Corundum Neuroscience

What Corundum Neuroscience does

Corundum Neuroscience LTD. (CNS) is a privately-held, neuroscience-focused investment and venture-building firm headquartered in Herzliya, Israel. The firm operates a three-pillar "lab-to-life" model: (1) advancing academic neuroscience research through its Academic Grant Program, which has deployed $5M+ across 51 grants supporting 102 researchers and producing 50+ publications at institutions including Tel Aviv University, MIT, Columbia, Weizmann, Hebrew University, UW-Madison, and Harvard; (2) co-creating new companies from breakthrough neuroscience IP; and (3) making direct equity investments in neuroscience startups. Its four disclosed portfolio companies span the neuroscience stack: GrayMatters Health (digital self-neuromodulation therapeutics, 2023 Prix Galien USA Best Startup winner), NextSense (clinical-grade EEG earbuds for sleep, Series A November 2025), NeuraWorx (bioelectronic cerebrovascular pacing for glymphatic system function), and Pheno.AI (operator of the Human Phenotype Project, a multi-omic longitudinal dataset for biomarker discovery).

CNS is staffed by approximately 10 employees, including a PhD-heavy leadership team: CEO Liron Nunez Weissman, Chief Scientist Josh Schulman Ph.D. (prior regulatory affairs at MaxQ AI and Omrix Biopharmaceuticals), Head of Business Development Itsik Francis Ph.D. (former Principal at OurCrowd and Head of Innovation at Medison Ventures), and US-based senior leads Sara Shnider Ph.D. (former Director at Teva Pharmaceuticals) and JoJo Platt. The firm generates returns through equity ownership in portfolio companies and earns no product revenue; it does not sell products or services and has no disclosed pricing.

In 2025, CNS materially accelerated its activity: it participated in NextSense's $16M oversubscribed Series A (November 2025), entered a joint venture with Offline Studio and Corundum Systems Biology to create new ventures from the Human Phenotype Project (October 2025), and expanded its US presence with dedicated US Academic Innovation and Partnerships leads. Strategic academic collaborations include named PIs Prof. Talma Hendler (Sagol Brain Institute, Tel Aviv), Prof. Asya Rolls (Tel Aviv University, neuroimmune research), and Prof. Richard J. Davidson (Center for Healthy Minds, UW-Madison). The firm is independent, founder-led, and privately held with no disclosed parent company, institutional investors, or fund economics.

Name

Corundum Neuroscience

Legal name

Corundum Neuroscience LTD.

Website

https://cnsfund.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Corundum Neuroscience is a privately-held neuroscience-focused investment and venture-building firm that funds academic research, co-creates companies, and invests in startups across sleep, neuromodulation, brain sensing, and computational neuroscience. It serves researchers, founders, and pharma from Herzliya, Israel with a ~10-person PhD-led team.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Neuroscience Venture Capital

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Research & Science Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAI)

Keywords

• Neuroscience venture capital
• Research grant funding
• Venture building services
• Brain technology investment
• Biotech startup funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Herzliya

HQ country

Israel

HQ region

Middle East

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Investment Returns: CNS generates returns through equity investments in neuroscience startups, receiving ownership stakes in portfolio companies formed through their venture building process. Returns are realized through exits via acquisition, IPO, or secondary sales.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Corundum Neuroscience is a neuroscience-focused investment and venture-building organization that operates a "lab-to-life" model. It provides research grants to academic scientists, builds and funds early-stage neuroscience companies, and makes direct equity investments in startups developing neurotechnology, neuromodulation, brain sensing, sleep technology, and computational neuroscience solutions.

