Investors poured a record $18.1 billion into healthcare companies in the last quarter, according to a new industry report by CB Insights.
Digital health startups, or those that use technology like smartphones to do care and research, nabbed $5.8 billion, which is the second best-performing quarter on record, the report said. Digital health companies raised the most among the healthcare categories CB Insights tracks, including AI and telehealth.
Venture capital firms are fueling the fire, some more than others. While smart money has long supported the transition to savvier healthcare, coronavirus outbreaks prompted even more top firms to give digital health companies more than a passing glance.
The most active firms, measured by their number of unique deals, made 30 bets in total. Those startups are tackling a range of issues made more pressing due to coronavirus, like at-home testing, remote urgent care, mental health, and drug research.
Here are the 5 most active firms
- Optum Ventures, which is funded by UnitedHealth Group and has $600 million under management, invested in Dispatch Health, Somatus, Kaia Health, DocASAP, Mindstrong, Holmusk, and LetsGetChecked.
- General Catalyst picked Kernel, Oscar, Mindstrong, Plume, Ophelia, and Sondermind for its digital health bets. The firm's raised about $7 billion to date, it told Business Insider.
- Andreessen Horowitz, a $2.7 billion firm, is backing Cedar, PatientPing, Alpha Health, Insitro, Nautilus Biotechnology, and Tomorrow Health.
- Khosla Ventures also invested in Kernel and Oscar, as well as Menten AI, Yes Health, Carrot Health, and Siren. KV has more than $5 billion under management.
- GV, which manages more than $4.5 billion, shares bets with Andreessen Horowtiz on PatientPing and Insitro. It's also backing Owkin, Aledade, and DNAnexus.
