ARCH Venture Partners

ARCH Venture Partners is a Chicago-based early-stage life sciences venture capital firm founded in 1986 by Robert Nelsen, Keith Crandall, and Clinton Bybee while affiliated with Argonne National Laboratory, one of the US Department of Energy's flagship scientific research facilities. ARCH was established specifically to commercialize breakthrough science from Argonne and other national laboratories and research universities, pioneering a model of government lab technology transfer that has become a template across the US innovation ecosystem. The firm invests from seed through Series B in biotechnology, biopharmaceutical, and medical technology companies, typically backing founders with deep scientific credentials who are translating novel research into drugs, diagnostics, or medical devices. ARCH's privileged proximity to national laboratories, university technology transfer offices, and leading basic research institutions gives it access to pre-commercial discoveries before they are widely known, and the firm often plays a founding role in companies rather than entering at first external funding. The firm has generated some of the most significant outcomes in biotech venture history. Juno Therapeutics, a cell therapy company ARCH backed from inception, was acquired by Celgene for $9 billion in 2018. Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, an RNA interference company ARCH backed early, has achieved blockbuster commercial success on Nasdaq. Intellia Therapeutics, an ARCH-backed CRISPR genome editing company, is publicly traded. Additional portfolio companies include Editas Medicine, GRAIL (blood-based cancer detection), Recursion Pharmaceuticals, and Vividion Therapeutics. Beyond its original investments in Alnylam, Intellia, Juno Therapeutics, and Vividion, the broader portfolio includes GRAIL, Editas Medicine, Recursion, and Lentigen.