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ReachouttoMeganScheffeloryourSVBpointof

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PublishedJanuary8,2026

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Itwasayearofbookends,

andit’sreallyhardtobein

themiddle.ASeriesAcanstillcomefromagoodteamandastrongidea,but

SeriesBandCarehardertoraisethanever.Asmall

numberofcompaniescanhavesuccessacrossthe

board,butformost

startups,anearlyround

needstobringthemacrossthechasmintoreal

evidenceofsuccess.”

svb》SBianck。nvaley

ADivisionofFirstcitizensBank

Privatehealthcaremarketshavesplitthisyear.AI-relateddealsdominatedheadlinesandfundraising.Meanwhile,therestofthemarketstruggledtoraisecapital,hinderedbylackofliquidity,

profitabilityandexits.

AIinvestingrepresentednearly50%offundraisingandisreasonforrenewedoptimism,buttherearestrugglesacrosstheboardin

privatemarkets.Biopharmainvestingisdownby19%,nearly$5Byearoveryear(YoY).Dx/Toolsisdown15%,atabout$2.2B.Brightspotshaveappearedinpublicandsecondarymarkets,butfewercompaniesarereachingpointswherethoseoptionsareavailable.

Itwasayearofbookends,andit’sreallyhardtobeinthemiddle.ASeriesAcanstillcomefromagoodteamandastrongidea,but

SeriesBandCarehardertoraisethanever.Asmallnumberof

companiescanhavesuccessacrosstheboard,butformost

startups,anearlyroundneedstobringthemacrossthechasmintorealevidenceofsuccess.

Evenourterminologyisstartingtolookoutofdate.Themega-deal—aroundmorethan$100M—hasbeenthestandardforan

impressivefundingroundfordecades.Betweenmonetaryinflation

anddealtrends,it’sjustnottheheadlineitusedtobe.Raising

$100Mormoreisabouttwiceascommonthisyearasitwasin2019.HealthcareAIcompanieshadtoraisethreetimesthatamountin

2025—morethan$300M—tobeinthesametoppercentilethatamega-dealrepresentedjustsixyearsago.

Thesearchforprofitabilityhasbroughtaboutanewwaveof

monetizationbeyondlicensesandsoftware-as-a-service(SaaS).

OpenEvidencehasmadeanameforitselfthroughad-supportedservices,securingamassiveshareofclinicalusers.Othersarefindingindustrysponsorswillingtopaytobringclinicaldecisionsupportorpatientservicestousers.

Willthosebeenoughfortoolsthathavestruggledforprofitability?There’sanotheravenuethat’sbecomingmoreandmoreappealing:

datasales.Atoolwithaccesstothesearchesandpreferencesof

thousandsofprovidersormillionsofpatientscertainlyhas

somethingofvalue.Andsoftwareuseragreementscanhideallkindsofpermissions,evenifacompanyisn’tsellinganydatarightnow.

Evenhowwedefineproductspacesischanging.“Longevity”has

meantalotofdifferentthingsoverthelastfewyears,butsomesoliddefinitionshavefinallystartedtoemerge.Ifyou’renotfamiliarwithconceptslike“geroscience,”“consumerhealthspan”or“intrinsic

capacity,”makesureyoucheckoutourspotlight.

Now,longevityandhealthspanisamulti-billion-dollarspace.It’s

spearheadedbyaswathofdealswherea$1BSeriesAisn’teven

closetothebiggestdealinthespaceoverthelastthreeyears.It’scrossingthebreadthofhealthcare,fromconsumerproducts,digitaltherapeuticsandclinicalhealthtechtocutting-edgetherapeutics.

Thenextbigquestioniswhereliquiditywillcomefrom.Fundraisinghasdroppedaslimitedpartners(LPs)waitforreturnsandquestionthevalueofventureinvesting.Exitshavecontinuedtofade,asevenM&A—themostreliableexitasIPOshavestalled—hasfallenoff.Venturecapital(VC)firmsarestillsittingondrypowder,butthe

startupecosystemreliesonreinvestment.

It’salwaysfascinatingtowatchmarketdynamicsevolveandshift.

And,asalways,VCisattheleadingedge.Keepingtrackofthesechangesandseeingwherethey’llleadisdifficultatthebestoftimes.We’reexcitedtobeheretohelp.

