Norwest Venture Partners Hires Tiba Aynechi as General Partner on Healthcare Investment Team

PALO ALTO, Calif., Jan. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Norwest Venture Partners, a leading venture capital and growth equity investment firm, announced today that Tiba Aynechi, Ph. D., has joined the investment team as a general partner to lead its biotech practice.

Tiba brings nearly two decades of life sciences research and investing experience, spanning various therapeutic areas and technology platforms. She joins Norwest from Novo Holdings A/S, where she served from 2010 to 2021, most recently as a senior partner.

"I am excited for Tiba to join our team, having had the opportunity to work side by side with her for many years on the boards of Avalyn Pharma and iRhythm Technologies," said Casper de Clercq, general partner, Norwest Venture Partners. "Her investment track record building innovative companies will be valuable as we extend our focus into biotechnology with our newly raised fund."

"Today, innovations in healthcare impact every facet of our lives – from AI and tech-enabled platforms to advances in biology and genomics," said Tiba Aynechi, general partner, Norwest Venture Partners. "Norwest has an impressive track record and I look forward to broadening our healthcare and biotech practice."

During her 11 years at Novo Holdings A/S, Tiba invested in numerous companies and served on the boards of Aristea Therapeutics, Avalyn Pharma, Arcellx, Allievex, Cianna Medical (acquired by Merit Medical), iRhythm Technologies (IPO), MDLIVE (acquired by Cigna), Mirum Pharmaceuticals (IPO), Nkarta (IPO) and Spruce Biosciences (IPO).

Tiba earned a doctoral degree from the Graduate Group in Biophysics at the University of California, San Francisco, where her research involved developing computational methods for drug discovery. She also earned a Bachelor's degree in Physics from the University of California, Irvine. Tiba is a published author of scientific articles and several book chapters in the area of rational drug design.

Last month, Norwest announced the close of a $3 billion fund that will invest across consumer, enterprise and healthcare markets. With this fund, Norwest will expand into biotechnology in addition to investing in healthcare IT, healthcare services, pharma services and medical devices. Among the innovative companies in Norwest's portfolio are Avalyn Pharma, BillionToOne, Blue Cloud, Clever Care Health Plan, Excision Biotherapeutics, Kyo, Monogram Health, Mindful Health Solutions, Neocis, Omada Health, Onsite Dental, Robin, Route 92 Medical, Target RWE and TigerConnect.

Norwest's healthcare exits include Basis (acquired by Intel), Capsugel (acquired by Lonza), Crossover Health (acquired by private equity), Devoro Medical (acquired by Boston Scientific), Health Catalyst (IPO), Intersect ENT (IPO), iCardiac (acquired by ERT), iRhythm Technologies (IPO), Misfit Wearables (acquired by Fossil), Silk Road Medical (IPO), Talkspace (SPAC), Telcare (acquired by BioTelemetry) and VisitPay (acquired by R1).

About Norwest Venture Partners
Norwest is a leading venture and growth equity investment firm managing more than $12.5 billion in capital. Since its inception, Norwest has invested in more than 650 companies and currently partners with more than 200 companies in its venture and growth equity portfolio. The firm invests in early to late-stage businesses across a wide range of sectors with a focus on consumer, enterprise, and healthcare. The Norwest team offers a deep network of connections, operating experience, and a wide range of impactful services to help CEOs and founders scale their businesses. Norwest has offices in Palo Alto and San Francisco, with subsidiaries in India and Israel. For more information, please visit www.nvp.com. Follow Norwest on Twitter @NorwestVP.

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SOURCE Norwest Venture Partners