Richie Chaikof

Richie Chaikof is a Principal at Optum Ventures, the strategic investment arm of UnitedHealth Group, based in Boston, Massachusetts. Before assuming his current position in early 2022, he held investment roles at .406 Ventures and Bessemer Venture Partners, and he earned an MBA from Harvard Business School alongside a BA from Duke University. At Optum Ventures, which manages over $2 billion in assets, he leads investments in digital health and enterprise software, recently directing a $50 million Series B funding round for a digital therapeutics startup in 2024. His investment portfolio features healthcare technology companies such as the AI-driven analytics firm ClosedLoop, population health management provider Arcadia, and healthcare data platform Innovaccer. Chaikof maintains a primary focus on backing early and growth-stage startups that leverage technology to improve clinical outcomes and operational efficiency across the healthcare sector.