# johnwaldeisen.com

> John Waldeisen, Ph.D. — Engineer, entrepreneur, and healthcare innovator.

John Waldeisen was the co-founder and CEO of Lucira Health, which developed the first
at-home COVID-19 test and single-use molecular PCR test authorized by the FDA. In 2023,
the company became the first to develop a COVID-19 and Flu combo test authorized by the FDA.
Lucira raised $250M, reached a peak market cap (NASDAQ: LHDX) of $1.4B, and was acquired
by Pfizer in 2023. He was also the co-founder and CTO of Animalia Health, which performed
next-generation sequencing for veterinary clinics for microbiome analysis and pathogen
detection. In 2020, Animalia Health was acquired. In 2020, he was a Venture Partner in
Wefunder's "Fight the Virus" campaign, which currently has an MOIC of ~5x.

He holds a Ph.D. in Bioengineering from UC Berkeley and has raised $26.5M in non-dilutive
funding from BARDA, NIH, NSF, DARPA, and Gates Foundation. He holds 50+ patents and has
maintained a 98% employee retention rate during his CEO tenures. He is also an active
early-stage investor with 20+ portfolio companies across biotech, healthcare, and deep tech.

He is currently building LiteraSeed — AI-powered health literacy and communication tools for non-English speaking patients.

## Writing

- [Writing](https://johnwaldeisen.com/writing): Essays and frameworks on healthcare, entrepreneurship, fundraising, and societal impact
- [Healthcare has a Communication Problem](https://johnwaldeisen.com/writing/healthcare-has-a-communication-problem)

## Contact

- [Contact](https://johnwaldeisen.com/contact): Direct inquiries for founders, investors, and event speaking

## Social

- [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/waldeisen/)
- [X/Twitter](https://x.com/JWaldeisen)
- [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/john_waldie/)