SciFounders
SciFounders is a San Francisco-based venture fellowship firm founded in 2021 that backs technical founders building science-based companies from pre-seed to Series A through its SciFounder Fellowship, offering up to $1MM in funding and hands-on mentorship led by founders of Mammoth Biosciences and Conception.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What SciFounders does
SciFounders is a San Francisco-based venture fellowship firm founded in 2021 that backs technical founders building research-heavy science companies from pre-seed to Series A. The firm's primary product is the SciFounder Fellowship, which provides selected founders with up to $1MM in funding, hands-on mentorship, and ongoing access to the firm's investor network. SciFounders typically takes approximately 12% equity in pre-seed and seed investments, and explicitly does not claim ownership of underlying IP, patents, or royalties generated by portfolio companies.
The portfolio is concentrated in life sciences, including biotech (Olio Labs, Engage Bio, Xterna, Fletcher, DeliverBio, Velorum, Sculpta, Moab, Preventive, Endura, HarborSite), medical devices (Current Surgical, Luminate, Trace Biosciences), and adjacent frontier tech (Earth AI for mining). Several founders are credited with building prior science companies that raised substantial capital — Mammoth Biosciences (~$450MM raised, co-founded with Nobel Laureate Jennifer Doudna) and Conception (~$100MM raised) — which serves as both the firm's credibility signal and a recurring source of network and deal-flow advantages.
SciFounders operates with a lean team of 1-10 employees led by three co-founders: Matt Krisiloff (CEO of Conception, formerly Y Combinator Research and OpenAI), Lucas Harrington (CSO of Mammoth Biosciences, PhD from UC Berkeley under Jennifer Doudna), and Alexander Schubert (PhD from Cambridge, formerly of Genentech's R&D group). Distribution is content-led through a blog, virtual workshops, and direct email outreach, with the firm explicitly serving founders globally while preferring US-incorporated entities. The business model is classic early-stage venture economics: capital deployment in exchange for equity, with returns contingent on portfolio exits.
SciFounders firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- SciFounders
- Legal name
- SciFounders
- Website
- https://scifounders.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- SciFounders is a San Francisco-based venture fellowship firm founded in 2021 that backs technical founders building science-based companies from pre-seed to Series A through its SciFounder Fellowship, offering up to $1MM in funding and hands-on mentorship led by founders of Mammoth Biosciences and Conception.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
SciFounders industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Venture Capital / Startup Funding
- NAICS
- Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394)
- SIC
- Investment Advice (6282)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists) (FSANAAAD)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B) (FSANAAAB)
Keywords
Where SciFounders is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
SciFounders business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Equity investments in portfolio companies: SciFounders generates returns through equity ownership in early-stage science companies. They typically take approximately 12% equity for pre-seed to seed investments. The fellowship provides up to $1MM in funding in exchange for equity stake.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | SciFounder Fellowship - up to $1MM funding with mentorship |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
SciFounders product offering
Product offeringCore offering
SciFounders runs the SciFounder Fellowship, providing up to $1MM in funding and hands-on mentorship to technical founders building research-heavy science startups from pre-seed to Series A, primarily in life sciences. In exchange for capital, the firm takes an equity stake (approximately 12% at pre-seed to seed) and provides ongoing operational support including investor introductions, company formation help, and shared lab space connections. The team also originates their own science companies and participates as an investor in follow-on rounds of portfolio companies.
Product overview
SciFounders operates as a venture fellowship program rather than a traditional product company. The primary offering is the SciFounder Fellowship, which provides up to $1MM in funding along with hands-on mentorship from founders who have built successful science companies. The company focuses on backing strong technical leaders working on world-changing technologies from pre-seed to Series A stages.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- SciFounder Fellowship: Funding and mentorship program for early-stage startups working on challenging technologies, offering up to $1MM and hands-on mentorship.
