Andreessen Horowitz Nootrobox
If you weren't aware of how popular Nootropics are becoming, listen to this headline: Andreessen Horowitz Invests $2 Million in Nootropic Startup — Nootrobox
In case you needed additional proof that nootropics are getting big, Silicon Valley venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz just invested $2 million in local startup Nootrobox.
Who Is Andreessen Horowitz?
Why is this such a big deal? Previously, Andreessen Horowitz has invested in a few online services you may have heard of – like Twitter, Skype, AirBnB, and Buzzfeed.
Nootrobox is a San Francisco-based startup that promises to enhance your mental state and upgrade your brain using nootropic ingredients. So far, it has focused on bringing two main products to market: Rise and Sprint.
A third product, Yawn, just recently hit the market. The full stack is priced at $67.50 USD for a monthly supply of each of the three supplements.
Andreessen Horowitz was just one of several investors who participated in this round of funding. Other named investors included Dr. Connie Chen, co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of Vida Health; Kevin Chou, founder and CEO of Kabam; Hiten Shah, founder of Kissmetrics; and Jeff Weiser, SVP of Beachbody.
To date, Nootrobox has raised a total of $2.57 million in financing.
How Will the Money Be Used?
Nootrobox released a blog post announcing the $2 million in financing. In that statement, they announced the following:
“The new capital will allow us to accelerate clinical research and development on nootropics, to double down on our manufacturing and supply chain innovation, and to continue building a world class team across all disciplines of medicine, software, and product manufacturing.”
The company continued by stating that new Nootrobox products are coming in the future:
“We’ve been working relentlessly on the definitive set of biohacking products and tools, and we can’t wait to delight you all with them.”
The new financing will also allow the company to hire a broader range of employees. Currently, the Nootrobox team consists of “some of the leading operators, thinkers, and academics in the space.”
Nootrobox also encouraged those who are interested in the field to reach out because they might be able to get a job with the company:
“If the notion of human enhancement, cognition modulation, and biohacking is exciting to you, reach out. We may have a place for you at Nootrobox.”
Nootrobox Products
Nootrobox currently sells three nootropic supplements called Rise, Sprint, and Yawn. Those three supplements are all “stacks” of multiple nootropic ingredients. Each is designed to fulfill a different purpose throughout the day.
— Rise: is used daily to enhance your cognitive performance.
— Sprint: is used for times when you need to give yourself a burst of intense mental focus.
— Yawn: is a sleep aid that acts as a “primer for deep sleep optimization.”
When you order “The Full Stack” from Nootrobox, you get all three supplements for $67.50 (60 capsules of Rise, 10 capsules of Sprint, and 10 capsules of Yawn).
There’s also the option to get The Powerhouse Stack, which is the same as The Full Stack but comes with 30 capsules each of Sprint and Yawn – so if you want to take the intense burst nootropic daily and the intense sleep aid nootropic nightly for a month, then The Powerhouse Stack will help you do that.
Nootrobox is also preparing to release a product called Go Cubes which deliver one cup of coffee in two convenient, chewable cubes.
Thanks to the new investment from Andreessen Horowitz, Nootrobox should be releasing more nootropic products in the near future.
About Andreessen Horowitz
Andreessen Horowitz is a Silicon Valley venture capital firm that has been well-known in the past for investing in Facebook, Skype, and Airbnb.
The investment in Nootrobox was led by Chris Dixon, a partner at Andreessen Horowitz. Dixon has previously led investments in Soylent, which is a meal replacement that has been garnering huge media attention in recent months.
Dixon chose to invest in Nootrobox because, according to a NY Times interview, he believes that the company advocates a more scientific approach to nootropics – as seen in the fact that it brings on board advisors with Ph.D.s and focuses on publishing its research. All ingredients used in the Nootrobox nootropics have also been cleared by the FDA.
Dixon continued by saying that “We invest in technologists” and that most of the other nootropic companies he’s seen “have been more infomercial-driven.”
Andreessen Horowitz currently has $4.2 billion under management. According to the company’s “About Us” page, “the firm invests in entrepreneurs building companies at every stage – from seed to growth.”
The investment firm is based in Menlo Park, California. You can contact Andreessen Horowitz here: a16z.com
