Participated · Equity · Sep 2025

Sonoma Orthopedic Products, founded in 2005 in Santa Rosa, has developed two implant devices for repairing fractures of the wrist and collarbone. The devices are implanted inside the bone by an orthopedic surgeon using minimally-invasive techniques. The company says the approach results in less pain and better healing. Sonoma disclosed a new $1.5 million venture funding round in a filing with federal securities regulators. To date the startup has raised more than $25 million, including a $12 million funding round in 2009. Named investors include EDF Ventures, Asset Management Co., Split Rock Partners and MedVenture Associates. Sonoma develops and manufactures orthopedic implants for wrist, ankle, and collarbone fractures. Its patented WaviBody® and ActivLoc® technologies are used in least-invasive surgical procedures to provide fixation for fractures at the core of the bone. The implants are inserted in a canal in the center of the bone, require much smaller incisions with minimal tissue damage, and have no prominence outside the bone. The company intends to use the funds to receive FDA clearance on its new ankle implant, launch it, and scale commercially. Sonoma received $12M in funding from First Analysis, which also placed Tracy Marshbanks on the company’s board. Founded in 2005 and based in Santa Rosa, California, and outside Chicago, the company focuses on minimally invasive fracture fixation solutions. Sonoma Orthopedic Products develops and commercializes least invasive, fracture‑specific implant systems using proprietary technology for orthopedic trauma. The company is led by President and CEO Glen Coleman and was founded by COO Charles Nelson. It intends to use recent funding to launch new products, expand its U.S. sales network, and support key clinical trials. Sonoma also plans to use proceeds to acquire certain key assets of NovaLign Orthopaedics, Inc. In conjunction with the financing, Dr. Walter Lin of Ascension Health Ventures joined Sonoma’s board of directors. The company is based in Santa Rosa, California. Sonoma Orthopedic, based in Santa Rosa, Calif., develops the WaviBody, a flexible device inserted into a fractured bone that then becomes rigid to set breaks anatomically. The company aims to commercialize its first two products, positioning the WaviBody as an alternative to casts, braces and bone plates. Sonoma is currently testing the WaviBody on 50 patients with wrist fractures to evaluate whether they heal faster using the device. Wrist and clavicle fractures have proved problematic because existing treatments can be unwieldy or fail to heal injuries quickly or correctly; Sonoma targets those shortcomings. Financially, the company has raised $25 million to date, including the most recent $12 million round. Sonoma says it has enough runway to last through 2011. Sonoma Orthopedics is a stealthy spinal-device maker based in Santa Rosa, Calif. The company is developing devices that repair or reinforce bones from the inside. It is operating under a stealth profile while advancing those spinal repair technologies. Financially, Sonoma raised at least $10 million in a second funding round. MedVenture Associates led that round, joined by existing investors EDF Ventures, Asset Management, Halo Fund and Angel's Forum. The company previously raised $3 million in a first round last April.

Participated · Series E · Mar 2022

Gravie is a Minneapolis-based health benefits company on a mission to make healthcare more affordable and accessible for employers and their employees. The company offers both level-funded group health plans and Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements (ICHRA), providing employers flexibility in benefits design. Gravie partners with brokers and employers of varying sizes across the country to deploy its solutions. The company has raised a total of $463 million in capital to date. Management said the latest funding will be used to support expansion, product development, and go-to-market initiatives. Gravie also announced the appointment of Eric Murphy, a former Optum leader, to its board of directors to provide strategic guidance as the company scales.

