Steve Kafka

Steven J. Kafka is a Managing Partner at Section 32, the venture firm founded by Google Ventures founder Bill Maris that invests at the frontiers of technology, healthcare, and life sciences. He joined the firm in November 2019, tasked with expanding its portfolio and physical presence in the Boston biotech hub. Kafka brings more than 20 years of experience in drug discovery, development, and commercialization and in molecular diagnostics, with a focus on companies building personalized-medicine approaches for patients.

Before venture capital, Kafka was a seasoned biotech operator. He was President and Chief Operating Officer of Foundation Medicine, where he helped lead the company through its IPO, its landmark collaboration with Roche, and its rapid operational scale-up prior to Roche's acquisition of the company in June 2018. Earlier in his career he held leadership roles at Aileron Therapeutics, Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Strategic Decisions Group, and Forrester Research.

Immediately before Section 32, Kafka was at Third Rock Ventures as a partner and venture partner, where he helped conceive and launch Thrive Earlier Detection, a company advancing a blood test for the earlier detection of multiple cancers. He served as Thrive's founding CEO and Executive Chairman (Thrive was acquired by Exact Sciences in January 2021) and as Executive Chairman of ArcherDX (acquired by Invitae in October 2020).

Kafka earned his Ph.D. in political economy and government from Harvard University and holds an A.B. in economics and political science from Stanford University.

• Invests at the intersection of technology and healthcare, arguing the two categories are converging to the point where the distinction is becoming meaningless (he has cited MedCrypt — cybersecurity for hospital medical devices — as an example of that blur).
• Stated goal in his own words: *"We want to be investing in companies that are generating great returns but really having an impact in humankind."*
• Bullish on a diagnostics renaissance — he has argued that diagnostics, long undervalued as a commodity, will become central across infectious disease, oncology, and cardiovascular medicine.
• Backs personalized / precision medicine platforms across drug discovery, molecular diagnostics, and increasingly AI-enabled biology.
• Typically takes a board seat and hands-on operating role in companies he leads investments in, drawing on his operator background (CFO/COO/President and Executive Chairman roles).
• Focused on sourcing and supporting deals in the Boston / New England ecosystem for Section 32.