When Ariel Ganz first noticed an abnormal lump in her breast, it was about a decade before an MRI would confirm it. For the past nine years, doctors had told her it was likely hormonal. She ended up undergoing an elective whole-body MRI that caught her breast cancer early enough for her to survive — but that experience convinced her that healthcare built around population averages had failed her.
And that realization became the founding thesis behind Arben Ventures, a fund focused on precision health and longevity that Ganz co-founded three years ago.
Equipped with a molecular nutrition PhD from Cornell and a Stanford genetics postdoc, Ganz and her fund have since backed 83 early-stage digital health startups. The portfolio spans early cancer detection, AI-native health records, at-home care and personalized medicine.
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Those 83 investments have since drawn more than $200 million in follow-on funding, and four portfolio companies have earned FDA clearances, Ganz noted.
She attributed part of that track record to Arben’s willingness to write early checks before larger funds are willing to commit.
“Even with a small check size, we’re often the first investor outright, or the first in that round,” Ganz said.
In some cases, Arben has set the terms for a round that a much larger investor was waiting on the sidelines to join, she pointed out. Ganz added that this early conviction approach has also shaped who the fund backs, with 72% of its capital going to underrepresented founders and 27% to all-female founding teams.
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Arben’s portfolio touches dozens of specialties. In early cancer detection, the fund backed Malcova, which is developing an imaging system its team believes could eventually replace mammography for many women, particularly those with dense breast tissue that standard mammograms struggle to read. In addiction medicine, Arben backed NorthStar Care, an at-home alcohol use disorder program that treats the condition as a biological and metabolic issue rather than a matter of willpower.
And in behavioral health infrastructure, Arben invested in Allia Health, an AI-native EHR now used by roughly 8,000 providers that can flag missed diagnoses, such as early psychosis or thyroid issues, directly from clinical notes.
“We’re investing in things we think should exist more, rather than trying to judge whether something is good or bad today,” Ganz said.
Ganz said Arben is now raising a larger fund to give founders more meaningful capital earlier — the kind of support she believes could cut down the time it takes an early, unconventional idea to become something that patients and providers can use.
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