📢 PsyMed Ventures Update (May 2025)
Fund update, new frontiers we're exploring, and more
Welcome back to the PsyMed Ventures newsletter! 👋
We’re excited to share an update about our fund, new frontiers we’re exploring, the latest Business Trip episodes, and more.
Fund Update
This is the century of the brain. It’s one thing to shout this from a hilltop; it’s another to hear it echoed by leaders around our field. Veteran biotech VC Bob Nelsen recently wrote that the most significant advances in healthcare this decade will include “understanding of the human brain, and how to increase happiness”. Meanwhile, Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, shared his view that AI could unlock “100 years of progress in 5-10 years” in neuroscience. And lastly, Morgan Stanley released a report forecasting BCI as a $400B opportunity in the U.S. alone.
PsyMed kicked off 2025 with four new investments that reflect PsyMed’s core thesis: frontier neuroscience, human-first thinking, and scalable solutions addressing underappreciated challenges in brain and mental health. We backed Sculpta Bio, an RNA therapeutics company developing novel interventions for brain aging and neuroprotection; ImYoo, a personalized medicine platform leveraging each patient’s unique biology; Ventra, a company translating proprietary human brain tissue insights into therapeutics targeting neuroinflammation; and Iris Medicine, pioneering small binding RNA technology (sbRNA), a new RNA modality, for neurodegenerative disease.
From a macro perspective, we’re now in an environment where major changes are being announced weekly. Volatility creates opportunity—especially during moments of structural shift. NIH funding cuts will squeeze early-stage biotechs and slow the flow of academic spinouts, but funds like PsyMed can step in earlier. Meanwhile, FDA staffing cuts may delay trial reviews, even as AI and the move away from animal testing accelerate translational work. We have our finger on the pulse of the evolving regulatory landscape - Matias shared more thoughts here.
There were over $42B in neuro exits in ‘24-25. This included J&J’s $14.6B acquisition of Intra-Cellular Therapies, Bristol Myers Squibb’s $14B acquisition of Karuna, AbbVie’s $8.7B acquisition of Cerevel, and Lundbeck's buying Longboard for $2.6B. The next wave of neuro companies, which are preventative and address root causes, will be even bigger.
At PsyMed, we believe the brain is an engineering challenge we can solve. Advances in compute, data, materials, and biology are turning once-speculative dreams into reality. These breakthroughs will address neurological disease, support everyone’s mental health with precision, and unlock new forms of communication and creativity. We’ve been meeting new LPs for Fund 2, and many have asked why it makes sense to invest in neuro. The answer is simple: it’s a huge unmet need, and it’s finally a tractable problem.
PsyMed Fund I - Portfolio update
Here’s a roundup of our Fund I portfolio investments.
Ancilia Biosciences: CRISPR for live biotherapeutics and bacterial products
Bloom Sciences: Microbial therapeutics for neurological diseases
Delix Therapeutics: Drug development platform to rewire key areas of the brain
Freedom Biosciences: Drug development for next-generation psychedelic therapeutics
Humans Anonymous: Anonymous audio spaces for mental health
ImYoo: Powering personalized health with patients' molecular data
Iris Medicine: A new RNA modality (sbRNA), to treat the root cause of monogenic disorders
Jimini Health: AI-assisted teletherapy
Journey Clinical: Empowering psychotherapists to offer psychedelic-assisted therapy
Motif: Minimally invasive bioelectronic solutions for brain and mental health
Neurode: Neurostimulation for mental health, starting with ADHD
Remepy: Hybrid treatments combining traditional drugs with digital therapeutics
Sanmai: Transcranial focused ultrasound neurotech to treat brain disorders
Sculpta Bio: Programmable RNA splicing medicine for complex brain diseases
Ventra: Techbio platform for neuroinflammation
Stealth: Marketplace for transformative mental health modalities
Stealth: Continuous hormone monitoring
Frontiers We’re Exploring
Mitochondrial Transfer. Mitochondria produce the energy cells need to function. Mitochondria transplantation represents a novel frontier by addressing cellular energy deficits that underlie many neurological and psychiatric conditions. Emerging research suggests that impaired mitochondrial function contributes to neurodegenerative diseases, stroke, and even mood disorders. By directly replenishing damaged cells with healthy mitochondria, this approach holds potential to restore cellular vitality, enhance neuroplasticity, and improve outcomes in conditions traditionally seen as hard to treat.
