The Network Effect

Transformative innovation is a product of entrepreneurs, early adopter customers, investors and domain experts working together. Each brings a unique skill set but as a whole they transform markets and uncover new opportunities.

Portfolio Company CEOs

Engineers, agronomists, medical researchers, former tennis pros and Human Genome Project participants, the founders we work with are transforming technology into opportunity and driving change in their markets.

Ailis Tweed-Kent

Cocoon Biotech, CEO
Bobby Sandage Jr, PhD

Euclises, President & CEO
Buddy Lyons

Entac Medical, Founder, CEO
Dr. Dawn Mattoon

Mercy Bioanalytics, CEO
Jarret Glasscock, PHD

Cofactor Genomics, Founder and CEO
Jeanette Mucha

SciBac, Co founder & CEO
Jill Davies

GeneMatters, Co-Founder & CEO
Jim Olson

Flywheel, CEO
Lu Alleruzzo

Immunophotonics, CEO & Co-Founder
Melissa Sherman

MOBILion, CEO
Michael Kamdar

Molecular Assemblies, President & CEO
Mike Connolly

Healionics, CEO & Chairman
Philip Strandwitz

Holobiome, Co-Founder & CEO
Robert Jacks

Indalo Therapeutics, President & CEO
Salah Kivlighn

HepaTx, CEO
Shannon Hall

Pow.bio, CEO and Co-Founder
Thomas J. Vasicek, Ph.D.

Gila Therapeutics, Co-founder & CEO
Tom Wilder

Neuros Medical, President and CEO

Selection Committees

30 PhDs, 40 startup founders, 20 exits and 400 named patents, the industry and subject matter experts who help guide iSelect’s investment decisions are a reservoir of knowledge of what has and has not worked in the past and what may or may not work in the future.

Andrew Daniels

Daniels Trading, Founder & CEO
Bobby Sandage

Euclises, President and CEO
Brian Buntaine

University of Missouri-Columbia, Senior Manager, Technology Transfer
Bruce German

UC Davis, Professor
Bryce Rutter

Metaphase Design Group, Founder & CEO
David Christenson  

BioGenerator, Entrepreneur in Residence
David Messina

Cofactor Genomics, Founder/COO
Dr. Albert Edwards

eSubmissions University, Founder
Dr. Renato Cataldo
Emily Fassi

St. Luke's Health System, Genetic Counselor
Gian Cavallini

Holleway Capital Partners, Managing Director
Jamie P. Dwyer

Utah, Professor of Medicine
Jill Davies

Genome Medical, Chief Customer Officer
John Talley

Emmyon, Inc., Partner and Vice President-Chemistry
Mark Byrne

PreMedicus Development, Owner
Melissa Walker

Graematter, Founder, President, CTO
Michael Beat

Exeteur Group, Senior Partner
Michael Nichols

Smart Diagnostics Systems, CFO
Michael Tomassan

University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, Director, Hematolgic Malignancies
Nathan McNulty

Matatu, Vice President of Research
Paul Beuttenmuller

Innovare Health, CFO
Paul Olivo

Synchrony Bio, Venture Partner
Ruchir Sehra

Resonia, CEO
Surekha Trivedi

Danaher, Strategy, M&A, Data & Analytics

Consideration

With 2021 well underway and with public markets still strong, we think it is an important time to highlight some of the key private market, venture investment themes that iSelect fund has identified for the year. We believe technologies transforming the Agriculture, Food and Wellness markets will flourish, with a focus on four areas: technologies that enable better food choices to drive better health outcomes, technologies that drive better, more profitable farm operations, technologies that drive the Consumerization of Healthcare, and biome-based treatment technologies. At iSelect, we invest for impact AND performance. We offer qualified investors access to emerging growth companies through our national venture capital strategy. Our unique structure allows our investors to continue to invest in these companies as they develop.