Participated · Equity · Aug 2019

EBR Systems is a Sunnyvale, Calif.-based developer of the WiSE (Wireless Stimulation Endocardially) wireless cardiac pacing technology designed to eliminate the need for cardiac pacing leads. Its initial product aims to remove the need for coronary sinus leads to stimulate the left ventricle in heart failure patients who require cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). The company plans future products to address wireless endocardial stimulation for bradycardia and other non-cardiac indications. EBR is conducting the SOLVE CRT multi-center, randomized, double-blinded, prospective international study to assess safety and efficacy of WiSE in support of a U.S. FDA premarket approval (PMA) application. The SOLVE CRT study is enrolling 350 heart failure patients who have failed to respond to, or cannot receive, conventional CRT and was expected to complete enrollment in 2020. EBR intends to use the recently raised funds to complete SOLVE CRT enrollment and to prepare for commercialization of the WiSE CRT System. Leadership noted in the article includes President and CEO John McCutcheon and Executive Chairman Allan Will (former Chairman and CEO). EBR Systems develops the WiSE (Wireless Stimulation Endocardially) wireless cardiac pacing system that implants a tiny electrode directly in the left ventricle to pace heart failure patients who have failed or cannot receive conventional CRT. The system aims to eliminate the need for coronary sinus leads and their associated complications by providing endocardial pacing via a rice-grain-sized implant. The company raised $50 million to conduct the SOLVE-CRT pivotal trial intended to establish safety and efficacy in support of U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval. Separately, EBR received CE Mark approval for its second-generation wireless transmitter, which is half the size of the first-generation device, extends battery life and enables a simpler, less-invasive implantation; initial cases were performed at four European clinical centers. Future products are planned to address wireless endocardial stimulation for bradycardia and other non-cardiac indications. The company's wireless pacing system is not currently available for commercial sale in the United States. EBR Systems is a Sunnyvale, CA-based developer of a wireless cardiac pacing system designed to eliminate the need for cardiac pacing leads. Its initial product eliminates the need for coronary sinus leads to stimulate the left ventricle in heart failure patients requiring CRT. Future product plans include wireless endocardial stimulation for bradycardia and applications in other non-cardiac indications. The company’s system is not yet available for commercial sale and is subject to obtaining a CE mark for Europe and U.S. IDE approval for clinical study. Led by Chairman and CEO Allan Will, EBR intends to use the recent funding for clinical studies and regulatory filings and has commitments toward a second-quarter closing. EBR Systems develops a new-style pacemaker and other cardiac pacing devices. The company raised a $35 million third round of financing to advance its product toward clinical trials. Delphi Ventures led the round, with existing investors De Novo Ventures, Frazier Healthcare Ventures, Split Rock Partners and SV Life Sciences participating. The Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company had previously raised $27 million across its first two rounds. The new capital is intended to support clinical testing and regulatory steps for its pacing device.

Participated · Equity · Feb 2019

Nuvaira develops a lung denervation system to treat obstructive lung diseases using a procedure called Targeted Lung Denervation (TLD). Its proprietary technology targets airway hyper-responsiveness, a pathophysiologic underpinning of COPD and asthma, and has demonstrated safety and feasibility in IPS-I/II, AIRFLOW-1, and the AIRFLOW-2 sham-controlled randomized trial. The Nuvaira Lung Denervation System is CE Mark approved and is under clinical investigation in the U.S.; it is not commercially available in the USA. The company will use the financing to support the pivotal AIRFLOW-3 clinical trial for FDA approval and to implement a targeted clinical development strategy in key European markets. Nuvaira closed a $79M equity financing to fund these efforts. The company is led by CEO Dennis Wahr, M.D., and recently added Lisa Rogan as senior vice president of market development. Holaira is a lung denervation company developing minimally invasive products to make breathing easier for patients suffering from obstructive lung diseases. The company is working on a novel catheter‑based system that has the potential to improve lung function, exercise capacity and quality of life for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Founded in 2008 and led by president and chief executive officer Dennis Wahr, Holaira is based in Plymouth, MN. It recently raised $42M in Series D funding to advance its clinical program. The company intends to use the funds to support the first randomized lung denervation clinical trial with a sham control. In conjunction with the funding, Dr. Lincoln Chee of Vertex Venture Holdings joined Holaira’s board of directors. Holaira (fka Innovative Pulmonary Solutions) develops minimally invasive medical devices to treat obstructive lung diseases, including a novel catheter-based system for Targeted Lung Denervation aimed at easing breathing for COPD patients. The company is working to advance its minimally invasive product portfolio and intends to use the new capital to continue development. Holaira is led by president and CEO Dennis Wahr, M.D. and was founded in 2008. The company is based in Minneapolis, MN. Financially, Holaira completed a $10M Series C financing to support its product development efforts. Identified backers include Advanced Technology Ventures, Morgenthaler Ventures, Split Rock Partners and Versant Ventures.

Participated · Series A · Oct 2017

TruSignal completed a spin-out from eBureau and builds people-based audience solutions that combine offline data, predictive scoring and cross-channel ID matching to deliver end-to-end modeling for platforms and agencies. The company is led by founder and CEO David Dowhan and is based in San Francisco. Its core product suite centers on the TruAudience® Platform Custom APIs, which provide identity resolution, predictive modeling, insights, cross-channel delivery and access to offline data sets. Key API features include multiple identity resolution options (CRM, hashed emails, pixel, mobile IDs, location data, search data), the ability to export more than 360 summarized audience insights, and custom predictive lookalike and audience expansion models built in hours. The platform can build hundreds of audiences per month, offers dynamic real-time audience sizing based on budget and scale, and supports cross-channel distribution to more than 400 leading platforms. The company intends to use the new financing to accelerate growth and execute its product roadmap, including the general release of the TruAudience APIs.