Neurometabolism, the intersection of brain function and metabolic processes, is an emerging field with significant potential. Neurotransmitters depend on nutrients like glutamine, tryptophan, and glucose to be made and function properly. This shows that the brain's health is closely tied to metabolism. Interestingly, brain function can be modified at the dietary level or through medicine at the molecular level. Companies innovating in precision nutrition, neuropsychiatric drugs targeting glucose metabolism, or enhancing mitochondrial function are positioned to translate these insights into tangible brain health improvements. Notably, there are several clinical trials currently examining the use of GLP-1 therapies for Alzheimer’s disease, further highlighting the connection between metabolic pathways and neurodegeneration. With renewed enthusiasm for improving metabolic health– and the mechanistic links between metabolism and brain health– we see neurometabolism as a high-opportunity frontier, offering novel approaches to psychiatric and neurodegenerative conditions.
Environmental toxins link to neurological health is increasingly clear. We released a report about the science and startup opportunities here.
PsyMed Ventures in the World
Matias spoke on a panel at the One Mind Accelerator with Tom Insel, former National Institute of Mental Health Director, Andrew Miller, founder of Karuna Therapeutics, and Ekaterina Malievskaia, co-founder of Compass Pathways. 25% of the One Mind Accelerator's 3rd cohort are PsyMed portfolio companies: Freedom Biosciences, Jimini Health, Mindstate Design Labs, and Sanmai.
The PsyMed team hosted “Night in Neurotech” in New York Deep Tech Week with over 400 attendees. Speakers included neurotech founders, scientists, and clinicians. Greg presented on the neurotech investing landscape.
Greg presented at Human Enhancement Week at Infinita City, where transhumanist founders fast-track gene therapies, BCIs, and other longevity tech. Greg spoke about PsyMed’s focus on brain computer interfaces and the foundations of human flourishing.
Recent Business Trip episodes
What’s wrong with US healthcare and how startups can fix it, with Justin Mares - Justin dives into the current state of US healthcare and why true healthcare starts in the environment. Then he identifies opportunities for startups to fix the food system, environmental toxins, chronic illnesses, and more.
Frontier investable areas in brain health with PsyMed Ventures: PsyMed Ventures Founding Partners Greg & Matias and Venture Partner Brooks Leitner share five key investment areas in brain health and a human-first approach to scientific research.
Temporal Interference: The Future of Brain Stimulation with Nir Grossman: Dr. Nir Grossman of Imperial College discusses temporal interference, a new form of noninvasive stimulation, and its role in treating Alzheimer’s, epilepsy, depression, and traumatic brain injury.
The State of Autism (Part 1, Part 2). In Part 1, Elizabeth Horn, founder of 2m Foundation, discusses the rising prevalence of autism and its societal impact. In part 2, Dr. James Adams shares advancements in microbiome therapy, focusing on how gut health impacts autism symptoms, and explores the role of the gut-brain axis in shaping innovative therapeutic approaches.
Genetic Medicine for Brain Health with Dana Watt: Dana Watt explores how genetic therapies target underlying dysfunctions rather than symptoms, the challenges of effectively delivering genetic payloads, and the commercial viability of these innovations. The conversation also touches on insurance considerations and the broader opportunities for genetic therapies in brain health.
Upcoming Events:
We’re hosting a Night of Neurotech at SF Deep Tech Week on June 24th 5-8pm with leading neurotech founders, scientists, and VCs. Sign up here.
Thank you for reading! If you’re building a frontier tech company in brain and mental health, please reach out to hi@psymed.ventures.
Best,
The PsyMed Team