Acumen America
40 Worth Street, Suite 303, New York, NY, 10013, United States
Overview
Founded in 2016 and based in San Francisco, Acumen America is the US arm of the non-profit global venture capital investment firm Acumen. Acumen America is the leading early-stage (pre-seed and seed) venture capital firm investing in innovative solutions to three systemic symptoms of poverty in America: unequal workforce development, health inequities and financial instability. We believe that lasting change requires big, new ideas designed to scale.
- Total investments
- 11
- Lead investments
- 2
- Investments · 12mo
- 5
- Active investors
- 2
Sector focus
- Financial Services
- FinTech
- Health Care
- Home Health Care
- Impact Investing
- Sharing Economy
- Training
Investment portfolio
- Flourish Health
Participated · Series A · Jul 2026
Flourish Health delivers intensive in-home mental health care for children and young adults through psychiatrist-led Care Pods composed of a child and adolescent psychiatrist, a licensed therapist, a patient guide, and a family guide. The company built a proprietary technology platform that integrates patient touchpoints, EMR and prescribing capabilities, workflow automation, team collaboration, and AI to support engagement and coordination while clinicians make clinical decisions. Flourish specializes in three clinical populations: children with externalizing behaviors, young people with multiple suicide attempts or suicide-related hospitalizations, and patients with complex needs and family situations often turned away by other clinics. Studies run with multiple major health plans report large reductions in hospitalization (70–96%), residential treatment (69–90%), and sustained decreases in higher levels of care post-discharge (80–95%). Flourish commits to beginning care within one week of referral, reports 92% month-over-month retention during its 12-month programs, and says those programs cost less than one month of inpatient treatment.
- Tugboat
Participated · Seed · Jun 2026
Tugboat provides a consumer insurance platform that uses a multi-pass agentic AI pipeline to analyze carrier correspondence, generate denial disputes, and deliver expert-calibrated guidance to homeowners during the claims process. The company offers a free disaster-response program alongside its paid offerings. Tugboat intends to expand its product into a partner-ready platform with API integrations to major property management systems and embed distribution via multifamily owners, lenders, and restoration networks. The business was founded in 2026 by insurance adjusters Cameron Mooney and Aaron Mooney and is based in Los Angeles. The recent $3M seed raise led by ResilienceVC will fund product integration work, B2B distribution acceleration, and continued support of its disaster-response program.
- Zócalo Health
Participated · Series A · Apr 2026
Zócalo Health organizes care around community health workers (promotoras de salud) embedded in communities and integrates those teams with primary care providers, behavioral health clinicians, and care coordinators to drive sustained engagement for high-need members. Its model emphasizes proactive outreach, frequent touchpoints, and trust-based relationships to improve retention, reduce avoidable utilization, and address medical, behavioral, and social needs together. The company pairs its community workforce with a technology platform that leverages AI to extend frontline capacity, help members navigate coverage and eligibility, and support care coordination. Zócalo partners with Medicaid managed care organizations, including Anthem Blue Cross and Health Net, and aligns with state initiatives such as CalAIM in California. Operationally, the company reported roughly 4x year-over-year revenue growth and expanded from two health plan partnerships in 2024 to more than a dozen in 2025, while maintaining high member retention and patient satisfaction that exceed industry benchmarks. Zócalo plans to use new capital to scale geographically and grow its community-based teams. The company is based in Kenmore, Wash.
- Malama Health
Led · Seed · Mar 2026
Malama Health delivers continuous doula-led maternal care by connecting doula networks, clinical oversight, remote monitoring, and reporting infrastructure within Medicaid markets. The company employs Doula-Care Navigators who provide in-person support, attend births, conduct home visits, and monitor health indicators throughout the postpartum year, escalating clinical risks to medical professionals when needed. Malama incorporates bilingual support, accessible technology and educational content designed at a fifth-grade literacy level, and operates a CDC-certified Diabetes Prevention Program for postpartum risk management. The company reports data from more than 2,500 women showing improvements including reduced NICU admissions, lower C-section rates, and fewer preterm births, and a randomized controlled trial at Tufts found a 40% reduction in postpartum diabetes versus standard care. Malama works with Medicaid managed care plans and health systems including Stanford Health Care, UCSF Health, and UCLA Health, and maintains relationships with more than 600 clinics and hospitals nationwide. The company plans to scale its Doula-Care Navigator workforce and expand into additional states while deepening integrations with health plans and healthcare systems that serve Medicaid populations.
- Pear Suite
Participated · Series A · Oct 2025
Founded in 2021, Pear Suite offers an AI-enabled software platform and wrap-around services that equip community health workers (CHWs), community-based organizations, and health plans with tools for care coordination, reimbursement, and data insights. The product lets CHWs use their lived experience to close care gaps and address social determinants of health while unlocking sustainable Medicaid and Medicare payments. Beyond software, Pear Suite is building a national provider network that already connects more than 300 provider organizations with over 25 health plans. The company has empowered 2,500+ CHWs, promotores, doulas, and other frontline workers to deliver trust-based interventions. With its new funding, management plans to increase the size of this provider network tenfold, deepen Medicaid relationships, and expand aggressively into Medicare contracts. The ultimate goal is to cement CHWs as a foundational part of U.S. healthcare by supplying the contracting, clinical, and claims infrastructure they need to thrive. While the company has not disclosed revenue figures, it recently strengthened its balance sheet with a $7.6 million Series A round.