SemperVirens Venture Capital, a venture firm investing in companies shaping the future of health, wealth, and work, announced the launch of the SemperVirens Accelerator — which is a founder-focused initiative designed to help early-stage startups sharpen their distribution strategy, connect with industry leaders, and scale faster by engaging directly with commercial decision makers across healthcare, benefits and work ecosystems.
The Accelerator was built for startups from pre-seed through Series A, and is especially relevant for companies who are planning to sell into stakeholders such as employers, brokers, payers, carriers, HCM platforms, or health systems. This Accelerator is the entry point in SemperVirens’ founder platform, which also includes additional GTM support for portfolio companies at seed, early, and growth stages.
The Accelerator is powered by SemperVirens’ deeply integrated network of over 200 senior executives, dozens of large-scale distribution partners, and strategic industry advisors. Strategic partners such as Sequoia Group, Transform, ADP Ventures, MetLife, Paychex, The Cigna Group, Unum, multiple BlueCross Blue Shield Plans, and The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America are all actively engaging in the Accelerator, advising participants, shaping strategic approaches, and co-developing distribution pathways.
With the launch of the program, SemperVirens has also selected its first cohort of four companies that are solving challenging problems across healthtech, insurtech, and workforcetech. This inaugural class of talented founders includes: Amar Jasarbasic, Clasp; Bilal Farooqui, Sunny Health AI; Brandon Goode, Outro; and Michael Johnson, Onboarded. Through the Accelerator, founders also receive targeted support in three core areas:
1.) Product-Market Fit Insights – Interactive sessions with SemperVirens’ Innovation Councils, which bring together corporate venture leaders, innovation heads, and business unit decision-makers to provide real-time product feedback.
2.) Distribution & GTM Support– Curated introductions, private sessions, and briefings with distribution partners, and engagements at major industry events help founders accelerate traction.
3.) Support for Scaling – Access to the SemperVirens’ Trusted Partner Suite of vetted vendors, tools, and advisors.
Program cycles commence every quarter, accompanied by a structured onboarding process and tailored support. While primarily virtual, the Accelerator includes curated in-person gatherings tied to major industry moments like Transform, HLTH, HR Tech, JPM, and InsureTech Connect.
KEY QUOTES:
“The pace of change in healthcare, workforce, and financial services is increasing — and founders need faster paths to traction. We deliver on that need by giving startups direct access to our network.”
Robby Peters, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at SemperVirens
“This partnership allows us to stay ahead of market shifts, explore new investment opportunities, and bring innovative solutions to our clients faster and more effectively.”
Craig Cimini, Cigna Ventures
“Building the best product today isn’t sufficient. It’s table stakes. We needed a partner to build the best distribution strategy as well, and that’s what we have in our relationship with SemperVirens.”
Bilal Farooqui, one of the first Accelerator companies from Sunny Health AI
