.406 Ventures Fund Research
Investment Thesis and Philosophy
.406 Ventures models its investing philosophy after Ted Williams' legendary .406 batting average, believing that they should only swing at deals where they have a true unfair advantage rather than chasing every opportunity. The firm is selective and domain-focused, leveraging deep industry expertise and extensive networks to partner with early-stage companies in carefully chosen sectors.
The firm emphasizes that they deliver value far beyond capital. With over 100 years of collective experience as founders, operators, and investors, the team understands the challenges of building companies and provides hands-on partnership, particularly during seed and Series A rounds when they can materially impact growth trajectories.
Investment Focus Areas
.406 Ventures invests across three primary sectors with deep, domain-specific expertise:
Healthcare
From disrupting care delivery to leveraging technology, the US healthcare system is desperate for new ideas that .406 is helping bring to life. The firm has a portfolio spanning virtual care, mental health, behavioral health, value-based care models, and healthcare data/interoperability. They focus on companies addressing systemic inefficiencies in healthcare delivery, payment structures, and care coordination.
Data + AI
AI is redefining the boundaries of human potential, transforming how we create, execute, and disrupt. .406 invests in builders accelerating this seismic shift in intelligence. This includes data infrastructure, AI/ML platforms, LLM applications, data management, analytics, and agentic AI solutions.
Cybersecurity
Protecting the digital world from continually evolving threats is critical. .406 invests in innovators keeping businesses secure, resilient, and one step ahead. This spans identity and access management, application security, threat detection, and emerging AI-powered security solutions.
Stage Focus and Check Size
.406 Ventures is laser-focused on early-stage investments where they can provide the most partnership value:
- Primary Focus: Seed and Series A rounds
- Stage Philosophy: They excel at being the first institutional investor and leading or co-leading rounds
- Check Size Inference: Based on portfolio analysis, typical checks range from $1M-$5M at seed stage with participation in Series A follow-ons
- Fund Size: Recent fund deployments suggest multi-hundred million dollar funds with capacity for significant checks
Lead Tendency
.406 Ventures demonstrates a strong lead tendency. Across their portfolio, the firm frequently leads seed and Series A rounds, particularly in healthcare where they have deep domain expertise and operational networks. They co-lead when appropriate and participate in later-stage follow-ons for existing portfolio companies.
Recent Activity and Fund Status
The firm is actively deploying capital from recent funds:
- Notable Recent Investments (2025-2026): Portfolio companies like Genesis Computing (agentic AI data engineer), Mindgard (AI security testing), and Promethium (data fabric with agentic AI) reflect recent deployment activity
- Latest Investments: Additions to healthcare portfolio (Diana Health for women's health, OncoveryCare for cancer survivorship) and emerging AI companies
- Fund Status: Actively deploying, with strong momentum in early-stage healthcare and AI infrastructure
Portfolio and Exits
.406 has built an impressive portfolio over nearly 20 years with numerous successful exits:
Notable Exits:
- Iora Health (full-risk primary care model, acquired by One Medical)
- AbleTo (virtual mental health intervention, acquired by Optum)
- Corvus (AI-powered cyber insurance, acquired by Travelers)
- AuthAir (authentication solutions, acquired by LogMeIn)
- Carbon Black (advanced threat protection, acquired by VMware)
Active Portfolio: 80+ active companies spanning healthcare, data+AI, and cybersecurity. Several have achieved significant scale with $50M+ ARR.
Team
.406 Ventures has a dedicated, experienced team with deep domain expertise. Leadership includes Liam Donohue (Co-Founder, 30+ years as venture investor and founder, $405M+ invested), Graham Brooks, Payal Agrawal Divakaran, and Greg Dracon as Partners. Investment team includes Kathryn Taylor Reddy and Kevin Wang as Principals, with strong operational support infrastructure.
Investment Approach
The firm's approach centers on:
- Selectivity: Only investing where they have unfair advantage (the .406 metaphor)
- Partnership: "Our team becomes an extension of yours"
- Patience: Support companies throughout lifecycles
- Domain Depth: Deep networks in healthcare, data/AI, cybersecurity
- Founder-Centric: People and teams are critical beyond capital
Competitive Differentiation
- Domain expertise in three carefully chosen sectors
- Operational network with 100+ years collective founder/operator experience plus 22+ Executives in Residence
- Patient capital from multi-hundred million funds
- 20-year track record with strong exits
- Relationship-oriented approach
- Company-creation platform capability