# Akshay Rai

> Akshay Rai is a Series D investor at Premji Invest (Palo Alto) backing Biotechnology and Medical. See 3 investments, check sizes, portfolio. Updated Aug 2026.

- Type: Angel Investor
- Fund: [Premji Invest](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/premjiinvest)
- Location: Palo Alto, United States
- Total investments: 3
- Last investment: Sep 2025
- Lead investor: 100%
- Last updated: Aug 2026
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/akshay-r-9b80663
- Website: https://www.premjiinvest.com/team/akshay-rai

Akshay Rai is a Series D investor at Premji Invest in Palo Alto focused on Biotechnology and Medical. Akshay Rai is based out of Palo Alto, California, and is the Board of Director of Kriya Therapeutics and Principal of Premji Invest. Akshay Rai attended the National Institute of Technology Karnataka , Surathkal.

## Investment focus

### Industry

| Industry | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Biotechnology | 3 | 100% |
| Medical | 1 | 33% |
| Genetics | 1 | 33% |
| Health Care | 1 | 33% |
| Life Science | 1 | 33% |

8 industries tracked in total.

## Investments

| Company | Description | Amount | Stage | Date | Website |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Enveda Biosciences | Enveda Biosciences is a biotechnology company building new medicines from plants. It harnesses the complexity of the natural world to tackle today’s biggest healthcare challenges. With the help of the advancements in knowledge graphs, machine learning, and metabolomics, they discover the next generation of small molecules. Its technologiessystematize the discovery of small molecules and novel targets for complex diseases. By probing novel chemical space and mechanisms of action, they are breaking the status quo for challenging diseases with a need for effective treatments, such as fibrosis or neurodegeneration.Enveda, launched in 2019, is based in San Francisco, California. | $150M | Series D | Sep 04, 2025 |  |
| Kriya Therapeutics | Kriya is a next-generation gene therapy company focused on designing and developing transformative new treatments for highly prevalent and severe chronic diseases. We target conditions where the underlying biology is well-understood, rationally designing one-time gene therapies to durably express therapeutic proteins within the appropriate humantissues. Our team has deep expertise in the field and includes former senior leadership from pioneering gene therapy companies and academic institutions. We use algorithmic tools, scalable infrastructure, and proprietary technology to optimize the efficacy and durability of our gene therapies – with a goal of transforming the treatment paradigm for some of the most serious and widespread diseases. | $320.8M | Series D | Aug 15, 2025 |  |
| BillionToOne | BillionToOne is a precision diagnostics company that quantifies biology to create molecular diagnostics accurate, efficient, and accessible for all. The company's patent-pending molecular counter platform is a technology platform that can accurately count the DNA molecules to the single-count level. BillionToOne's mission is to makepre-natal testing safe and affordable for every expecting mother. Its novel technology can detect even single-gene disorders such as thalassemia through a simple blood test. They are replacing amniocentesis, an invasive and risky procedure that has a high miscarriage risk, with a safe and affordable blood test, starting in developing countries.BillionToOne was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in Menlo Park, California. | $130M | Series D | Jun 21, 2024 |  |

3 of 3 investments shown.

## Co-investors
- [Baillie Gifford](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/baillie-gifford) — VC Fund, 2 deals together
- [Lingotto](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/lingotto-2e25) — VC Fund, 2 deals together
- [Adams Street Partners](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/adams-street-partners) — VC Fund, 1 deal together
- [Civilization Ventures](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/civilization-ventures) — VC Fund, 1 deal together
- [Dimension Capital](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/dimension-cdd0) — VC Fund, 1 deal together
- [Eczacıbaşı Momentum](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/eczac%C4%B1basi-momentum) — VC Fund, 1 deal together

## About Premji Invest

VC Fund · Bangalore, India

PremjiInvest is a multi-family office that specializes in private equity and venture capital investments. It is a private equity fund owned by Azim Premji which manages his $1 billion personal portfolios. In 2011, Azim Premji invested around $15 million in Vinod Khosla's clean-tech fund.

5 contacts available at Premji Invest.

| Name | Title | Profile |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Akshay Rai | Principal | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/akshay-rai-91ad |
| Azim Premji | Owner | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/azim-premji |
| Dhiraj Malkani | Partner | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/dhiraj-malkani |
| Kaveesh Chawla | Partner | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/kaveesh-chawla |
| Manoj Jaiswal | Chief Financial Officer and Operating Partner | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/manoj-jaiswal-2387 |

## Similar investors

### Similar stage
- [Sigma Partners](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/sigma-partners) — VC Fund
- [EDBI](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/edbi) — VC Fund
- [Trifecta Capital Advisors](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/trifecta-capital-advisors) — VC Fund

## FAQ

### What does Akshay Rai invest in?

Akshay Rai invests primarily in Biotechnology, Medical and Genetics startups, most often at Series D stage. Most of the 3 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in United States. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.

### When did Akshay Rai last invest?

The most recent investment recorded for Akshay Rai closed in Sep 2025. Shizune tracks 3 investments in total for this profile, including round sizes, stages and portfolio companies, all sourced from confirmed public funding rounds and refreshed monthly.

### Is Shizune's investor data accurate?

Yes — every stat on this profile is calculated from confirmed public funding rounds monitored across hundreds of sources since 2020. This profile was last refreshed in Aug 2026 and is updated monthly. Spotted something off? Use the “Suggest an edit” link near the top of the page.

# About Shizune
Shizune.co is an investor database. Core features:
- 48,091 startup investors (angels, VCs, accelerators, and others)
- Email, phone, LinkedIn (for intros), socials, and other contact data
- Updated daily from public funding news
- CSV and Excel export

The User can access the full database FOR FREE after signing up: shizune.co