We know that successful entrepreneurship is a team sport

PARTNERS:

Convergent Ventures is more than a fund. We are a team of mission-driven experts in healthcare and sustainability who understand the intricacies of tech in both sectors. We are founders ourselves, so we know what it’s like to build something from the ground up.

Julia Davourie, MEng

Co-Founder and General Partner
San Francisco

Frank Levinson, PhD

Co-Founder and General Partner
San Francisco

Christina Jenkins, MD

Co-Founder and General Partner
New York City

Gami D. Maislin, PhD

Venture Partner
Boston

Zach Jonasson, PhD

Co-Founder and Senior Advisor
Seattle

ADVISORS:

Our networks are our strongest assets. We work with a team of esteemed advisors to bring unparalleled experience in healthcare, sustainability, and finance to our table.

Julia Davourie, MEng

Co-Founder and General Partner
San Francisco

A passionate environmentalist, Julia co-leads the fund’s strategy in environmental sustainability. She works with teams who are obsessed with disrupting traditional and emerging industrial processes to meet human needs while protecting the planet. 

Julia is a Board Observer with WaveFront Dynamics, FibreCoat, Agrology and Pulse Industrial. She co-led Convergent’s investments in these companies, as well as in Sonic Incytes and Ubicept. Before co-founding Convergent Ventures, Julia invested alongside Frank Levinson through Small World Group, a predecessor seed fund. She has also served as Senior Analyst with Canadian Shield Capital, a private equity firm focused on mining, energy, and industrial companies, and Senior Engineer at Hatch, a global engineering consultancy where she led projects in mining and conventional and renewable energy sectors. 

Julia earned a Master of Energy and Environmental Engineering degree from INSA Lyon (France), and a joint Master of Environmental Engineering degree from Mines ParisTech (France) and Tsinghua University (China).

An avid outdoorsperson, Julia is known for taking entrepreneurs for hikes around the Bay Area, as there is no better place to talk about protecting the earth than out in the sun (and sometimes the fog!).

Frank Levinson, PhD

Co-Founder and General Partner
San Francisco

A field expert in photonics and a successful founder, Frank invests in health and sustainability companies that use optics or photonics technologies. Frank is a longtime high-performing investor and the founder of Convergent Ventures’ predecessor fund, Small World Group.

A Board member for WaveFront Dynamics and Enosemi, Frank co-led investments in Agrology, Sonic Incytes, FibreCoat, and Ubicept. He is a Managing General Partner for Phoenix Venture Partners, and led or co-led investments in Rapsodo, Vixar (acquired by Osram), Daylight Solutions (acquired by Leonardo DRS), Sentinel (acquired by Veolia), and Lucira Health (NADSAQ: LHDX). He is also an Independent Director of Fabrinet (NYSE: FN), a manufacturing partner for OEMs globally.

Prior to venture investing, Frank was the founder, Chief Technology Officer, and Chairman of Finisar Corporation (NASDAQ: FNSR), an optical components and subsystems supplier he grew from zero to over $500M in annual revenues while establishing and scaling manufacturing operations in Singapore and globally.

Frank earned a PhD in astronomy from University of Virginia and a BS in Physics and Mathematics from Butler University.

Always one to walk the talk, Frank’s ultra-sustainable home uses a water catchment system to collect seasonal rainfall, which waters his family’s California garden all summer long.

Christina Jenkins, MD

Co-Founder and General Partner
New York City

Christina “CJ” co-leads the fund’s strategy in healthcare and life sciences, bringing to the role 25 years of experience in clinical medicine, finance, health system leadership, and payer/provider governance. She invests in outstanding teams transforming health outcomes via hardware or AI-enabled methods of diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment and has special interest in women’s health, aging and longevity, and health equity. 

CJ led investment in and serves as Director or Observer for FIGUR8 and Biotia and led the fund’s investments in Dandelion Health and Contraline. She is Board Chair of Xandar Kardian, an Independent Director of Help at Home, and an advisory board member of Independence Health Group.  She is a National Advisor to Manatt Health, advising C-suite leaders in transforming their organizations from within.

