The Venture Codex

Participated · Series B · Jan 2026

Apella Technology has built an "ambient video intelligence" layer for procedural environments, beginning with the operating room. Its platform uses computer vision and machine learning to automatically detect and label up to 14 surgical case events and then write that data directly into the electronic health record, cutting manual documentation and improving situational awareness. Hospitals deploying Apella report an average 5 % rise in surgical volume as better coordination unlocks capacity and reduces delays. Houston Methodist, a nine-hospital system, expanded from a 36-room pilot to more than 200 operating rooms, illustrating enterprise-scale adoption. The company has also extended its technology to interventional radiology, cardiology and endoscopy suites for broader operational visibility. A new module, Horizon, delivers more accurate case-duration estimates and utilization predictions to optimize scheduling before each day begins. Apella positions itself within the growing "ambient AI" trend in healthcare and was named to Fast Company’s 2025 Most Innovative Companies list.

Participated · Series B · Sep 2024

Mendaera is developing a handheld interventional platform that integrates robotics, AI, real-time imaging, and virtual connectivity to enable needle-based interventions such as biopsies, organ and vascular access, and pain management. The company positions its system to make advanced technologies accessible across specialties and sites of service to address provider shortages and improve care delivery for high-volume procedures. Mendaera says its platform is designed to digitize clinical judgment and technical expertise and to drive systemwide efficiencies across routine procedural care. The company has acquired the telepresence technology of Avail Medsystems and announced a 2023 commercial agreement with Butterfly Network to expand its portfolio and go-to-market capabilities. Mendaera will use new funding to complete development of its robotic technology, accelerate its AI and connectivity capabilities, and begin clinical introduction of its platform. Mendaera is based in Silicon Valley/San Mateo, Calif., and its robotic system has not been cleared by the FDA for sale in the United States. Mendaera develops a collaborative robotic platform that integrates real-time imaging, robotics, and artificial intelligence to enable precise and consistent minimally invasive interventions. The company is building an ecosystem of imaging and instrumentation partners to speed delivery of care. Mendaera has completed research and design of its collaborative robotic system and is focused on completing development and obtaining FDA clearance. Led by CEO Josh DeFonzo, the company plans to scale toward product launch and volume manufacturing. Financially, Mendaera raised $24M in a Series A to accelerate organizational growth and manufacturing ramp for its product launch.

Participated · Equity · Aug 2023

COMPASS Pathways develops COMP360, a proprietary synthetic psilocybin formulation delivered with psychological support to treat individuals who do not respond to current therapies. The company has earned FDA Breakthrough Therapy status and the UK ILAP designation for COMP360 in treatment‑resistant depression (TRD). It completed a phase 2b study showing significant symptom improvement with a 25mg dose and has launched the largest‑ever randomized, controlled, double‑blind phase 3 programme for TRD. COMPASS is also running phase 2 trials in PTSD and anorexia nervosa and investing in digital technology to support its therapy. The company announced a large private financing to support its clinical programmes, commercial planning and research through roughly late 2025. Compass Pathways is a London-based mental health care company focused on developing psilocybin therapy for treatment-resistant depression. Its lead program is a large-scale psilocybin therapy clinical trial being conducted at 20 sites across nine countries in Europe and North America. The company received FDA Breakthrough Therapy designation for its psilocybin therapy program in 2018. Compass intends to use the Series B proceeds to expand its lead program, support research into additional indications for psilocybin therapy, advance its preclinical pipeline, develop digital technologies, and establish new academic and clinical research partnerships. Leadership includes CEO and co-founder George Goldsmith and President, Chief Business Officer and co-founder Lars Wilde.

