SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Arivale, a company dedicated to providing individuals a scientific path to wellness, announced today it closed a $36 million Series B funding round led by technology and healthcare venture firms ARCH Venture Partners and Polaris Partners, with participation from the consumer-only venture fund Maveron. This funding round followed the Series A round, led by Maveron.
Arivale uses cutting-edge science, personalized data and tailored coaching to deliver prioritized, actionable recommendations that inspire clients to achieve and sustain their unique wellness potential. Based on the pioneering research of Lee Hood, MD, PhD, founder of the Seattle-based Institute for Systems Biology, Arivale initially launched in Seattle and will launch in San Francisco in the fall –expanding into additional markets in 2016.
“The American healthcare system focuses almost entirely on diagnosing and treating disease instead of keeping people well,” stated Dr. Hood, who is also an Arivale co-founder and chair of its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). “With Arivale, we will create a new sector – scientific wellness – by leveraging an individual’s unique genetic makeup, clinical lab data and lifestyle to optimize wellness and avoid disease.”
Arivale’s transformative approach to scientific wellness combines a 360-degree view of individual health with personalized coaching to improve lives. Arivale gets to know clients at the deepest level by looking at their genome, blood, saliva, gut microbiome and lifestyle data. That information provides millions of personalized data points, but data alone aren’t enough to improve health. Each client is also connected with an Arivale coach – a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) – who works with each client on a regular basis to translate the complex scientific information from physician-ordered laboratory tests into actionable recommendations, to optimize wellness and meet each person’s health objectives.
“Arivale empowers people with knowledge and tools to optimize their overall health and wellness in a way that wasn’t possible before,” stated Clayton Lewis, Arivale CEO and co-founder. “Backed by a team of leading scientists and investors with a strong track record in health, wellness, biotech breakthroughs and in building top-tier consumer brands, we are launching a new industry – scientific wellness.”
“Big science and informed consumers are coming together to drive the sea change that is taking place in healthcare right now,” stated Terry McGuire, founding partner at Polaris Partners. “That’s why we wanted to partner with Arivale – it’s at the forefront of this transformation with a bold new approach that is both personalized and comprehensive, enabling individuals to optimize their wellness.”
Arivale’s approach was refined through a pilot study called the Hundred Person Wellness Project conducted in 2014 at the Institute for Systems Biology. The results confirmed that scientific wellness can improve lives. Many participants improved their cardiovascular health and nutrition, and others lowered their risk for diabetes. Overall, 70 percent of coaching recommendations were acted upon by participants.
“Arivale has huge potential to disrupt the current healthcare system with scientific wellness, a completely new industry and an untapped market,” stated Robert Nelsen, a co-founder and managing director of ARCH Venture Partners. “It is the first company to combine powerful new scientific discoveries with a coaching model that inspires consumers to take action to improve their wellness.”
“Arivale is the only company taking a comprehensive approach to wellness – looking at many different types of data, which is exactly what consumers want today,” stated Dan Levitan, co-founder and managing partner at Maveron. “Other companies look at one of these data types or factors in isolation, such as genetics or fitness, and they don’t offer the data integration, nor do they provide the personal insights and one-on-one coaching that lead to change.”
Arivale has also announced the formation of its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB), which will provide strategic guidance in systems biology, technology development, big data, analytics, translational medicine, behavioral science and nutrition. “We are excited to launch this company with such a distinguished group of global leaders on our SAB,” stated Hood. “Their knowledge and domain expertise are well aligned with Arivale’s vision and mission – and their insights and analyses will be invaluable to us in our quest to invent the future of health and wellness.”
SAB members include:
- Frances Arnold, PhD, California Institute of Technology
- George Church, PhD, Harvard Medical School
- Robert C. Green, MD, MPH, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School
- Jim Heath, PhD, California Institute of Technology
- Lee Hood, MD, PhD, Institute for Systems Biology (chair)
- Ed Lazowska, PhD, University of Washington
- Larry Smarr, PhD, University of California, San Diego
- Ralph Snyderman, MD, Duke University
- Bonnie Spring, PhD, Northwestern University
- Eric Topol, MD, Scripps Research Institute (uncompensated)
About Arivale
Arivale is a scientific wellness company that leverages cutting-edge research, personalized data and tailored coaching to help people optimize wellness and avoid disease. Arivale provides clients a scientific path to wellness based on their unique genetic makeup, characteristics, and lifestyle. Launched in 2015 and based in Seattle, Arivale is backed by leading scientists and investors with a strong track record in health, wellness, biotech breakthroughs and in building top-tier consumer brands. To learn more, visit www.arivale.com and follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
About ARCH Venture Partners
ARCH Venture Partners is a premier provider of seed- and early-stage capital for technology firms, with a special competence in co-founding and building technology firms from startup. ARCH invests primarily in companies co-founded with leading scientists and entrepreneurs, concentrating in innovations in life sciences, physical sciences, and information technology. ARCH enjoys special recognition as a leader in the successful commercialization of technologies developed at academic research institutions and national laboratories. ARCH manages eight venture funds totaling $1.9 billion and has invested in the earliest venture capital rounds for more than 160 companies over nearly 30 years. More information is available at www.archventure.com.
About Maveron
Maveron is a consumer-only venture capital firm founded in 1998 with offices in Seattle and San Francisco. Since its first investment in eBay, Maveron has invested in innovative consumer brands along the way, including zulily, Earnest, General Assembly, Shutterfly, August, and most recently Arivale. For more information about Maveron, visit www.maveron.com.
About Polaris Partners
Polaris Partners invests in exceptional technology and healthcare companies across all stages of their life cycles. With offices in Boston, San Francisco, and Dublin, we partner globally with an unparalleled network of repeat entrepreneurs, top scientists and emerging innovators who are making significant contributions in their fields and vastly improving the way in which we live and work. www.polarispartners.com