Product overview

Corundum Neuroscience is a neuroscience-focused investment and venture-building firm that operates a multi-stage innovation model supporting the translation of neuroscience research from lab to market. The company does not offer a single unified product but rather provides a portfolio of services including research grants, venture building support, and direct investment in neuroscience companies. Its portfolio companies include GrayMatters Health (digital neuromodulation therapeutics), NextSense (EEG-based sleep tracking earbuds), NeuraWorx (cerebrovascular pacing technology), and Pheno.AI (multi-omic health data platform). Through partnerships with Offline Studio, Corundum also contributes to venture creation using data from the Human Phenotype Project.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• GrayMatters Health A portfolio company in which Corundum Neuroscience has invested that develops digital self-neuromodulation therapeutics for mental disorders, helping patients regain agency over emotion regulation.
• NextSense A portfolio company in which Corundum Neuroscience has invested that develops wireless earbuds with embedded clinical-grade EEG sensors that translate real-time brain activity into actionable insights to improve sleep, focus, and relaxation.
• NeuraWorx A portfolio company in which Corundum Neuroscience has invested that focuses on developing Intelligent Cerebrovascular Pacing as a first-in-class bioelectronic technology aimed at improving brain health by enhancing glymphatic system function.
• Pheno.AI A portfolio company in which Corundum Neuroscience has invested that operates the Human Phenotype Project, a global effort to collect the world's largest deep-phenotype, multi-omic longitudinal dataset enabling biomarker discovery, drug development, and precision medicine.

Quantifiable outcome

• 51 research grants awarded, 50+ publications generated, $5M+ in total giving, 102 researchers supported

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Offline StudiocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorundum Neuroscience and Corundum Systems Biology partnered with Offline Studio in October 2025 to create new ventures using data from the Human Phenotype Project. The initiative involves staged investments and collaborative project development, with Offline Studio leading the venture creation process.
• Prof. Asya Rolls, Tel Aviv UniversitymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCNS awarded a research grant to Prof. Asya Rolls to map brain regions active during different inflammatory states and explore neuromodulation targets for autoimmune diseases. Collaboration with Prof. Talma Hendler's group on neuroimmune research.
• Prof. Richard J. Davidson, Center for Healthy Minds, University of Wisconsin-MadisonmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCNS collaborated with Prof. Davidson on scientific research to measure and promote well-being. Prof. Davidson leads the Center for Healthy Minds and Healthy Minds Innovation at UW-Madison, working on plasticity of emotional wellbeing using mHealth approaches.
• Prof. Talma Hendler, Tel Aviv University / Sagol Brain InstitutemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCNS has funded several research projects involving Prof. Talma Hendler, founding director of the Sagol Brain Institute at Tel-Aviv University Sourasky Medical Center. Research focuses on brain-immune interactions and self-neuromodulation technologies.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Satori Neuro: Consumer neurotech venture firm that co-invested with CNS in NextSense's $16M Series A; almost identical investment thesis around consumer-facing brain technology and a very similar early-stage operating model.
• Lux Capital: Deep-tech venture firm with significant, long-running neurotech portfolio (e.g., Mosaic, Neuralink, Synchron), making it one of the closest publicly visible comparables to CNS's specialist neuroscience focus.
• Section32: Specialist health-tech and life-sciences venture fund founded by a former Google Ventures partner; comparable single-domain science-driven investing style and stage focus.
• Kizoo Ventures: Longevity and rejuvenation biotech venture firm with a science-driven, deep-tech thesis and patient capital approach that closely mirrors CNS's lab-to-life model in the neuroscience vertical.

Broad incumbents

• ARCH Venture Partners: Large, established deep-tech and life-sciences venture firm that has long invested across neuroscience-adjacent categories (CNS therapeutics, brain-computer interfaces); a broader incumbent whose portfolio overlaps CNS's domain.
• Khosla Ventures: Large generalist venture firm with a substantial and growing life-sciences practice investing across neurotech, mental health, and digital therapeutics that competes with CNS for the same founders.
• Andreessen Horowitz (a16z Bio/Health): Dedicated bio/health investment arm of a16z investing across life sciences, digital health, and neurotech; competes with CNS at the founder and Series A level.
• OrbiMed: One of the largest healthcare-dedicated investment firms globally, with broad CNS/neurology exposure across therapeutics and devices that overlaps CNS's portfolio themes.
• Leaps by Bayer: Bayer's impact-focused venture arm with major neurotech, mental health, and bioelectronic medicine investments (e.g., Compass Pathways, Joyous); a well-capitalized incumbent in adjacent categories.

Emerging players

• Civilization Ventures: Early-stage venture firm focused on longevity and healthspan with a science-driven thesis and similar patient-capital model; smaller and earlier-stage than CNS but closely comparable in operating approach.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/CNSfund
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCBqUFcrPTxrsxPnpVLygh4g
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/corundum-neuroscience

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments1 record

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

Frequently asked questions about Corundum Neuroscience