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Niall O'Donnell

Niall O'Donnell

Managing Director atRiverVestSan Diego, California
Full bioFirm profile

Niall O'Donnell is a managing director at RiverVest Venture Partners, where he has spent two decades investing in early-stage biopharmaceutical companies. He has co-founded five biopharmaceutical companies and serves on multiple boards.

What Niall can write

Writes checks of$3M to $30M
Comes in atPre-seed, Seed, Series A, Series BCan lead the round
Ownership target7-10%At first check
Email the firm[email protected]The firm's own inbox for founders.

RiverVest writes $3M to $30M checks, larger than 93% of firms in the atlas.

Bars: how many firms report each check band. Highlighted: RiverVest.

Career

  1. Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research and Development · immunologist
  2. RiverVest Venture Partners · Kauffman Fellow and associate
    Now
  3. RiverVest Venture Partners · managing director
    Now
  4. RiverVest · Kauffman Fellow and associate
    Now
  5. RiverVest · Managing Director
    Now
  6. Reneo Pharmaceuticals · interim CEO
  7. Lumena Pharmaceuticals · interim chief medical officer
  8. Mirum Pharmaceuticals
    2018-null

Companies founded

Reneo PharmaceuticalsLumena PharmaceuticalsMirum PharmaceuticalsCurzion PharmaceuticalsExcaliard Pharmaceuticals

Investments named in public bios

Reneo PharmaceuticalsLumena PharmaceuticalsMirum PharmaceuticalsCurzion PharmaceuticalsExcaliard PharmaceuticalsAtalanta TherapeuticsEngrail TherapeuticsGlycomineSparrow PharmaceuticalsAllotera Therapeutics

Focus

biopharmaceuticalearly-stagetherapeutics

Education

University of Dundee, Ph.D. in biochemistryPembroke College, University of Oxford, M.A. in biochemistryUC San Diego’s Rady School of Management, MBA

Also at RiverVest

Isaac Zike
Isaac ZikeManaging Director
Jay W. Schmelter
Jay W. SchmelterCo-Founder & Managing Director
Karen Spilizewski
Karen SpilizewskiManaging Director
Tom Melzer
Tom MelzerCo-Founder & Managing Director
Nafise Masoumi
Nafise MasoumiPrincipal
Pascal Krotee
Pascal KroteePrincipal
Andrew Kleiboeker
Andrew KleiboekerAssociate

Partners like Niall

At firms with a similar stage, sector and check size.

Colin Greenspon
Colin GreensponCo-Founder, Narya Capital
Pete Bastien
Pete BastienPresident & Partner, Hitachi Ventures
Andrew Beebe
Andrew BeebeManaging Director, Obvious Ventures
Dennis McWilliamsManaging Director, Santé Ventures
Casey Tansey
Casey TanseyGeneral Partner, U.S. Venture Partners
Christy Shaffer
Christy ShafferGeneral Partner, Hatteras Venture Partners

Alert me when RiverVest is active

One email when Niall's firm raises a fund, adds a partner or shows new activity.

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Questions

Who is Niall O'Donnell?

Niall O'Donnell is a managing director at RiverVest Venture Partners, where he has spent two decades investing in early-stage biopharmaceutical companies. He has co-founded five biopharmaceutical companies and serves on multiple boards.

How much does Niall O'Donnell invest?

Niall O'Donnell invests through RiverVest, which writes checks of $3M to $30M at pre-seed, seed, series a, series b.

How do I pitch Niall O'Donnell?

Email [email protected], the firm's inbox for founders, and name Niall in the subject. A warm intro from a founder RiverVest backed works better.

What did Niall O'Donnell do before RiverVest?

immunologist at Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research and Development; interim CEO at Reneo Pharmaceuticals; interim chief medical officer at Lumena Pharmaceuticals; Mirum Pharmaceuticals.

Last updated 2026-10-15. Is this you? Ask for a correction.