Timing

Why is now the right time for venture? The answer is that now is not explicitly the right time. Venture is something we need in our economy at all times. Now is not better than any other particular time. The question is, why ever stop? When we look at the challenges we’re facing in food and healthcare the reality is there is someone, somewhere who has an insight about how to build a product that will solve those problems. And if they put the right resources to it, they will succeed. As long as we need new technology to make life better or make our lives more enjoyable, we need venture capital to help fuel those entrepreneurs.

What is iSelect as a product?

iSelect is a very unique product, but when you break it into its parts it’s fairly easy to understand. On the front end we’re a traditional venture capital fund. We have a diligence process. We have an investment process. We have categories of industries where we have focus and real expertise, and we invest in companies in those areas that meet requirements for the fund. On the back end we’re unique in that we don’t raise a large amount of capital at one time and deploy it over the life of our fund. Each deal that we bring onto the fund, our investors have to prove and determine to invest in that deal. We have to constantly prove our diligence standards. It’s accessible, transparent and easy for investors to come in and see our comprehensive process.

What is the ideal iSelect company?

We are looking for founders that are passionate and we want the problem they’re trying to solve to be big, real, and painful. We want the solution to be revolutionary and we want our capital to be able to help them solve that problem. We want to know that they have customers involved and that the solution they’ve come up with actually meets those customers’ and market needs. And we want the team to be capital efficient with the money they’re spending.

What does the ideal iSelect company look like?

We’re looking for a company that has an opportunity to have a 10x return to our investment or greater in a period of three to seven years. What excites us at iSelect are companies that are solving big problems. We want companies that are going to be the Monsantos of the future. Not just in the size and the scope, but the impact they have on people’s lives. We want to create positive impacts on people’s lives, so we invest in areas like agricultural production and areas like producing healthy foods for our kids. They are problems that impact real people’s lives on a daily basis. That’s what we’re trying to do at iSelect. We’re trying to solve the big problems out there. Find ways to bring capital to the entrepreneurs who are the real heroes out there getting up every morning, beating away at these things that are problems that you and me and everyone else faces in their everyday lives.

What is iSelect?

iSelect is a venture capital firm. What that means is we look at hundreds and hundreds of different companies and we apply tough diligence standards to each of them, looking at whether the team has a good plan for growing the business, whether the team is qualified and credible, and more. We do that to resolve the few who provide the best opportunities for investors. And then iSelect takes that smaller set of investments and goes to investors who are interested in venture capital and provides a way for them to invest in these companies, either individually or all at once. We co-invest alongside other venture capitalists. We source transactions through to an exit where the company would become public or get bought. And we manage that whole investment process on behalf of our investors.

The Network Effect

Portfolio Company CEOs

Cocoon Biotech, CEO

Euclises, President & CEO

Entac Medical, Founder, CEO

Mercy Bioanalytics, CEO

Cofactor Genomics, Founder and CEO

SciBac, Co founder & CEO

GeneMatters, Co-Founder & CEO

Flywheel, CEO

Immunophotonics, CEO & Co-Founder

MOBILion, CEO

Molecular Assemblies, President & CEO

Healionics, CEO & Chairman

Holobiome, Co-Founder & CEO

Indalo Therapeutics, President & CEO

HepaTx, CEO

Pow.bio, CEO and Co-Founder

Gila Therapeutics, Co-founder & CEO

Neuros Medical, President and CEO

Selection Committees

Daniels Trading, Founder & CEO

Euclises, President and CEO

University of Missouri-Columbia, Senior Manager, Technology Transfer

UC Davis, Professor

Metaphase Design Group, Founder & CEO

BioGenerator, Entrepreneur in Residence

Cofactor Genomics, Founder/COO

eSubmissions University, Founder

St. Luke's Health System, Genetic Counselor

Holleway Capital Partners, Managing Director

Utah, Professor of Medicine

Genome Medical, Chief Customer Officer

Emmyon, Inc., Partner and Vice President-Chemistry

PreMedicus Development, Owner

Graematter, Founder, President, CTO

Exeteur Group, Senior Partner

Smart Diagnostics Systems, CFO

University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, Director, Hematolgic Malignancies

Matatu, Vice President of Research

Innovare Health, CFO

Synchrony Bio, Venture Partner

Resonia, CEO