Karl Handelsman is the Founder and Managing Partner of Codon Capital. See contact routes.
Karl Handelsman is the Founder and Managing Partner of Codon Capital, a San Francisco-based venture capital firm he established in 2013 to invest in early-stage biotechnology. His investment thesis targets Series A synthetic biology and therapeutic startups, focusing on pre-clinical companies that translate cutting-edge life sciences research into viable products for healthcare and agriculture. Codon Capital typically leads Series A rounds with check sizes ranging from $30 million to $121 million, acting as the lead partner on 49 deals. Notable portfolio companies include Bonum Therapeutics, which raised $93 million in a Series A round in 2022, and Clear Labs, which secured $21 million in a Series B round in 2018. Handelsman also serves as an Investment Director at Roche Venture Fund and has invested in over three dozen biotech companies over 18 years, including Amplyx Pharmaceuticals, Vaxart, and Arcus Biosciences. He distinguishes his firm as the "Unicorn Whisperer" due to four companies exiting in under 18 months from their Series A, and he actively teaches bio-entrepreneurship at UCSF and the NIH.
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