Announcing the Close of Next Ventures II

Doubling down on whole-person health.

We’re proud to announce the close of Next Ventures II (“Fund II”) at $60 million, our second fund dedicated to partnering with founders defining whole-person health.

Since launching our first fund in 2019, we’ve had the privilege of backing talented teams that are enabling millions to live healthier, more capable lives. These companies are not only expanding access and extending healthspan, but also redefining how care is delivered in the U.S., challenging entrenched systems and raising the standard of what’s possible.

Today, healthcare is undergoing seismic change. Consumers are taking greater ownership of their health, and AI is emerging as a powerful enablement layer, driving efficiency, intelligence, and personalization across the care continuum. Against this backdrop, the opportunity set for investment is expanding significantly.

With institutional backing from the Oregon Growth Board and a strategic partnership with Oregon Health & Science University, this capital enhances our ability to partner with entrepreneurs who share our vision of a proactive and interconnected healthcare system that empowers individuals to take ownership of their well-being, extend their longevity, and define the future of health.

To date, Next Ventures II has partnered with five exceptional teams, and we are honored to welcome Josh (BranchLab), Michelle (WTHN), Lauren (Cofertility), Matt (Ramble), and Mark (Stealth) into the NV family.

Our Perspective

The age of health sovereignty is upon us. The word sovereignty is most often used to define a nation’s autonomy, territorial integrity, and the absolute right to govern its own affairs without interference from other states or supranational entities. However, as society enters the early stages of a fundamental shift in its relationship with health, the word takes on a new and compelling relevance, signifying a level of autonomy and control over one’s health decisions, free from undue influence by traditional healthcare gatekeepers. It embodies proactive ownership of well-being, where people have access to knowledge, resources, and tools to make informed choices about their bodies, lifestyles, and medical interventions.

This seminal moment is driven by a powerful convergence of grassroots momentum and top-down policy shifts. Influential voices like Andrew Huberman and Bryan Johnson, regardless of how you personally feel about their protocols, are awakening the masses, catalyzing a widespread push for health optimization, while a new administration signals a paradigm shift in U.S. health policy, prioritizing prevention and addressing the exposome. While the specifics may evolve, the trajectory is unmistakably positive for society.

As former athletes, patients, and leaders of world-class performance companies, we’ve long championed preventive strategies that integrate seamlessly across the care continuum. The reality is stark: 85% of health outcomes are shaped by what we call the “upstream layers of care”—fitness, nutrition, mindfulness, and social determinants of health—yet the U.S. healthcare system allocates 85% of its spending to reactive “sick care,” leaving just 15% for proactive wellness.¹ Put differently, we underinvest in the very factors that drive the vast majority of health outcomes.

This misalignment presents a massive opportunity – one we are uniquely positioned to address. Leveraging our deep domain expertise and lived experience, we are committed to bridging this gap. But translating ideology into impact is no small task. It requires collective effort enabled by the capital and conviction of our limited partners, the ambition of founders, and the strategic vision, governance, and eigenvector centrality of our Partnership. Change at this scale doesn’t happen in isolation. It takes a movement.

Whether by foresight or fortunate timing, embarking on this mission in 2019 proved to be a pivotal moment. While the pandemic’s impact was undeniably devastating, it catalyzed the health sovereignty movement. What began as a sobering reminder that we are not immortal quickly shifted into a pragmatic pursuit: How can we live as long and as well as possible?

Yet, the turbulence of the past few years has cast doubt on the permanence of this awakening. The precipitous rise and fall of connected fitness suggested fleeting enthusiasm rather than sustained behavior change. However, as younger generations matured and accumulated disposable income, reinforced by the influence of key opinion leaders, a deeper shift began to take root. The price inelasticity of “better-for-you” products has fueled a CPG boom. Leading multi-unit businesses in the category (e.g., $LTH, solidcore) are seeing record-high membership growth and in-center spend.² As the cost of advanced diagnostics falls, longevity-focused care models are moving beyond exclusivity, now combining comprehensive testing with personalized protocols. Meanwhile, public markets are rewarding cash-pay, consumer-driven clinical models revolutionizing care delivery (e.g., $HIMS).

But this shift isn’t solely a generational phenomenon. The rise of AI is fundamentally reshaping our relationship with health. Though still in its early days, AI is eliminating historically time-intensive friction points, giving people back the bandwidth to prioritize health. Generative tooling and agentic workflows are allowing us to reallocate our attention and resources, fueling what we believe to be a real consumer awakening. Further, as advancements in physical AI, including autonomous vehicles and humanoid robotics, continue to create abundance in attention and resources, the marginal dollar will increasingly flow toward healthspan and longevity.

We are profoundly grateful to our limited partners for their continued conviction in our thesis and to our founders who trust our vision and leadership. The age of health sovereignty is not a future ideal; it is unfolding in real time. The combination of capital and trust has enabled us to lead from the front, backing visionary teams and catalyzing a shift toward proactive, personalized, and empowered care. As this movement gains cultural, technological, and policy momentum, we believe we are not just participating in a generational opportunity. We are helping to shape it.

In great health,

Lance, Mel, and Jordan

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1. Magnan, S. (2017) and Hood, C.M., et al (2016), CMS, McKinsey

2. Life Time Group Holdings, Inc. 2025. Life Time Reports Second Quarter 2025 Financial Results. August 5. Life Time Mediaroom. https://news.lifetime.life/2025-08-05-Life-Time-Reports-Second-Quarter-2025-Financial-Results. L Catterton. 2025. Press. L Catterton. Accessed September 8, 2025. https://www.lcatterton.com/Press.html#!/LC-solidcore