Healthcare
Nina Kjellson
General Partner / West Coast
Since 2015
Nina Kjellson invests in biopharma and digital health companies that serve unmet therapeutic and access needs. As a leader of Canaan’s Women of Venture program, Nina is a vocal advocate for women entrepreneurs and investors. She serves as a mentor to Blueprint Health and Springboard Life Sciences and on the boards of Essential Access Health, the California Leadership Council for The Nature Conservancy and the Oliver Wyman Health Innovation Center. Nina is also a 2018 Aspen Institute Health Innovators Fellow. Previously, Nina was a General Partner at Interwest Partners. She holds a B.A. in human biology from Stanford University.
Nina in 5
Origins: Born in Scandinavia
Travel: Have a major case of wanderlust (with a passport to prove it)
Sport: Love being outdoors & deep in nature
Interests: A good book (or Ripple by the Grateful Dead) can turn any day around
Family: Nothing beats time spent with my family & friends
Investments
Latest
Actio Biosciences Announces $55 Million Series A Financing to Advance Precision Medicine Approach for Rare and Common Diseases
BioCentury: Biotech investors bracing for Inflation Reduction Act’s impacts
Fierce Biotech: Tyra Biosciences named to 2021 Fierce 15 List
Fierce Biotech: Tyra Biosciences banks $173M to bring cancer resistance programs into clinic
In Vivo: The talent crisis – How to improve recruitment and retain biopharma employees
In Vivo: Biotech’s double-edged sword – Extraordinary funding run contributes to talent crisis
Reconvening for a virtual Women Who Venture gathering
Forbes: Nearly 50% of venture-backed healthcare companies have no women on the board, new report shows
Endpoints News: Why do some targeted cancer therapies stop working? For Tyra, that's the $106M question
FierceBiotech: Tyra Biosciences banks $106M, adds to C-suite as it aims for the clinic in 2022
Vaccinating with speed and equity: A conversation with Dr. Rebecca Weintraub
Nina Kjellson: More than words. Extreme(ly) satisfying steps together towards greater health equity
C&EN: The year in pharma - IPO window remained wide open
BioCentury: Larger stakes, more newcos as Canaan moves to bump up biopharma investments with new $800M fund
Endpoints News: Canaan raises another $800M as it launches its next fund with an emphasis on biotech
The Best of WoVen: Stepping into the unknown
The Best of WoVen: The importance of community
The Best of WoVen: Balancing work and family
Endpoints News: Gilead lines up a $1.55B biotech buyout deal as CEO Dan O’Day invests in his latest cancer blockbuster dream
BioCentury: With equity-and-option deal for Tizona, Gilead places latest bet on cancer immunosuppression
FierceBiotech: Partnered and backed by AbbVie, but cancer I-O biotech Tizona targeted by Gilead
The Best of WoVen: Combatting prejudice and inspiring change
The Best of WoVen: Self-care and how to look after body and mind
Endpoints News: Two Bay Area upstarts out to deliver on cell therapy 2.0 join forces on a quest: pursuing a Holy Grail in oncology R&D
Nina Kjellson: Biotechnology in the time of COVID-19
The Best of WoVen: Resilience and how to bounce back stronger
Timmerman Report: Finding a path in biotech VC - Nina Kjellson on The Long Run Podcast
Bio-IT World: Lessons from personalized medicine can supercharge coronavirus testing
Timmerman Report: Do's and don'ts of staying connected in a time of social distancing
San Francisco Business Times: "Say it" - Nina Kjellson, Amy DuRoss and Gail Maderis on the barriers to funding women's health issues
Timmerman Report: First buy, then invest - Novartis, Gilead join $35M bet on Vineti's software
CNBC: These start-ups are racing to help doctors detect cancer early with a simple blood test
WoVen Podcast: The woman who gets inside the heads of execs at Facebook, Google and more - A conversation with Glo Harris
Annual Women Who Venture Gathering 2020
Endpoints News: RA Capital, Canaan help infuse $50M into Alta-incubated biotech battling acquired resistance to TKIs
BioCentury: Pact’s $75M series C gives Vida’s Kite alumni long-sought stab at personalized cell therapy
FierceBiotech: Tyra Biosciences takes aim at treatment-resistant tumors with $50M raise
STAT News: Amy DuRoss - To make advanced therapies, we need to industrialize personalization
WoVen Podcast: Democratizing healthcare with activist roots - A conversation with Amy DuRoss
Xconomy: With $9.5M, Intrepida Bio launches to target pancreatic cancer & more
Endpoints News: Neoantigen player PACT Pharma woos Tim Moore from Kite to run technical ops
WoVen Podcast: Working with grit (and a patient's perspective) in women’s health - A conversation with Gail Maderis
FierceBiotech: A personalized CAR-T to attack every solid tumor? PACT Pharma has a plan
WoVen Podcast: Blazing a trail (and building a family) as a pioneering VC - A conversation with Ginger More
MedCityNews: Pact Pharma enrolls first patients in Phase Ia/Ib solid tumor cell therapy study
WoVen Podcast: Crafting success (and balance) in venture - A conversation with Wende Hutton
WoVen Podcast: Breaking ground (and battling bias) in brain surgery - A conversation with Dr. Odette Harris
Nina Kjellson: Introducing the WoVen Podcast, a series that celebrates remarkable women in healthcare, tech & business
BioCentury: Vineti is keeping cell therapies on track
Nina Kjellson: The roadmap for board diversity
Nina Kjellson: In case of emergency -- expert tips for weathering a crisis
Nina Kjellson: "Jumping together" to move the field of personalized cancer therapy
BioCentury: Why GV and Canaan backed PACT Pharma's hyperpersonalized cancer approach
Nina Kjellson: Practical tips from two male biotech CEOs who are leaning in
Nina Kjellson: When it comes to women in venture, a 30x return on investment...in each other
Nina Kjellson: A critical marriage for science and health tech
Bloomberg Tech: Canaan Partners see race for firms to hire more women
Endpoints News: When VCs hand out mega-rounds to Vir and Gossamer, are they betting on the jockey or the horse?
CNBC: After a miserable 2017, VCs offer predictions on digital health IPOs for 2018
FiercePharma: 2017’s fiercest women in life sciences
CNBC: 11 women who prove that health tech investing isn’t a boys’ club
Bloomberg: America’s drinking problem is much worse this century
Fierce Biotech: Canaan unveils $800 million fund for fresh wave of biotech bets
BioTech Nation Podcast: Women in biotech venture capital
Cigna collaborates with Annum Health to introduce a digital health solution to help people reduce alcohol consumption
Nina Kjellson: Why I'm excited to help reinvent treatment for heavy drinking
Nina in 5
Origins: Born in Scandinavia
Travel: Have a major case of wanderlust (with a passport to prove it)
Sport: Love being outdoors & deep in nature
Interests: A good book (or Ripple by the Grateful Dead) can turn any day around
Family: Nothing beats time spent with my family & friends