Jenny Barba knew there had to be a better way.
In over 27 years in investment banking and venture capital (VC), Barba has completed over $4 billion in medtech transactions. Today, she serves as managing partner and co-founder of Features Capital, a venture capital firm investing in early-stage medtech.
Features Capital takes a unique investment approach, Barba said. Barba and co-founder, Jeff Chu, invest in seed, series A and series B startups at the first-in-human clinical stage and first-in-revenue stage using a four-point vetting process. Her firm’s vetting approach focuses on the startup’s team, product market fit, scalability and opportunity; and helps Barba conduct due diligence and build the comprehensive analysis needed to be an early-stage investor.
“We’re not looking for another add-on or widget to the end of a catheter,” Barba said. “We are really looking for disruptive technologies that are going to be the No. 1 or No. 2 market leaders in multiple billion-dollar global markets.”
Read more about building business strategies for medtech success here.
Barba said there has “never been a better time in world history” to be an early-stage medtech investor than right now. Medtech VC funding reached a three-year high in 2025, according to PitchBook, fueled by several multi-billion dollar exits and an increased IPO volume.
“If we’re starting from 2025, building upon the years prior, I think we’re going into 2026 with a lot of optimism,” Barba said.
The quantity of fundraising rounds has doubled since 2023, Barba said, and as an early-stage investor, she sees a shortage of early-stage venture funds.
“For us, this means it’s a buyer’s market and a shift for a lot of the funds to go later-stage, which means that there’s a pipeline for us as our companies grow,” Barba said.
Barba spoke with DeviceTalks Weekly Managing Editor Kayleen Brown to discuss what makes a startup “fundable” and components that first-time and early-stage founders often miss.
Here are Barba’s top three pieces of advice for medtech startups:
1. ‘Data is your best currency.’
No matter what stage in data packaging a startup is in, clinical data or prototype data, being methodical about the types of data collected shows a startup’s control over its future, Barba said.
Demonstrating a product’s clinical outcomes, ease of use and analyzing physician preference in available technologies helps startups achieve the goals of their technology through product differentiation.
Driving product differentiation should be “in the DNA of the technology,” Barba said, and incorporating clinical data with value analysis from committees and reimbursement and group purchasing organizations will impact decision-making when a startup is ready for commercialization.
“These are things that a lot of first-time and early-stage founders don’t do early on,” Barba said.
2. Grow with flexibility in mind.
The traditional path toward success is changing, she said, and founders should understand that there will be pivots. Investor expectations change, and founders need to focus on capital efficiency and reaching key value inflection points.
“Doing more with less,” Barba said. “That is the name of the game for 2026.”
Having multiple paths to commercialization and exits is important, Barba said, because “companies are bought, not sold.” Founders should be aware of what late-stage investors and strategics are looking for, and adapt.
3. Show operational and institutional readiness.
The earlier startups can plan for scalability, design for manufacturing and build supply chain resilience by harnessing partnerships that can grow with the company, the greater the chances are to successfully bring the technology to market, Barba said.
Along with operational readiness, Barba emphasized building a team and community of experts early on to demonstrate an institutional mindset.
“Get those clinical advisory boards and scientific advisory boards, and make sure that they have a broad reach,” Barba said. “Community hospital, research hospital, international [hospitals]; get those experts in early — and get them in together.”
According to Barba, these relationships help build strong board governance that shows institutional readiness and an institutional mindset when the company is ready to bring on institutional capital.
DeviceTalks Managing Editor Kayleen Brown contributed to this report.