Participated · Series C · May 2023

Boundless Bio is a clinical‑stage, next‑generation precision oncology company focused on developing therapeutics directed against extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA) found in oncogene‑amplified cancers. Its lead program, BBI-355, is an orally available, potent, and selective CHK1 inhibitor identified via the company’s Spyglass research platform and designed to be synthetically lethal to ecDNA‑bearing cancer cells. BBI-355 is being evaluated in the ongoing Phase 1/2 POTENTIATE trial (NCT05827614) as a single agent and in combination with select therapies to determine safety, maximum tolerated dose, and recommended Phase 2 dose. The company is also advancing a preclinical pipeline of differentiated ecDNA‑directed therapy candidates. Boundless Bio is developing a proprietary ecDNA diagnostic clinical trial assay called ECHO (ecDNA Harboring Oncogenes) in partnership with SOPHiA GENETICS to support patient selection and development. The company will use new capital to fund clinical development, preclinical programs, and diagnostic assay advancement. Boundless Bio is a next-generation precision oncology company developing therapeutics directed against extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA) in aggressive cancers. Its Spyglass™ platform combines proprietary ecDNA-driven and pair-matched tumor models with imaging and molecular analytical tools to interrogate ecDNA biology and discover targets that are synthetically lethal in ecDNA-driven tumors. From Spyglass, the company has discovered and validated three ecDNA-essential targets and has initiated drug discovery programs against each. Boundless is also developing the ECHO™ companion diagnostic to identify patients with ecDNA-driven tumors. The company plans to advance multiple ecDNA-directed therapeutic programs into the clinic and expand its pipeline of novel cancer therapies targeting ecDNA. Headquartered in San Diego and launched in 2019, Boundless says it will use the proceeds of its Series B to fund these clinical and pipeline activities. Boundless Bio is focused on interrogating and targeting extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA) to create a new class of cancer medicines for tumors with high copy-number, focal gene amplifications. The company has developed technology to identify and characterize ecDNA-driven tumors and is using those tools to discover and validate novel cancer targets. Its initial programs are directed at high copy-number, focal gene amplification solid tumors, where ecDNA are believed to be primary drivers of growth, resistance, and recurrence. Leadership includes CEO Zachary Hornby and Chairman Jonathan Lim, and the scientific founders feature Paul Mischel and other academic leaders in cancer genomics and computational biology. Boundless Bio intends to exploit ecDNA’s unique vulnerabilities to develop targeted, proprietary therapies that counteract ecDNA-driven treatment evasion. The company completed a $46.4 million Series A financing to advance these efforts.

Participated · Series C · Nov 2022

Escient Pharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage company focused on developing first-in-class small-molecule antagonists against Mas-related G protein-coupled receptors (MRGPRs). Its pipeline includes two lead candidates: EP262, an MRGPRX2 antagonist, and EP547, an MRGPRX4 antagonist. The company plans clinical proof-of-concept studies for EP262 in chronic spontaneous urticaria, chronic inducible urticaria and atopic dermatitis, and for EP547 in cholestatic pruritus. Escient aims to develop oral medicines that block MRGPRX2 and MRGPRX4 activation to treat neurosensory-inflammatory diseases without the serious side effects seen with other approaches. The company highlights the role of MRGPRs in neuro-immune overactivation at barrier tissues such as skin, airways and the GI tract. Escient is based in San Diego and is led by an experienced management and scientific team. Escient Pharmaceuticals is advancing first-in-class Mas-related G Protein-Coupled Receptor (MRGPR)-targeted drugs, with a lead program targeting MRGPRX4. The company discovered EP547 based on metabolite-driven activation of the MRGPRX4 itch receptor and has initiated a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 1/1b trial to evaluate safety, tolerability, and PK. Escient is developing a portfolio of MRGPR-focused therapeutics, including a second program targeting mast cell–based MRGPRX2 that the company anticipates will address indications across multiple therapeutic areas. Management says the goal is to build a pipeline of once-daily, oral therapeutics to treat debilitating diseases through novel, mechanism-based approaches. The company is led by an experienced GPCR drug-discovery team and is funded by top-tier life-science investors. Escient focuses on developing first‑in‑class therapeutics that target specific orphan GPCRs, including the novel Mrgpr family. The company will initially pursue therapies for neuro‑immuno‑inflammatory and autoreactive diseases. Escient launched with a $40 million Series A financing to build its team, advance its pipeline, and progress initial preclinical programs toward clinical study. Leadership includes co‑founders Alain D. Baron, M.D. (CEO) and Marcus F. Boehm, Ph.D. (CSO), with Xinzhong Dong, Ph.D. serving on the scientific advisory board. The company has assembled a multidisciplinary Scientific Advisory Board with experts from institutions including Johns Hopkins, Harvard, Mount Sinai, and UC Berkeley. Escient is privately held and funded by life‑science investors that participated in the Series A.