As we look back on the past year at Impact Ventures by Johnson & Johnson Foundation, we are encouraged by our progress to advance global health equity. Despite a challenging economic environment for startups and fundraising in healthcare overall, we made 10 investments—doubling our portfolio of impact-focused companies and funds. This includes four investments we just completed at the end of last year, providing innovative ways to improve the health of patients around the world who have been historically marginalized or underserved.
- Viebeg Medical, a company creating more robust supply chains for medical equipment in Africa
- Verge HealthTech, a global impact fund supporting early-stage health technologies
- Health in Her Hue, a digital service platform improving care for women of color in the US
- CareAdvisors, a company providing integrated social services with healthcare for lower-income patients
In addition to our fund investments, we also supported the broader ecosystem for impact entrepreneurs in healthcare, to catalyze more investment and activity in this sector. In 2023, we:
- Supported eight accelerator programs, venture competitions and fellowships for early-stage entrepreneurs
- Developed 30+ reports, blog posts, thought leadership pieces, press releases and case studies to promote the space
- Participated in over 20 high-level events, conferences and convenings to build stronger networks and advocacy
As we start a new year, Impact Ventures will continue to actively invest, and also support our portfolio companies to grow and achieve greater impact. Our portfolio companies have already reached more than 2.8 million patients and more than 62,000 healthcare workers – with 86% of that impact serving populations in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
In addition to scale, we also plan to highlight other important dimensions of impact from our portfolio investments as they work to improve health equity. We look forward to sharing more with you about developments at Impact Ventures throughout the year. Don’t forget to visit the news page of our website for all of the latest information and updates.
Best,
Dana Deardorff
Global Director, Impact Ventures
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