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Summary
Greg Yap, Partner at Menlo Ventures, joins StartUp Health co-founder Unity Stoakes for a Fireside Chat on investing in health AI at a 50-year-old firm built for this moment. Yap shares why product differentiation is becoming a more fragile moat, what the most innovative companies are building at the intersection of AI and care, and how founders should think about fundraising as the goalposts keep moving.
This preview covers the top of the conversation. StartUp Health community members get access to the full session, including live audience Q&A.
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Key Moments
🧑💻 From operator to investor — Greg spent decades running cancer diagnostics at Roche, building genomics businesses at Affymetrix, and founding two of his own companies before turning to venture
🎂 Menlo turns 50 — founded in 1976, now investing across AI infrastructure, foundation models, fintech, and healthcare
🧩 How Menlo's "pods" work — sector teams that collaborate at the intersections, like consumer x digital health
💰 Two funds, one thesis — Seed/Series A through the core fund, growth through Series D via the Inflection Fund
📈 The fastest-growing sector in health AI — patient engagement, and the investment it led to
🩺 Why OpenEvidence stood out — thesis work meeting the right opportunity at the right stage
🛡️ Team over technology — why product differentiation is becoming a "more fragile moat" in the AI era
🚪 Getting on Greg's radar — what actually gets a founder in the door, warm intro or not
🤖 AI slop is real — why it's harder than ever to cut through cold outreach
💸 Fundraising advice for right now — his rule of thumb on how much to raise
🚀 Why this is the best time to build — Greg's closing take for founders in the room
What is StartUp Health?
StartUp Health is a private global community for innovators, visionary decision makers, thought leaders, and funders transforming the future of health. If you're a founder, healthcare executive, operator, investor, or industry stakeholder who wants to stay connected to the people and ideas driving the future of health, StartUp Health is your exclusive community to stay connected and stay ahead. StartUp Health membership puts you at the center of what's next.
