Telegraph Hill Partners

What Telegraph Hill Partners does

Telegraph Hill Partners (THP) is a San Francisco-based venture capital and growth equity firm founded in 2001 by Matt Mackowski and Bob Shepler, who had partnered in a predecessor healthcare-focused firm (Mackowski & Shepler) since 1991. The firm invests growth capital into private life science, medical technology, and healthcare companies that have novel technologies, established customer bases, and innovative management teams, typically serving as lead or first institutional investor in bootstrapped companies. Sectors of focus include discovery tools and automation, diagnostics, healthcare IT, and medical devices, with portfolio companies spanning cell therapy manufacturing (Kytopen, Excellos, Cell Microsystems), CRISPR and genomics tools (EditCo Bio, n6 Tec), pharma services (Argonaut Manufacturing, Teknova), spatial biology (Akoya Biosciences, Carterra), and healthcare workflow software (Promptly, ETHERFAX). THP typically takes board seats and provides strategic guidance in addition to capital.

The firm is currently investing out of its fifth fund, which closed at $525 million in June 2022. Since founding, THP has backed 50+ portfolio companies and generated exits through strategic acquisitions by AbbVie (Nimble Therapeutics), Quanterix (Akoya Biosciences), QIAGEN (Verogen), bioMérieux (Specific Diagnostics), Mesa Laboratories (Agena Bioscience, $300M), and PAI Pharma (Nivagen), as well as IPOs including Teknova (NASDAQ:TKNO), Akoya Biosciences (NASDAQ:AKYA), and LDR (NASDAQ:LDRH). The team combines venture investors with life science operators, securities/M&A attorneys, and former healthcare company executives, supported by venture partners and senior advisors. Operations are run from a San Francisco headquarters at 300 Montgomery Street and a Research Triangle Park, NC office opened in 2021 by Partner Alex Herzick.

THP's revenue model is that of a traditional venture capital fund manager: it earns management fees on committed capital across multiple fund vintages and carries (profit participation) on realized exits. The firm is structured as a private limited partnership, is privately held, and does not publicly disclose revenue, fund returns, or LP composition.

Name

Telegraph Hill Partners

Legal name

Telegraph Hill Partners

Website

https://thpartners.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Telegraph Hill Partners is a San Francisco-based venture capital and growth equity firm, founded in 2001, that invests in private life science, medical technology, and healthcare companies as lead or first institutional investor. Currently investing from a $525 million fifth fund across 50+ portfolio companies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital and Growth Equity

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Other Financial Vehicles (52599)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Digital Infrastructure Funds (Data Centers, Fiber, Towers) (FSANAEAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Telecom, Networking & Infrastructure Growth Equity (FSANACAJ)

Keywords

• Venture capital investing
• Growth equity funding
• Life sciences investment
• Medical device capital
• Healthcare private equity

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Investment Management Returns: THP generates returns through equity investments in private healthcare companies. The firm takes ownership stakes in portfolio companies and realizes returns through exits via acquisitions, IPOs, and secondary sales.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Telegraph Hill Partners is a venture capital and growth equity firm that provides growth capital and strategic guidance to private life science, medical technology, and healthcare companies. The firm typically serves as the lead or first institutional investor, often for bootstrapped companies with revenues, solid customer bases, and innovative management teams. THP is currently investing out of its fifth fund, raised in June 2022, and supports portfolio companies through board representation and operational expertise across discovery tools & automation, diagnostics, healthcare IT, and medical devices.

Product overview

Telegraph Hill Partners is a venture capital and growth equity firm (not a product company) that provides growth capital and strategic guidance to life science, medical technology, and healthcare companies. The firm partners with innovative companies that have novel technologies, solid customer bases, and innovative management teams. THP makes investments into high-quality companies looking for capital to build and grow their organizations. The firm focuses on discovery tools & automation, diagnostics, healthcare IT, and medical devices sectors. Currently investing from its fifth fund, THP takes a long-term approach to building value through strategic guidance and operational support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Growth Capital Investment Services
• Portfolio Company Support