Prior to this role, CJ led early-stage investments for Portfolia’s FemTech and Active Aging/Longevity funds. She was the founding CEO of OneCity Health Services, a subsidiary of the nation’s largest public hospital system. There, she led a $1.2B effort to redesign the care delivery continuum for 1M people, building a team from zero to 130 and implementing tech-enabled care models in community and inpatient settings.

Dr. Jenkins earned her B.S. in Industrial Management at Purdue University and her M.D. from Northwestern University. She was trained in finance at GE Healthcare (FMP) and is a member of the Kauffman Fellows.

CJ believes that food and laughter are sometimes the best medicines! In her free time, you’ll find her in the kitchen, or playing hoops or puppets with her nieces and nephew. 

Gami D. Maislin, PhD

Venture Partner
Boston

Gami supports the fund’s sustainability strategy, bringing to the role more than 20 years of experience in new technology development and R&D team leadership across a wide range of physics-based hard tech.  

Having spent her career in every phase of the product development lifecycle, and having worked in startup to large organizations in the commercial and defense sectors, Gami approaches investment opportunities with an intensely collaborative and broad customer perspective.

Prior to this role, Gami was an executive at the RTX Technology Research Center, leading a department of 7 different technology disciplines. She was also an Engineering Fellow and Raytheon Certified Architect at RTX in a wide range of leadership roles, including new energy technology company sourcing & partnering, and advanced technology concept development, prototyping and systems-level architecting.

In the commercial world, Gami worked as a Principal Investigator in startup and small businesses. She is a frequent judge and reviewer for cleantech incubators and sits on the Board of Advisors of Seaman’s Holdings, an office focused on financial and societal stability. She is a recipient of a Boston Business Journal Women to Watch in Science and Technology award.

Gami earned her PhD in optical physics from the University of Rochester.

In her free time, Gami likes traveling with her family while working on organic farms, and dragging them to see non-fossil powerplants and recycling plants.

Zach Jonasson, PhD

Co-Founder and Senior Advisor
San Francisco

Zach brings deep expertise earned through 25 years of success and learning in venture capital, entrepreneurship, and start-up operations. 

Before Convergent Ventures, Zach was a General Partner and led seed fund investments in Valence (acquired by Recursion), ProFluent, and Totient (acquired by NASDAQ: ABSI). He is currently the Chief Business Officer and Chief Financial Officer of Absci (NASDAQ: ABSI).

 Zach was a Managing General Partner and Co-Founder of Phoenix Venture Partners (PVP), leading their investment strategy in life sciences and healthcare. In his role with PVP, Zach led current investments in Lucira Health (NASDAQ: LHDX), AbSci (NASDAQ: ABSI), L7 Informatics, Xandar Kardian, and Eclipse BioInnovations. His prior investments include Sentinel Monitoring Systems (acquired by Suez), Serenex (acquired by Pfizer), MetaWorks (acquired by UBC), Valeritas (ZEAL), TelMedIQ (acquired by PerfectServe), and Dark Vision (acquired by Koch Industries).

Prior to PVP, Zach was CEO and co-founder of Comera Life Sciences (NASDAQ: CMRA) and CBO and co-founder of Crop Enhancement. Earlier in his career, he was a General Partner and Kauffman Fellow at Seaflower Ventures.

Zach earned his PhD in Neurobiology and his AM in Statistics from Harvard University.

In his off time, Zach puts his mathematics and engineering skills to good use by coaching grade schoolers for robotics competitions.

Mark Alderman, Esq.

Mark is the founder and chairman of Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies, a lobbying and public affairs firm that advocates for client interests across regulatory, legal and executive contexts, focusing on healthcare. His strategic skills, experience, and network make him an invaluable asset to growing companies in the healthcare space.

Deeply experienced as a government relations attorney, Mark is or has been a member of the 57th Electoral College, the board of directors of the NASDAQ Futures Exchange, the Democratic National Committee National Finance Committee, the Obama-Biden Presidential Transition Team, the Presidential Inaugural Committee, the Obama for America National Finance Committee, the United States Attorney Nominating Commission, the Judicial Selection Commission for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the Kerry for President National Finance Committee (co-chair), and the advisory board of Philadelphia International Airport (chair).

