Genesis Ventures

Genesis Ventures is a Santiago-based multi-stage Chilean fund focused on innovation with global potential, particularly in hardware and health, writing Seed and Series A checks in the $250k to $1M range. The fund’s positioning is unusual for the LatAm landscape because it explicitly underwrites medical devices and MedTech alongside digital health, which puts it among a small number of regional partners equipped to evaluate hardware-led healthcare bets. Healthcare relevance includes medical devices with realistic clinical and regulatory paths, diagnostic hardware, point-of-care testing, hospital and clinic operations software, and digital health platforms that have credible local commercialization. Founders pursuing biotech assets, pure consumer wellness, or capital-intensive care delivery should look at specialist funds or later-stage capital. The right founder is a Chilean technical operator, often coming out of Universidad de Chile, Pontificia Universidad Catolica, or USACH ecosystems, building a hardware or hardware-software hybrid product with clear scientific or engineering depth. Genesis is most useful when paired with CORFU grants, ANID research links, and a credible international expansion plan, since the Chilean market alone is too small to support a serious MedTech business. Geographic advantage is the Chilean operator network, the engineering talent pool, and connectivity into the broader Pacific Alliance market of Mexico, Colombia, and Peru. Best entry is a warm intro from a Chilean founder or operator, the Endeavor Chile network, or a known regional co-investor such as Kayyak, Manutara, or international LatAm funds that have co-invested with Genesis. Lead the pitch with the technical depth, IP position, regulatory pathway under ISP Chile and the relevant target-market regulators, and a credible international commercialization plan. Hardware founders should be specific about manufacturing, supply chain, and capex requirements. Caveats: hardware bets are capital-intensive and Genesis at $250k to $1M cannot underwrite the full path alone, so founders need to plan a syndicate that can sustain hardware development cycles, which routinely run two to four years. Ask the fund about reserves, prorata behavior, and which Series A and B leads have followed into hardware portfolio companies. Chile’s structural funding thinness means founders should think about US or European domiciliation and Series A leadership early. Reference checks with portfolio founders on operating support and international introductions are worth the time. Used appropriately, Genesis is a credible early partner for Chilean hardware and digital health founders; used as the only sophisticated investor on a hardware cap table, it is undersized.