MeganScheffel

HeadofLifeSciencesandHealthcare

mscheffel@

HEALTHCAREINVESTMENTSANDEXITS|H120262

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InvestorSentiment

Therearesignsofrenewedopportunityaspublicmarketsbegintorebound.M&Aisslowlyaccelerating,especiallyin

biopharmaaslarge-capleadersrefocusonpipelineinnovation.Mostofall,

fundamentalsarereasserting

themselves,creatingabetterbackdropfordifferentiated,well-capitalized

companies.

Trending

1.Healthcareinvestmentis,increasingly,AI.

Projectedtohit$22B,AIis46%ofallhealthcareinvestment.

2.VCisgettingbacktobasics.

Dealcountsaredown7%asinvestorsinsistonfundamentals.

3.Livingbetter,notforever.

Healthspanandlongevityinvestmentgrew2.3xYoY.

MacroOutlook

“Sayingthatthere’sfrothinartificialintelligenceisn’toutsidetheconsensusatthispoint.Thatsaid,thetechnologicalimpactcanstillbedramaticand

haveapositiveimpactonproductivityandcompanymargins.Itisstilltoo

earlytomeasureAI’simpactprecisely,butcompanyadoptionisontheriseandwillcontinuetogrow.MuchlikethePCandinternetboomofthe’90s,

twothingscanbetrue:First,thatfrothoftenformsaroundanew

technologicalbreakthroughandsecond,thatthesamebreakthroughcanbemassivelyimpactfultoboththeeconomyandusers.”

PhilNeuhart

SVP,DirectorofMarketandEconomicResearch

蛋rirsrctizensweath.

Biopharma

Overallbiopharmainvestmenttookahit,butmetricsonindividualdeals

stayedconsistent.VCsarestillwillingtoprovidestrongbackingto

companieswithsolidfundamentals

andstrongclinicalevidence.Earlier-stagecompaniesarebeingforcedtomaketheirmoneylastuntilthey’reoutofthepre-clinicalstage.

svby

》

siliconvalleyBank

ADivisionofFirstcitizensBank

Healthtech

Afterabigfirsthalf,healthtechslightlybeatits2024totalbeforetheendof

theyear.AIdrovehealthtech

investment,withprovideroperationstoolstakingoverasthesinglebiggestareaofAIfocus.Whilealternativecareinvestmenthasdroppedoff

significantly—makinguplessthan

10%oftotalhealthtechinvestmentin2025—selectspecialtyalternative

caresolutionsarestillpullinginbig

deals.

Dx/Tools

Revenueandreimbursementissues

keepcomingupasthebiggestissuesinDx/Toolsinvestment.Ingeneral,

late-stagecompaniesstruggled,withmajordownturnsindealvolume,totalamountinvested,valuations,anddealsizes.Theredoesn’tseemtobea

secrettosuccessintheDx/Tools

spacebeyondhavingstrong

fundamentals.TheQ4flurryof

acquisitionsgivescautiousoptimismforthisspaceas2026approaches.

Device

Betweenbrain-computerinterfaces,

surgicalroboticsandAI-assisted

imaging,therewereafewbrightspotsasinvestmentinthedevicessector

remainedsmallbutconsistent.Big

Fivetechcompaniesandcorporate

capitalstayedactiveinthespace,withAmazon,GoogleandNvidiaallputtingmoneyinthisyear.

HEALTHCAREINVESTMENTSANDEXITS|H12026

3

4

ADivisionofFirstcitizensBankHEALTHCAREINVESTMENTSANDEXITS|H12026

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HealthcareInvestmentsandExitsH12026report

Togetthefullreport,reachouttoMeganScheffel(

mscheffel@

)oryourSVBpointofcontact

What’sinside:

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LeadAuthors

MeganScheffel

HeadofLifeScienceandHealthcare

mscheffel@

Meganleadsanationwideteamdedicatedtoservingtheunique

needsofinnovativelifescienceandhealthcarecompaniesatall

stagesofgrowth.With25+yearsofexperiencefinancing

innovation,shedevelopscreativecapitalsolutionsforclients,

connectsinvestorsandstakeholderstohigh-impactopportunities,andmanagesadynamicandcomplexbankingP&L.

MeganjoinedSVBin1997.Priortohercurrentleadershiprole,sheservedasGlobalSeniorCreditOfficer,leadingateamresponsibleforinternationaldeals,includingholisticandspecializeddebt

financings.

