Hatteras Venture Partners Research
Investment Thesis
Hatteras Venture Partners partners with visionary founders to build transformative biotech, medtech, and healthtech companies. The firm's principled approach centers on identifying high-quality science and exceptional teams with the potential for maximum patient impact, then building excellent companies that efficiently reach value-inflection points (proof-of-concept data, regulatory clearance, or commercial traction) rather than simply funding through to exit. Founded in 2000 and based in Durham, North Carolina, the firm has built its reputation as one of the Southeast's most established life-sciences investors, with deep roots in the Research Triangle biomedical ecosystem (Duke, UNC-Chapel Hill, NC State).
Sector Focus
Hatteras invests exclusively in life sciences and healthcare, spanning three sub-verticals:
- Biotech - therapeutics, gene and cell therapy, RNA-targeting small molecules, precision oncology
- MedTech - implantable devices, neuromodulation, cardiac and vascular devices, diagnostics
- HealthTech - digital health platforms, AI-enabled clinical software, care coordination
Stage Focus
The firm emphasizes "early-stage leadership," typically investing from seed/Series A through growth rounds as a repeat and reserve-heavy investor. It frequently originates de novo company formation alongside university tech-transfer offices and academic founders, then leads or co-leads subsequent institutional rounds.
Check Size
Exact check-size ranges are not disclosed publicly. Given a ~$900M AUM across seven flagship funds plus several regional/co-investment vehicles, and 100+ portfolio companies built since 2000, typical initial checks are consistent with lead or co-lead seed/Series A participation in life sciences, with meaningful reserves for follow-on rounds through Series C.
Lead Tendency
Historically a lead investor on de novo formations and early institutional rounds (e.g., leading NeuroTronik's Series A), though recent large financings (e.g., HistoSonics, CREATE Medicines) show the firm also participating alongside larger syndicate partners as portfolio companies scale. Lead tendency is best characterized as "both."
Recent Activity
Hatteras closed over $200M in new capital in August 2025 across two vehicles - Hatteras Venture Partners VII and Hatteras Opportunity Fund I - coinciding with the firm's 25th year of operations and its 100th portfolio company investment. The firm remains actively deploying in 2026:
- July 2026: CREATE Medicines received approval to begin its first-in-human Phase 1/2 CAR-T trial (CRT-402) for autoimmune disease; Wildflower Health (portfolio co.) acquired Every Mother to expand maternal/pelvic-floor care.
- June 2026: HistoSonics announced a new financing round with participation from Yosemite and other strategics; Cardiosense received FDA De Novo classification for its cardiac monitoring technology.
- May 2026: CREATE Medicines raised a $122M round to advance its CAR-T pipeline; Bayer announced its acquisition of portfolio company Perfuse Therapeutics to complement its ophthalmology pipeline.
Portfolio Highlights
Hatteras has built or backed 100+ life-sciences companies since 2000, with a notable exit track record including multiple IPOs (CVRx, Kymera Therapeutics, G1 Therapeutics, Shattuck Labs, Vigil Neuroscience, Clearside Biomedical, Graybug Vision, PhaseBio Pharmaceuticals) and acquisitions (HistoSonics by Bezos Expeditions/Wellington K5 Global for ~$2.25B, Perfuse Therapeutics by Bayer, Rodin Therapeutics by Alkermes, Qpex Biopharma by Shionogi, Lysosomal Therapeutics by Bial, Dropworks by Bio-Rad, Curoverse by Veritas Genetics, StrideBio by Ginkgo Bioworks). Current active portfolio spans ~49 companies across gene therapy (Atsena Therapeutics), RNA-targeting small molecules (Ribometrix), CAR-T (CREATE Medicines, Code Bio), cardiac devices (AtaCor Medical, Cardiosense), neuromodulation (Avivomed, iVEAcare, Synaptrix), diagnostics (Mercy BioAnalytics, Qvella), and digital health (Gozio, Carallel, Huma.AI, Wildflower Health).
Team
- Christy Shaffer, PhD - General Partner
- Douglas Reed, MD - General Partner
- John Crumpler - General Partner
- Clay B. Thorp - General Partner
- Ben Scruggs, PhD - Partner (promoted 2025)
- Kseniya Simpson, PhD - Partner
- Lauren P. Flickinger - Partner & Fund Manager (promoted 2025)
- Fred Goldwater - Venture Partner
- Holden Thorp - Venture Partner
- Myla Lai-Goldman, MD - Venture Partner
- Kenneth B. Lee, Jr. - Venture Partner
- Kim Hodges - CFO
- Parker Johnson - Head of Investor Relations
- Graham Smith - Associate
- Declan Devens - Operations Analyst
- Kirkland Hendrickson - Program Manager
- Heather Madsen, PhD - Operating Partner
- Alston Gardner - Special Advisor
The firm's founding partner, Robert A. Ingram (former Chairman/CEO of Glaxo Wellcome), passed away in 2023 and is memorialized on the team page.
Decision Process
Hatteras operates as a multi-partner investment partnership with four General Partners (Shaffer, Reed, Crumpler, Thorp) driving investment decisions, supported by a broader partner and venture-partner bench with deep operating and clinical experience - consistent with a partnership-style decision process rather than a solo-GP or formal IC model.
Founder Preferences
The firm favors scientific founders and academic spinouts (frequently sourced directly from Duke, UNC, and NC State tech-transfer offices) paired with experienced life-sciences operating executives, reflecting a "build alongside the science" model rather than pure follow-on capital.
Geographic Focus
Historically concentrated in the Southeast US and Research Triangle region (Durham, NC headquarters; dedicated regional vehicles include the Pisgah Fund for Western NC, the Carolina Research Ventures Fund for UNC-Chapel Hill spinouts, the Healthcare Innovation Venture Fund tied to WakeMed and Baptist Health System, and the NC-backed Venture Capital Multiplier Fund). With Fund VII and the Opportunity Fund, the firm has expanded its mandate to invest in biotech, medtech, and healthtech across North America while retaining its regional sourcing advantage.