What Domain Associates does

Domain Associates (operating as DomainVC) is a San Diego-based venture capital firm founded in 1985 with an exclusive focus on the life sciences sector. The firm was the investment advisor to the first VC fund dedicated to biotechnology and has subsequently managed nine dedicated biotech VC funds, accumulating $2.8 billion in assets under management. Its portfolio spans biopharmaceutical, medical device, and diagnostic companies, with 194 companies funded over the firm's history resulting in 90 IPOs and 110 M&A exits and a combined market capitalization of $190 billion across portfolio companies.

The firm generates revenue through standard venture capital economics, including management fees charged on assets under management and carried interest on successful investment exits. Its limited partners are institutional investors committing capital to its dedicated biotech funds, and the firm sources new investments through partner networks, industry conferences, and direct relationships with life sciences entrepreneurs. The team consists of six active partners (James Blair, Brian Halak, Kim Kamdar, Nicole Vitullo, plus an additional partner listed in the team roster), one partner emeritus (Jesse Treu), a managing director of finance and administration (Lisa Kraeutler), and two venture partners (Dennis Podlesak, Eckard Weber). The firm has experienced the loss of two senior leaders, Partner Brian Dovey (In Memoriam 2023) and Partner and CFO Kathleen Schoemaker (In Memoriam 2016).

Domain Associates does not produce technology products; its underlying capability is investing acumen, sector specialization, and relationship networks developed over nearly four decades. The firm was recognized in 2025 by Greenlight as one of the Top 50 Venture Capital Firms for Medical Device Startups. As a private firm, revenue is not publicly disclosed and no subsidiaries, parent company, or public listing is identified.

Name

Domain Associates

Legal name

DomainVC

Website

https://domainvc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Domain Associates is a San Diego-based venture capital firm founded in 1985 that invests exclusively in life sciences, managing $2.8 billion across nine biotech VC funds with 194 portfolio companies and 90 IPOs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

San Diego

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Investment Management: Domain Associates generates revenue through management fees charged on assets under management and carried interest (performance fees) on successful investment exits including IPOs and M&A transactions. As the investment manager of 9 biotech VC funds, the firm earns fees from limited partners (institutional investors) who commit capital to its funds.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Domain Associates (DomainVC) is a venture capital firm that manages biotech-focused investment funds and provides equity capital to early and growth-stage biopharmaceutical, medical device, and diagnostic companies. Founded in 1985 as investment advisor to the first VC fund dedicated to biotech, the firm has since managed 9 subsequent biotech VC funds totaling $2.8 billion in assets under management.

Product overview

DomainVC operates as a venture capital firm focused exclusively on the biotechnology sector. The company serves as investment advisors to the first VC fund dedicated to biotech and has managed 9 subsequent biotech VC funds. The single unified offering is their VC fund management and investment advisory services for biotech companies in the biopharm, medical device, and diagnostic sectors. The portfolio companies they have funded (194 companies) represent their investment portfolio managed through these VC fund structures.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Biotech Venture Capital Funds

Quantifiable outcome

• 194 biopharm, device and diagnostic companies funded to successful exits
• +3 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• RA Capital Management: RA Capital is a Boston-based specialist life sciences investor that builds dedicated biotech and medtech funds, directly comparable to Domain's model of running multiple biotech-focused VC funds targeting therapeutics, devices, and diagnostics.
• ARCH Venture Partners: ARCH is one of the largest dedicated biotech-focused VC firms, managing multiple life sciences funds and co-founding companies across therapeutics, diagnostics, and devices — directly comparable to Domain in fund structure, vertical specialization, and stage focus.
• Atlas Venture: Atlas Venture is an early-stage life sciences-focused VC firm that builds and funds biotech startups across modalities, directly comparable to Domain's therapeutics and platforms investing approach with a similarly concentrated sector focus.
• OrbiMed: OrbiMed is a healthcare-dedicated investment firm across private equity, venture, and royalty strategies covering biopharma, medical devices, and diagnostics — directly comparable to Domain in its exclusive life sciences mandate and multi-fund structure.
• Versant Ventures: Versant is a healthcare-focused VC firm operating multiple funds and an in-house biotech incubator (Inception), closely comparable to Domain's long-standing practice of seeding and funding biotech, device, and diagnostic companies through dedicated life sciences funds.
• Flagship Pioneering: Flagship Pioneering is a biotech-focused firm that creates and funds platform companies across therapeutics and diagnostics — directly comparable to Domain in its exclusive life sciences mandate and its approach of building and backing biotech ventures through multiple funds.
• 5AM Ventures: 5AM Ventures is an early-stage life sciences venture firm investing across biopharma and platform technologies, directly comparable to Domain in its focused biotech mandate and similar fund-vintage approach.
• Venrock: Venrock is a venture firm with a longstanding healthcare and biotech practice investing in therapeutics, diagnostics, and devices — directly comparable to Domain in life sciences specialization and early/growth-stage investing across similar modalities.

Broad incumbents

• New Enterprise Associates (NEA): NEA is a large, multi-stage venture firm with a dedicated healthcare practice investing in biopharma, devices, and digital health — comparable to Domain as a fellow life sciences investor, but operating as a broad incumbent across many sectors rather than a biotech-exclusive specialist.
• Kleiner Perkins: Kleiner Perkins is a multi-stage venture firm with a dedicated life sciences practice investing across therapeutics, devices, and digital health — comparable to Domain in life sciences investing, though operating as a broad tech-and-health incumbent rather than an exclusively biotech-focused specialist.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/domainvc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/domain-associates

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments310 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Domain Associates