RA Capital Management, a multi-stage health and biotech investor, has closed its first Planetary Health Fund. The strategy “represents a natural evolution of our mission to back transformational science and technology to improve human wellbeing,” said the Boston-based firm’s Peter Kolchinsky.
The fund is on the hunt for early-stage energy, manufacturing, agriculture, critical minerals and environmental services companies. Many of these sectors enjoy policy tailwinds, but RA Capital is looking for market-ready companies that can become profitable without government subsidies. The fund will write checks of up to $10 million from seed stage to Series C financing rounds.
Deep tech
The Planetary Health Fund has backed seven companies, including Indiana-based Sortera Technologies, which uses AI and advanced sensors sort and recycle critical metals; Denver-based Koloma, which is drilling for natural hydrogen stored underground in the US Midwest; and San Francisco-based Optivolt, which has developed shade-tolerant technology for generating solar power.
RA Capital has brought on Kyle Teamey, a former partner at Breakthrough Energy Ventures, and Brigid O’Brien, former head of venture investments at the mining giant BHP, to lead the strategy. “We love to help entrepreneurs build great companies and we are excited by the opportunities in our pipeline,” Teamey said.
