Humboldt Fund and Bakar Labs Join Forces to Support World-Changing Startups
By Niki Borghei
We’re excited to welcome Humboldt Fund, a venture capital fund with an eye for startups making meaningful change, as our newest affiliate. One look at their portfolio will tell you exactly what you need to know about their mission: to generate positive change in healthcare, sustainability, agriculture, and more. By partnering with Bakar Labs, Humboldt Fund is taking its support to the next level and extending funding opportunities and business expertise to our talented tenants.
“What we look for in a company is impact,” said Francisco Dopazo, General Partner at Humboldt Fund. “We want to fund companies that are solving huge problems for humanity, and just like at Bakar Labs, we’re not only focused on healthcare. We see potential for solutions in a wide range of industries.” This a perfect fit with the mission of Bakar Labs, which supports pioneers in everything from gene therapy to alternative meat products.
This also translates into economics, Francisco explained. “If you’re solving the world’s most challenging problems, you attract the best talent, and that results in amazing returns.” The immense success of the many companies they support is a testament to this.
The collaboration between Humboldt Fund and Bakar Labs is an incredible opportunity for Berkeley-based startups. Bakar Labs tenants raised $118 million in the last year and $705 million total to date, and this number is getting larger every year. The impact reaches much farther than finances, however.
“We’re a Latino-founded company,” said Francisco. “Each of our team members are based in different cities and have different areas of expertise, and that kind of diversity is not yet common in the biotech space. But that’s what makes us a stronger team.” As a result, Humboldt Fund encourages diversity in the companies they work with and in the larger biotech community.
“We at Bakar Labs and QB3 are thrilled to partner with Humboldt, leaders in the investment community who also greatly expand our connection to the rest of the world and particularly Latin America,” says QB3 Executive Director Dave Schaffer. “We also hope this partnership leads to new opportunities for companies in Bakar Labs to accelerate their efforts to develop solutions to societal needs.”