Quantifiable outcome

• Multiple successful exits through acquisitions by major companies including AbbVie, Qiagen, bioMérieux, Mesa Laboratories, and others
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Acrivon TherapeuticscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 June 2022Akoya Biosciences partnered with Acrivon Therapeutics to co-develop and commercialize Acrivon's OncoSignature test as a companion diagnostic. The test identifies patients likely to respond to ACR-368 therapy and will run on Akoya's PhenoImager Solution.
• AmerisourceBergencoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 January 2022AmerisourceBergen and TrakCel launched an integrated technology platform combining TrakCel's OCELLOS and Lash Group's Fusion. The platform accelerates patient access to cell and gene therapies and provides complete visibility throughout the treatment journey.
• Bio-TechnecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 January 2022Akoya Biosciences and Bio-Techne partnered to develop the first single-cell, spatial multiomics workflow for comprehensive analysis of tissue samples. The partnership combines Akoya's Phenoptics platform with Bio-Techne's RNAScope HiPlex v2 assay for RNA imaging, enabling rapid in situ analysis of multiple analytes at single cell resolution.
• PerkinElmercoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 14 December 2021Carterra signed an exclusive Asia-Pacific and Oceania region distribution agreement with PerkinElmer. PerkinElmer markets, sells, and services Carterra's LSA high-throughput SPR platform. This builds on equity investment PerkinElmer made in Carterra the prior year.
• PathAIcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 December 2021Akoya Biosciences and PathAI announced a collaboration to advance discovery and validation of novel predictive biomarkers for immunotherapies. The partnership combines Akoya's spatial phenotyping solutions with PathAI's AI-powered algorithms for spatial biomarker signatures.
• bioMérieuxcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 4 October 2021Specific Diagnostics signed multi-year reagent rental agreements with clinical microbiology laboratories in France, marking commercialization of the Reveal rapid AST instrument. Specific's direct team and distribution partner bioMérieux are broadening to additional European countries.
• Bio-TechnecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 September 2021Bio-Techne and Carterra initiated a clinical research collaboration for COVID-19 variant analysis. The partnership leverages Carterra's LSA platform to characterize SARS-CoV-2 variants, generating high-definition insights from patient serum samples including variant profiles and ACE-2 blocking potential.
• bioMérieuxcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 29 June 2021bioMérieux signed a co-exclusive distribution agreement for Specific Diagnostics' REVEAL Rapid AST system in Europe. Additionally, bioMérieux invested $10M through a Convertible Promissory Note to support commercial activities. bioMérieux holds approximately 8% equity stake in Specific Diagnostics.
• QIAGENcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 29 June 2021QIAGEN and Verogen entered a partnership granting QIAGEN rights to globally distribute Verogen's products. The milestone-driven distribution and development agreement aims to provide full sample to ID solutions for human identification laboratories by combining Verogen's NGS workflows with QIAGEN's sample prep automation.
• RayzeBiocoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 June 2021Nimble Therapeutics and RayzeBio entered a strategic collaboration to discover and develop novel peptide-based radiopharmaceuticals for cancer treatment. Nimble will receive upfront payments, research reimbursements, and milestone payments. RayzeBio has exclusive rights to develop and commercialize discovered peptides.
• IncytecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNimble Therapeutics expanded its strategic research collaboration with Incyte to discover additional novel peptide therapeutics. Nimble receives upfront payments and research reimbursements, with potential downstream milestone payments and royalties. Incyte has exclusive rights to develop and commercialize discovered peptides.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• NewVale Capital: Growth equity firm focused on innovative pharmaceutical and life science services businesses. Explicit co-investor with THP in Argonaut Manufacturing Services, making it the most directly comparable peer in size, sector, and stage focus.
• HealthQuest Capital: Healthcare-focused growth equity firm investing in commercial-stage companies across diagnostics, medical devices, and healthcare services. Highly comparable to THP in fund size, sector focus, and growth-stage orientation.
• Vivo Capital: Healthcare-focused investment firm with PE and venture funds across therapeutics, medical devices, and digital health. Direct competitor for healthcare growth-equity deals in a similar fund-size bracket.
• Ampersand Capital Partners: Specialist PE firm focused on life sciences tools, diagnostics, and pharma services. Direct peer given overlap with THP's discovery tools, diagnostics, and CDMO portfolio focus.
• Avista Capital Partners: Healthcare-focused PE firm investing in growth-stage pharma services, medical devices, and diagnostics. Overlaps with THP's healthcare growth-equity mandate.
• Linden Capital Partners: Healthcare-dedicated PE firm focused on middle-market growth equity and buyouts across healthcare services, products, and technology. Comparable in scale and sector specialization to THP.
• Signet Healthcare Partners: Healthcare growth equity firm investing in commercial-stage pharma, medical products, and services companies. Closely comparable to THP in stage, size, and sector concentration.
• Petra Capital Partners: Growth-equity firm investing in healthcare and technology-enabled services. Overlaps with THP in healthcare growth-equity mandate and fund size range.
• BelHealth Investment Partners: Healthcare-focused PE firm making growth and control investments across healthcare services, products, and technology. Comparable sector focus and lower-middle-market growth-equity orientation.

Broad incumbents

• Bain Capital Life Sciences: Larger, multi-fund life-sciences investment platform covering venture, growth, and public equities across biotech, medical devices, and tools. Competes with THP in growth-stage healthcare but at materially larger fund scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/telegraph-hill-partners

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A2 records

Investments46 records

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

Frequently asked questions about Telegraph Hill Partners