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Pier 70 Ventures

Venture capital

Seattle · Seed–Series A · 17 people tracked

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Investment thesis

Pier 70 Ventures seeks out overlooked talent and backs entrepreneurs advancing innovation with potential for strong financial returns. The firm emphasizes impact-driven innovation and disruptive technologies, especially in healthcare, aiming to shake up the status quo. It partners with early-stage companies to build diverse teams and leadership, viewing diversity across experiences and perspectives as a driver of profit. Beyond capital, Pier 70 provides counsel and access to an extensive global network of business leaders, university and government contacts, and investors, including Fortune 200 leaders. The team combines deep investment and operational experience, supporting companies from deal sourcing and due diligence through corporate and government contracting.

Source: firm website, verified Oct 26, 2026.

Stage
Seed–Series A
HQ
Seattle, Washington, US
Instruments
Equity
Founded
2021
Tracked investments
4

Team · 17 people

from the firm's website & public directories
Robert (Bob) H. Balk· Managing Partnerin

Balk is a Co-Founder and Venture Partner at Pier 70 Ventures with a background in strategy, finance, and venture capital investing. He joined Boeing in 1997 and later led its Phantom Works venture capital fund-of-funds program, growing it into a $250M portfolio of 32 funds with a focus on areas such as energy, materials, and advanced computing. Since leaving Boeing he has worked in entrepreneurial programs in Central New York, including mentoring at Cornell University and serving as an Entrepreneur in Residence at High Tech Rochester. He holds an MBA from the University of Rochester Simon School and a BS from SUNY Buffalo.

Preetha Ram· Managing Partner, Ph.D.in

Preetha Ram is Managing Partner at Pier 70 Ventures, where she manages portfolio investments, deal flow, and portfolio company development. She previously founded and led OpenStudy, a peer-to-peer online learning community that she scaled to over 60 million learners and exited, and has held academic leadership roles at Emory University, Alliant University, and Harrisburg University of Science and Technology. She holds a PhD in Chemistry from Yale, an MBA from Emory University, and studied at the Indian Institute of Technology.

R. Miller Adams· Managing Partnerin

Miller is a co-founder and Managing Partner at Pier 70 Ventures, where he handles investor development and relations and helps lead the firm's deal flow strategy. He previously served as VP Global R&D Strategy at The Boeing Company and President of Boeing Phantom Works Investments, and later was EVP for Corporate Affairs, General Counsel and Secretary at Integral Systems, Inc. Trained as a lawyer, he began his career advising early-stage technology companies on financing and business matters, and holds a BA from Seattle University and a JD from the University of Puget Sound School of Law.

Shaun Hawkins· Managing Partnerin

Shaun Hawkins is a Managing Partner at Pier 70 Ventures, where he manages investments and builds the portfolio with a focus on healthtech. He has over 20 years of experience in healthcare and life sciences investing, and previously served as Vice President of New Ventures and Private Equity at Eli Lilly and Company, where he helped create a $450 million Capital Funds Portfolio. He is the founder of Prosyte Companies, which includes Auxigen Health and Auxigen Medical, and holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Tennessee and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Leland Melvin· Venture Partnerin

Former NASA astronaut and aerospace materials science research engineer who co-chaired the White House National Science and Technology Council's Committee on STEM Education.

David S. Wilkes· Venture Advisor, MDin

Dean of the University of Virginia, co-founder of ImmuneWorks, board member of Baxter International, and a former major in the USAF.

Dennis Liotta· Venture Advisorin

Chair of The Emory Institute for Drug Development and Chair of Drug Innovation Ventures at Emory.

Fatima Cody Stanford· Venture Advisor, MD, MPH, MPAin

Physician (MD, MGH/HMS), MLK Scholar, former Communications Fellow at the CDC, and Gold Congressional Award winner.

Frederick W. Grimm· Venture Advisorin

Chairman of Triad Development, a real estate developer and angel investor.

Jeff Geng· Venture Advisor, Ph.D.in

Investor at LRG Ventures and Managing Director of IP and Research at Emory.

Jenn Bennett· Venture Advisorin

Technical Director in the Office of the CTO at Google Cloud, focusing on enterprise digital transformation, advanced manufacturing, and ESG.

Leisl Kleindl-Schelling· Chief Financial Officer, CPA

CPA serving as the firm's Chief Financial Officer.

Meg O'Conor· Director, Communications
Minnie Sarwal· Venture Advisorin

Professor of Surgery, Medicine and Pediatrics at UCSF, member of the FDA Science Board, Rosenman Institute founding fellow, and Medical Director of the Kidney and Pancreas Transplant Program at UCSF.

Onix Ramirez· Venture Advisorin

Investor at LRG Ventures and Chief of Staff and Director of Financial Operations at Liotta Research Group.

Phil Nwafor· Venture Advisorin

Head of Sales & GTM for Google Cloud HCLS, specializing in AI and digital health, cloud transformation, and strategic growth.

Stephanie Bousheri· Venture Advisorin

Digital health leader, clinician executive, founder, and board chair, serving as a director of digital health innovation.

What they invest in

from 3 of 4 portfolio companies

Healthtech ×2AI & Machine Learning ×1Digital Health ×1Enterprise Software ×1FemTech ×1Marketing Tech ×1Medical Devices ×1SaaS ×1

HQs:United States×2Canada×1

Investments · 4 tracked

founders shown can be your intro path

By year:2024 · 22023 · 13 dated

Flytetherapyflytetherapy.com✓ verified

Pelvital is a medical device company that develops FDA-cleared in-home treatments for stress urinary incontinence and pelvic floor muscle weakness in women, using a proprietary mechanotherapy technology.

Digital HealthFemTechHealthtechMedical DevicesEagan, US

Dale Wahlstrom(Co-founder and founding CEO (retired from CEO role, serving as Executive Chair))Lydia Zeller(CEO)

Co-investorsBoomerang VenturesWisconsin Investment Partners

Flyteflyteai.comin𝕏Apr 2024 · $2.3M

Flyte provides sales leaders with a unified platform for sales coaching, buyer sentiment analysis, competitive intelligence, and deal insights to monitor frontline team performance and achieve revenue goals.

AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareMarketing TechSaaSSales TechToronto, CA

Shilpa Sharma(Founder)inChhavi Singh(Founder)in

Co-investorsTechstarsBoomerang Ventures

Vital View Technologiesvitalviewtech.cominDec 2023 · $4.6M

Vital View Technologies has rebranded to PrīmSphera and directs visitors to its new website.

Ray Fraser(Founder)in

Co-investorsElevate Ventures

Other

Tracked investments with no reachable website or further public details — typically companies that wound down, renamed, or were absorbed.

Pelvital USA

Frequently asked questions

What stage does Pier 70 Ventures invest at?
Pier 70 Ventures invests at the Seed, Series A stages.
What sectors does Pier 70 Ventures focus on?
Pier 70 Ventures focuses on AI & Machine Learning, Biotech, Cloud Computing, Data & Infrastructure, Deep Tech, Digital Health, Healthtech, Impact & Social Good, SaaS, Wellness & Fitness.
Where is Pier 70 Ventures located?
Pier 70 Ventures is headquartered in Seattle, US.

Media · Podcasts & interviews

featuring the team

Diversifying Science at LWHS, Episode 2: Dr. Preetha Ram

LWHS and KANG News · Preetha Ram

Images

Pier 70 Ventures photoPier 70 Ventures photo

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