Early stage deep-tech health fund led by scientists.

Arben Ventures invests in early stage startups that can redefine health care. We’re passionate about precision medicine, multi-omics, digital health platforms, AI-driven tech, and tools that enable an unprecedented level of personalization in care.

Mental health and addiction

Neurotech

Pain management

Chronic disease care

Imaging

Cancer detection

Gene therapies

Assistive and accessibility devices

Lifestyle and wellness

Mental health and addiction • Neurotech • Pain management • Chronic disease care • Imaging • Cancer detection • Gene therapies • Assistive and accessibility devices • Lifestyle and wellness •

Accelerating disruptive health care technologies, with a focus on evidence and context

Founded by researchers out of Stanford’s Department of Genetics and the Directors of the Stanford Healthcare Innovation Lab, Arben Ventures has unique access to the research ecosystem ranked #1 in the world for genomics and leading in precision medicine, longevity, multi-omics, and wearables. PhDs manage due diligence and support our portfolio teams as they launch, scale, and grow their companiesevery step of the way.

We write checks from $20K up to $500K in size for our portfolio of pre-seed, seed, and Series A health startups. Our portfolio companies have the potential to improve care by collecting and using health data in smarter ways, building novel medical devices, and democratizing access to high-quality treatment. We invest in areas where we see the most potential for disruption and where our partners have expertise– primarily in precision medicine, digital health platforms, and deep tech.

Our mission is to accelerate tech that will make millions of people happier and healthier. We’re not after replacing clinicians with flashy algorithms; we look for evidence-based, thoughtful, novel advancements in health tech that make sense within their contexts.

Active spaces

  • Neurotech

  • Mental health and addiction

  • Longevity, aging, and chronic disease management

  • Women's health and reproductive services

  • Imaging

  • Gene therapies

  • Assistive and accessibility tech

  • Lifestyle and wellness

Our story

Arben Ventures was born out of the shared vision of researchers Ariel Ganz, PhD, and Ben Rolnik, who have both long recognized a critical gap in healthcare innovation: too many transformative ideas fail to make it out of the lab due to a lack of funding, when they are too far along to rely on academic support but too early for attention from many top VCs. At our core, that’s the focus: finding and supporting pre-seed and seed founders at the intersection of medicine and tech whose ideas are at a critical early point in development.

Ariel Ganz, PhD, is a postdoc fellow at Stanford’s Department of Genetics. Though she’s published in fields ranging from nutrition to computational chemistry and theoretical physics, her main work is in using multi-omic data and digital health solutions to drive innovation in mental health and wellness. During her research (including her work at Dr. Snyder’s lab, which has seen two unicorns and 18 companies worth over $6.5B spin out), she observed how even a small amount of funding—sometimes just $30,000—could have made the difference in turning a promising idea into a successful company. She launched ABV with Ben and finds purpose in supporting these researchers and teams. Throughout her professional journey, Ariel has kept service and mental health care advocacy at the forefront of her work.

Ben Rolnik’s journey to reimagining healthcare started in an unlikely place: the world of rock-and-roll. Touring with legends like Aerosmith, Michael Jackson, and the Rolling Stones, Ben witnessed firsthand the deep struggles with depression, addiction, and unhappiness among even the most successful individuals. It led him to the question: Why are health and well-being so elusive, even for those with every material advantage? He turned his focus to research, conducting biological profiling studies at Stanford, and showing the potential of personalized health protocols to improve mental health care. In 2019, he became the Director of the Stanford Healthcare Innovation Lab, which has spun out >$500M in startup value over the last seven years alone.