Tribe Capital rolls out first $50M healthcare fund - PitchBook
Tribe Capital, a Menlo Park-based venture firm known for investments in xAI and FTX, has raised nearly $50 million for its first healthcare fund amid a challenging fundraising environment for healthcare-focused VCs, continuing its prior healthcare investments like Commure and Rula, while navigating leadership changes and a market where life sciences specialists outperform generalists in exits and capital returns.
Tribe Capital, a venture capital firm known for its investments in companies such as Elon Musk’s xAI and the now-defunct crypto exchange FTX, has raised nearly $50 million for its first healthcare fund, according to a regulatory filing.
This new fund follows Tribe’s previous healthcare investments, including remote patient monitoring startup Commure and mental health company Rula. The specific strategy for the new healthcare fund has not been disclosed, and Tribe did not respond to requests for comment.
Tribe Capital originated as a spinout from Social Capital, the venture firm founded by Chamath Palihapitiya, in 2018. In late 2023, Boris Revsin became Tribe’s CEO, succeeding Arjun Sethi, who was recently named co-CEO of cryptocurrency specialist Kraken.
The launch of this fund comes at a time when healthcare specialist VC firms are facing challenges in fundraising. According to PitchBook’s H1 2024 Healthcare Funds Report, these firms collected less than 10% of all capital raised by VC funds in the first half of 2024, a significant drop from over 20% the previous year. Venture capitalists investing in healthcare IT and digital health have been particularly affected by a reduction in limited partner funding.
Tribe Capital, based in Menlo Park, California, is primarily a generalist tech investor but has previously launched specialist funds focused on crypto and AI.
Life sciences specialist firms have shown a clear advantage in achieving successful exits compared to generalist firms, particularly in navigating IPO timing and returning capital to limited partners.