A Personal Update

By Vijay Pande

Today, I’m sharing that after more than a decade, it’s both exciting and bittersweet that I’ll be stepping away from my role at Andreessen Horowitz. This has been one of the most meaningful chapters of my life, and I’m filled with gratitude as I reflect on the journey.

I joined a16z in 2014 as a Professor-in-Residence, just coming off my time as chair of Biophysics and Henry Dreyfus Professor of Chemistry at Stanford. What started as an observation that tech companies are poised to make major impacts in Bio and Health quickly evolved into something much larger: my founding of the a16z Bio + Health fund, a new strategy at the intersection of AI, computation, and biology — and the chance to build an investing platform from the ground up.

I’m also proud not only of the companies I’ve backed — including Devoted Health, Function Health, Insitro, Freenome— but also of the team I built to carry this vision forward. What began as a speculative bet became a thriving and deeply mission-driven practice, thanks to the people who believed in it and helped shape it every step of the way.

This transition could not have been possible without the incredible people I’ve worked with:

● I want to thank Marc and Ben for taking a bet on me—and on the idea that biology could be engineered, and that venture capital had a role to play in building that future. Their support and belief shaped everything that followed. We should all be proud of the impact we’ve had shaping the future of health.

● I’m deeply grateful to the team I’ve helped build in the Bio + Health practice: Jorge Conde, Julie Yoo, and Vineeta Agarwala. It’s been an honor to work alongside them to build this platform from the ground up.

● To our founders, thank you for your courage, your brilliance, and your trust. Your creativity, commitment and energy to building what we all know is possible is nothing short of inspiring and contagious.You’ve challenged me, inspired me and reminded me why this work matters so much. It’s been one of the greatest privileges of my career to support you.

● To our limited partners, thank you for believing in this vision and making it possible to pursue it with long-term conviction.

Though I’m stepping away from the firm, I’m not stepping away from the cause. If anything, I feel more energized than ever about the future of bio + health. Writing the next chapter of the playbook in healthcare will require a deep imagination, more cross-disciplinary collaboration, and a willingness to build boldly—and I look forward to being part of that in new ways.

Some of you may remember a talk I gave called Disrupt Yourself — and true to that message, I’m doing just that. I’m heading into a new chapter focused on the future of AI, healthcare, and prevention.

With deep gratitude,

Vijay Pande