Mark is a contributor on political and policy topics with appearances in The Washington Post, Fortune, CNN, The Hill, CNBC, Fox News, FOX Business News, Politico, U.S. News & World Report, and Sirius XM’s POTUS Politics. He also co-leads Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies’ political series and podcast The Beltway Briefing, which provides analysis and insight on political and policy developments in Washington.

Dave Clarke

Dave is a globally renowned expert in pharma, life sciences, and AI. He serves as a strategic advisor on data, AI, and technology, with specialized expertise in applications for the healthcare sector, and he brings to the table extraordinary talent for executive leadership.

Dave’s work is in developing and scaling mission critical data, artificial intelligence, and analytics strategies and assets. He has served as a C-level technology executive for public and private companies in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, manufacturing, healthcare, technology, retail, educational software, and e-commerce industries. He has also served as a non-profit board member, technology advisor in investment banking, and adjunct professor of public policy.

Dan Gold, PhD

Dan is an industry-leading biotech consultant and entrepreneur who has pioneered bioprocess solutions in industrial and pharmaceutical biotechnology for four decades. MIT-educated in biochemical engineering, Dan is expert in both industrial and pharmaceutical biotechnology.

His work has spanned leading the process development of AAV gene therapy at BioMarin using both insect and mammalian production systems, serving as CEO at an early stage company (Sutro Biopharma), and leading technical operations and process science functions in biotech and contract manufacturing companies. He has also served on several science advisory boards and boards of directors—currently he sits on the SAB of Blue Nalu, a cell-based seafood company.

Dan has served as CSO at FujiFilm Diosynth Biotechnologies, SVP of Process Development and Manufacturing at Human Genome Sciences, CEO at Sutro Biopharma, and GVP Process Sciences at BioMarin Pharmaceutical. He has deep experience in bringing products from development to clinical trials and to market, and in building out large-scale commercial facilities. His background includes intellectual property with the successful close of numerous blockbuster technology licensing deals.

Bryan Lawlis, PhD

Bryan is a leader in developing and commercializing biologic therapeutics. He is President, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Itero Biopharmaceuticals, which makes recombinant follicle stimulating hormone for use in the treatment of infertility.

He served or serves as a director for BioMarin Pharmaceuticals, IncCoherus Biosciences, Geron Corporation, and several privately held biotechnology companies, and as COO, CEO, and President at Aradigm Corporation. Before joining Aradigm, Bryan co-founded Covance Biotechnology Services, serving as its president, CEO, and chairman between 1996 and 2001.

Bryan currently serves as a board member at ReForm. His work at the forefront of biopharmaceutical entrepreneurship makes him a strategic asset to innovation in healthcare.

Pat Loehrer, Sr., MD

Pat is a distinguished oncologist who has devoted his career to the study and treatment of various forms of cancer.

Pat has been an active clinical researcher and specialist in the treatment of a variety of cancers including testis, bladder, colon, pancreas and, most notably, thymic malignancies. His research on the drug ifosfamide led to its approval by the FDA. His research related to thymic cancers has been recognized with the Exceptional Service Award of the Foundation for Thymic Research.

He is co-founder of the AMPATH-Oncology Program serving western Kenya, and his research pursuits also include his role as co-PI studying the long-term impact of HPV in HIV infected and uninfected women in Kenya and Uganda.

Pat is the Joseph W. and Jackie J. Cusick Professor in Oncology and Distinguished Professor of Oncology at Indiana University. He is also the Director of the IUSCCC Center for Global Oncology and Health Equities. He also serves as director emeritus of the Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center, an NCI-designated Cancer Center, and led the efforts to achieve comprehensive status in 2019.  He has received numerous awards, including the 2023 ASCO Humanitarian Award.

Dan Riff

Dan is an investment advisor with field-leading expertise in capital allocation, investor engagement, and business strategy. He is a Senior Advisor at Boston Consulting Group, where he runs corporate finance and strategy operations.

He spent two decades in equity investing, serving as advisor, Chief Strategy Officer, and other C-suite roles for high performing firms. His niche is in aligning teams with metrics and incentives for long term value creation. 

Dan earned his MBA in Finance from Wharton, and currently focuses on serving in operational and advisory capacities.