Lilly Ventures

What Lilly Ventures does

Lilly Ventures is the corporate venture capital arm of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY), a US-based pharmaceutical corporation headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. Founded in 2001, the firm is a lean unit (1-10 employees) that provides equity investments to life sciences and biotechnology companies across various stages, modalities, and therapeutic areas. Its investment focus is strategic, designed to advance Eli Lilly's interests in emerging biotech innovation rather than to generate standalone financial returns.

Lilly Ventures operates as the equity-investment leg of Lilly Catalyze360, a unified external-innovation platform that also includes Lilly Gateway Labs (physical laboratory facilities and scientific engagement) and Lilly ExploR&D (R&D solutions and scientific expertise). Through this three-part structure, Lilly engages biotechs from earliest discovery stages and offers flexible pathways to partner with Eli Lilly across the drug development lifecycle. The venture arm maintains a deliberate Asia-Pacific focus, evidenced by its Singapore operations office and the December 2025 hiring of Ronne Yeo as Senior Director for Investments in that region.

The business model centers on equity investment into life sciences startups in exchange for ownership stakes, with returns typically realized through exits such as IPOs or acquisitions. As a corporate VC, Lilly Ventures does not charge external management fees; its economic model relies on capital appreciation tied to portfolio company outcomes. Notable recent activity includes participation in NewLimit's $435 million Series C round in June 2026, alongside tier-one venture firms including Founders Fund, Thrive Capital, Kleiner Perkins, and Greenoaks. Differentiators for portfolio companies include access to Eli Lilly's ~150 years of pharmaceutical expertise, manufacturing and commercialization resources, and potential pathways to strategic partnership with a major pharmaceutical company.

Name

Lilly Ventures

Legal name

Lilly Ventures (Eli Lilly and Company)

Website

https://lillyventures.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Lilly Ventures is the corporate venture capital arm of Eli Lilly and Company, providing equity investments to life sciences and biotechnology startups. It operates within the Lilly Catalyze360 ecosystem alongside Gateway Labs and ExploR&D, with a focus on sourcing biotech innovation, including from Asia-Pacific markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Life Sciences Venture Capital

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Late-Stage Venture Capital (Series C+) (FSANAAAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B) (FSANAAAB)

Keywords

• Venture capital investment
• Life sciences funding
• Biotech equity investment
• Corporate venture capital
• Pharmaceutical startup funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Indianapolis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Investment Returns: Lilly Ventures generates returns through equity investments in life sciences startups, providing capital to early and growth-stage biotech companies in exchange for ownership stakes that appreciate in value or generate returns upon exit events such as IPOs or acquisitions.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Core offering

Lilly Ventures is the corporate venture capital arm of Eli Lilly and Company that provides equity investments to early and growth-stage life sciences and biotechnology startups. It operates as the investment component of the Lilly Catalyze360 ecosystem and focuses on sourcing promising biotech opportunities across various therapeutic areas, with a deliberate emphasis on the Asia-Pacific region. The firm invests in exchange for ownership stakes that can appreciate in value or generate returns upon exit events such as IPOs or acquisitions.

Product overview

Lilly Catalyze360 is a unified platform program comprising three interconnected offerings: Lilly Ventures (the corporate VC arm providing equity investments), Lilly Gateway Labs (offering laboratory facilities and scientific engagement), and Lilly ExploR&D (providing external R&D solutions). Together they enable Eli Lilly to engage biotech companies at the earliest stages across various therapeutic areas, supporting discovery through commercialization.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Lilly Ventures Corporate venture capital arm of Eli Lilly and Company that provides equity investments to early and growth-stage life sciences and biotechnology startups in exchange for ownership stakes. Designed for biotech companies seeking capital as well as strategic partnership and potential commercialization support from a major pharmaceutical corporation.
• Lilly Gateway Labs Lab facilities and scientific engagement program offering physical laboratory space and resources to early-stage biotech companies, enabling them to advance their research and development. Part of the broader Lilly Catalyze360 platform for biotech engagement.
• Lilly ExploR&D Research and development solutions providing external companies access to Eli Lilly's R&D capabilities, tools, and scientific expertise to eliminate obstacles and rapidly advance breakthroughs. Part of the broader Lilly Catalyze360 platform.
• Lilly Catalyze360 Unified platform that bundles Lilly Ventures (investment arm), Lilly Gateway Labs (lab facilities and scientific engagement), and Lilly ExploR&D (R&D solutions) to engage biotech companies at the earliest stages across various therapeutic areas, offering flexible pathways to partner with Eli Lilly across the drug development lifecycle.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Flagship Pioneering: Bioplatform innovation company that creates and funds life sciences ventures. Comparable as a significant life sciences investor and innovation originator, though structurally different — Flagship builds companies internally while Lilly Ventures invests in external startups.

Direct peers

• Novartis Venture Fund: Venture arm of Novartis investing in innovative life sciences companies across stages. Highly comparable as a top-tier pharma CVC with similar therapeutic-area alignment and stage-agnostic investing approach.
• Takeda Ventures: Corporate venture arm of Takeda Pharmaceutical investing in early-stage biotech. Comparable as a global pharma CVC with therapeutic-area-aligned investment strategy and ability to provide commercialization pathways.
• Pfizer Ventures: Corporate venture arm of Pfizer investing in early- and growth-stage biotech companies aligned with Pfizer's therapeutic areas. Direct peer given parallel CVC structure, life sciences focus, and similar mandate to provide strategic value to a major pharma parent.
• Amgen Ventures: Corporate venture arm of Amgen investing in therapeutics and biotechnology. Comparable as a biotech-major CVC with a strategic mandate focused on pipeline-adjacent innovations.
• Merck Global Health Innovation Fund: CVC of Merck investing in digital health and life sciences companies globally. Comparable as a major pharma's strategic investment vehicle with both equity and partnership capabilities.
• Roche Venture Fund: Corporate venture arm of Roche investing in early- and late-stage biotech and diagnostics. Directly comparable as a global pharma CVC with a strategic mandate tied to a parent company's R&D pipeline.
• Johnson & Johnson Innovation (JJDC): Corporate venture arm of J&J investing across life sciences and healthcare innovation. Direct peer — notably, Lilly Ventures' new APAC hire came directly from J&J Singapore, underscoring the comparable talent pool and competitive overlap.
• Bristol-Myers Squibb (Strategic Investments): BMS operates a strategic investment function making equity investments in biotech companies aligned with its therapeutic pipeline. Comparable as a major pharma's external innovation investing arm.
• AbbVie Ventures: Corporate VC arm of AbbVie making equity investments in biotech companies. Direct peer given similar therapeutic-area-driven investment thesis and post-spin-off pharma CVC structure.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

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&A

Investments86 records

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

Frequently asked questions about Lilly Ventures