US-based clinical trial services provider Lightship closed a$20m series B round on Tuesday that was co-led by McKesson Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of pharmaceuticals distributor McKesson.
Define Ventures co-led the round, which also featured fellow venture capital firm Khosla Ventures as well as private investors Brook Byers and Marc Benioff. Lightship has not disclosed details of past funding but named Khosla Ventures and Benioff as existing investors.
Founded in 2018, Lightship provides clinical research services with a view to recruiting a wider number of participants by framing it as a form of clinical care. The company will use the capital to enhance its clinical research technology platform and increase headcount.
McKesson Ventures managing director Dave Schulte said: “We continue to observe broad industry support for new approaches to lower drug development costs and increase access to relevant trials.
“We believe Lightship’s innovative clinical research model will directly address these issues and allow research dollars to be invested more efficiently towards the development of life-saving drugs.”
Schulte is joining the startup’s board of directors along with Define Ventures’ managing director, Chou O’Keefe, and David MacMurchy, Lightship’s recently appointed chief executive.