Meganisactiveinsupportingentrepreneurialorganizationsand

eventsthroughouttheWashington,D.C.,area,wheresheresides.Sheholdsabachelor’sdegreeinbusinessadministration,

specializinginfinance,fromtheUniversityofColoradoinBoulder.

MattDonne,Ph.D.

ManagingDirector

LifeScienceandHealthcareVentureCapitalRelationshipManagement

mdonne@

MattmanagesrelationshipswithVCfirmsfocusedonhealthcareandlifescienceinvestmentsandsupportsfoundersacrossthe

ecosystem.Heisalsoresponsibleforconductingdata-driven

analysesontheglobalhealthcareinnovationeconomythatSVB

serves.PriortoSVB,Mattheldvariousleadershipandbusiness

operationsrolesatbiotechstartupsintheBayAreaafterspendingthebeginningofhiscareerasascientist.

MattholdsaPh.D.indevelopmentalandstemcellbiologyfrom

UCSF,aMasterofScienceinbiomedicalsciencesandstemcellbiologyfromSFState,andabachelor’sfromWesleyanUniversity.

Mattisalsotheco-founderofthewell-attendedLifeScienceHikersgroup,abicoastalcommunityofmorethan2,500biotech

professionalswhomeetmonthlyforhikesandnetworking.

BillBurkoth

SeniorManagingDirectorLifeScienceand

Healthcare

bburkoth@

BillleadscoverageforlifescienceandhealthcareclientsontheEastCoast.Inthisrole,Billleveragesamorethan25-yearVC

career,bringingdeepexpertiseinleadingandmanagingequityinvestmentsacrossthelifesciencesinnovationecosystem.

PriortoSVB,BillservedasManagingPartnerandportfoliomanagerforlifesciencesstrategyatForestRoad.Beforethat,hefounded

andledPfizerVenturesasSeniorPartner,wherehespentnearly20yearsdirectinglifescienceventureinvestmentsonbehalfofPfizerInc.Earlier,heheldvariousbusinessdevelopmentrolesatseveralbiotechnologycompanies.

Billearnedabachelor’sdegreeinchemistryfromWhitmanCollegeandanMBAfromColumbiaBusinessSchool.HelivesintheNewYorkmetropolitanareawithhiswifeandtwosons.

contributors

DennisHe

ManagingDirectorLifeScience

dhe@

NinaKandilian

SeniorVicePresident

HealthcareVentureCapitalRelationshipManagement

nkandilian@

svb

.com

MarketInsightsTeamAuthors

AlexanderLennox-Miller

SeniorResearcher

MarketInsights

alennoxmille@

AnjalikaKomatireddy

Researcher

MarketInsights

akomatireddy@

svb》SBanck。nvaey()LIGgNE

ReportAcknowledgments

Thankyoutothefollowingforlendingtheirsubject-matterexpertisetothisreport:

SNewLimit

ADivisionofFirstcitizensBankAllnon-SVB-namedcompaniesareindependentthirdpartiesandarenotaffiliatedwithSiliconValleyBank,adivisionofFirst-CitizensBank&TrustCompany.HEALTHCAREINVESTMENTSANDEXITS|H120265

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Disclaimers

TheviewsexpressedinthisreportaresolelythoseoftheauthorsanddonotnecessarilyreflecttheviewsofSVB.

SiliconValleyBank,adivisionofFirst-CitizensBank&TrustCompany,andFirst-CitizensBank&TrustCompanyisnotlicensedtoundertakebankingbusinessinanycountryoutsidetheUnitedStates,ortoundertakeanyotherregulatedactivityinanycountryoutsidetheUnitedStates.

Thismaterial,includingwithoutlimitationtothestatisticalinformationherein,isprovidedforinformationalpurposesonly.Thematerialisbasedinpartoninformationfromthird-partysourcesthatwebelievetobereliablebutwhichhasnotbeenindependentlyverifiedbyus,and,assuch,wedonotrepresenttheinformationisaccurateor

complete.Theinformationshouldnotbeviewedastax,accounting,investment,legalorotheradvice,norisittobereliedoninmakinganinvestmentorotherdecision.

Youshouldobtainrelevantandspecificprofessionaladvicebeforemakinganyinvestmentdecision.Nothingrelatingtothematerialshouldbeconstruedasasolicitation,offerorrecommendationtoacquireordisposeofanyinvestment,ortoengageinanyothertransaction.

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