Products and services
- SciFounder Fellowship A funding and mentorship program for early-stage science-based startups working on challenging technologies, offering up to $1MM in capital and hands-on mentorship from experienced technical founders (Mammoth Biosciences, Conception alumni). Targets technical founders from pre-seed to Series A, primarily in life sciences, in exchange for equity (~12% at pre-seed to seed).
Companies that use SciFounders
Customer profileNamed customers15 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
SciFounders technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
SciFounders partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
SciFounders competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Pillar VC: Boston-based pre-seed firm that builds alongside technical founders including in life sciences; comparable in operator-investor approach, stage, and check size range.
- 1517 Fund: Pre-seed/seed fund that backs young technical founders leaving universities and research labs; comparable in targeting young technical talent, founder-first philosophy, and small check sizes at pre-seed.
- IndieBio: Biotech-specific accelerator providing seed funding, lab space, and mentorship to science founders — directly overlapping with SciFounders' fellowship in target customer (technical founders), offering (funding + lab + mentorship), and stage (pre-seed/seed).
- Petri: Early-stage biotech investor and accelerator providing capital and founder support to science startups at pre-seed and seed, with a similar operator-led ethos targeting first-time technical founders.
Regional players
- BioGenerator: St. Louis-based nonprofit life-sciences investor and accelerator providing pre-seed funding and lab space to bio startups; comparable in stage and offering but focused on a regional ecosystem rather than global.
Others
- Conception: Portfolio-originator and CEO-led company by SciFounders co-founder Matt Krisiloff; while not a peer investor, it reflects SciFounders' 'we start companies too' model and provides a template for the operator-investor flywheel.
- MBC BioLabs: Bay Area shared lab operator for early-stage biotech startups; SciFounders refers portfolio companies to shared lab space and MBC provides complementary infrastructure, making them ecosystem partners rather than direct competitors.
Broad incumbents
- Andreessen Horowitz (a16z Bio): Major venture firm with a dedicated Bio + Health fund led by general partners with operating backgrounds; competes for the same bio-founder talent pool and increasingly at pre-seed through their building-and-investing model.
- Y Combinator: Largest pre-seed/seed accelerator with a growing bio track (YC Bio). SciFounders co-founder Matt Krisiloff was previously at YC Research, and both compete for technical founders at the earliest stage, though YC is sector-agnostic while SciFounders is science-focused.
- Atlas Venture: Established biotech-focused early-stage venture firm that builds and funds science companies from inception. Closely comparable in life-sciences focus and stage, though significantly larger and with deeper pharma partnerships.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
SciFounders social profiles
Digital presenceSciFounders financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
SciFounders leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
SciFounders funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
SciFounders M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments13 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about SciFounders
What does SciFounders do?
SciFounders runs the SciFounder Fellowship, providing up to $1MM in funding and hands-on mentorship to technical founders building research-heavy science startups from pre-seed to Series A, primarily in life sciences. In exchange for capital, the firm takes an equity stake (approximately 12% at pre-seed to seed) and provides ongoing operational support including investor introductions, company formation help, and shared lab space connections. The team also originates their own science companies and participates as an investor in follow-on rounds of portfolio companies.
Is SciFounders a public or private company?
SciFounders is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was SciFounders founded?
SciFounders was founded in 2021. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is SciFounders based?
SciFounders is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does SciFounders make money?
One revenue line is on record: equity investments in portfolio companies.
Who are SciFounders's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Pillar VC, 1517 Fund, IndieBio and Petri. BioGenerator is listed as a regional player. Others are Conception and MBC BioLabs. Broad incumbents are Andreessen Horowitz (a16z Bio), Y Combinator and Atlas Venture.
Does SciFounders have an API?
No public API is recorded for SciFounders.
What industry is SciFounders in?
SciFounders's product category is Venture Capital / Startup Funding. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAAAD, Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists), with a secondary code of FSANAAAB, Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B). Its NAICS code is 52394 and its SIC code is 6282.