: tcgx.com
33. Jeito Capital
Global healthcare investor.
Investment focus: Transformative therapies
Investment range: Growth stage, $50M+
Notable investments: Late-stage biotechs
Contact: jeito.life
34. Qiming Venture Partners
China-focused healthcare investor.
Investment focus: Innovative therapeutics for Asia
Investment range: Early to late stage
Notable investments: Minghui Pharmaceutical
Contact: qimingvc.com
35. BioTrack Capital
Asia-Pacific pharma investor.
Investment focus: Clinical-stage therapeutics
Investment range: Series B+
Notable investments: Asian pharma companies
Contact: biotrackcapital.com
What pharmaceutical investors want to see
Phase 2 readiness
VCs prioritize companies approaching phase 2:
- Clear efficacy signals from phase 1
- Defined patient population
- Regulatory pathway mapped
- CMC under control
Platform potential
Single assets struggle. Show pipeline:
- Multiple programs from same platform
- Clear second and third indications
- IP protection beyond lead asset
- Technology moat
Strategic partnerships
Big pharma validation matters:
- Previous collaboration success
- Clear path to acquisition
- Complementary to pharma pipelines
- Global rights structure
Alternative pharma funding sources
Government programs
NIH SBIR/STTR: Up to $3M for drug development
BARDA: Funding for antimicrobials, pandemic prep
DoD programs: Military-relevant therapeutics
State initiatives: Texas Emerging Tech Fund, California programs
Disease foundations
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation: Funds CF therapeutics
JDRF: Type 1 diabetes drug development
Michael J. Fox Foundation: Parkinson's treatments
Non-dilutive options
Gates Foundation: Global health indications
Wellcome Trust: Infectious disease focus
EU Horizon: European drug developers
Recent successes and failures
Winners
Mirador Therapeutics: $400M for precision immunology. Right data, right time.
CRISPR companies: Gene editing platforms attract mega-rounds.
GLP-1 developers: Obesity gold rush continues.
Why pharma startups fail
Me-too approach in crowded indication. No differentiation.
Running out of cash before phase 2. Poor capital planning.
CMC issues kill programs. Manufacturing matters.
Platform hype without clinical validation. Data wins.
How Ellty helps pharma startups
Pharma investors study clinical data slides 3x longer than financials. They share mechanism slides with scientific advisors. Investment committees revisit efficacy data.
Email attachments show you none of this.
Ellty tracks everything:
- Which VCs spend time on your phase 2 projections
- When scientific teams review your MOA
- How many times partners revisit key data
Real pharma startups report 4x higher response rates with trackable decks.
FAQs
Q: How much runway for phase 1?
36 months minimum. Phase 2 readout critical.
Q: Virtual or integrated biotech?
Virtual until IND. Then build selectively.
Q: Which indications get funded?
Oncology and immunology dominate. CNS growing. Rare diseases if clear path.
Q: Single asset or platform?
Platform preferred. Multiple shots on goal.
Q: When to engage pharma CVCs?
Post-IND ideal. Need human data for best terms.
