Big Red Ventures Fund Manager: Sophi Zambakhidze
Below is an excerpt from an interview conducted by fund manager Sophi Zambakhidze with Soyoung Park, Co-founder and General Partner at 1004 Venture Partners
Soyoung, tell us about yourself and your journey to the VC industry.
I started my career at a large conglomerate, Mitsubishi Corporation in Seoul, Korea, and always dreamed of working in the U.S. When I finally moved here, it wasn’t easy—I came alone as an immigrant and had to adapt quickly. Fortunately, I landed in Silicon Valley, surrounded by friends from Stanford and immersed in a culture of innovation.
I began working at a medical device startup, which opened the door to the life sciences sector. We raised a Series C shortly after I joined, and I became fascinated by our investors. One of them—a managing director—had studied medicine, engineering, and an MBA at Stanford University, with working experience at the innovation medical device team at Pfizer. His journey inspired me to explore venture capital.
After working in post-acquisition integration, strategic planning, and corporate development, I completed my MBA, concentrated in Health Sector Management, at the Fuqua School of Business, Duke University. Still, I always held the dream of becoming a VC. So, I started to practice due diligence for Digital Health at Healthtech Capital as an Analyst-in-Residence while learning the Clinical operations in various gene therapy and rare disease Biotech companies in the SF Bay Area. When my company was acquired by Pfizer, I decided to fully transition to venture capital. It took nearly a year to shift my mindset from operator to investor, but I brought with me a strong foundation in biotech, diligence, and cross-cultural experience.
How do you define a transformative innovation in the context of healthy aging and longevity?
To me, a transformative technology is one that reshapes markets and improves human life, not just incrementally, but fundamentally. It must change the way we think about health—not just extending lifespan, but improving healthspan, independence, and dignity.
Many technologies are focused on treating disease, but true transformation means reducing the gap between how long we live and how well we live. A long life doesn’t matter if it’s filled with frailty or dependence. For me, longevity innovation is about allowing people to remain productive, independent, and dignified into their later years.
When evaluating pre-seed and seed-stage biotech companies, what scientific or business milestones do you focus on most?
At the earliest stages, I look for vision and direction—is the team solving a meaningful problem? Do they understand their market and have a clear strategy for clinical or technical validation?
By Seed or Series A, I expect to see signs of execution: a finished MVP, some form of pilot study, or early data. Around this stage, biotech startups begin aligning with regulatory pathways of IND enabling or preparing for Phase I/II trials. Execution becomes the bridge between a great idea and real impact.
How do you think about “aging as a disease”—and what regulatory trends are helping or hurting progress?
Aging isn’t officially classified as a disease, and that creates challenges. Everyone ages—so how do you define who qualifies for treatment? That’s why I don’t think aging will be accepted as a disease in the near term.
Instead, companies focus on age-related diseases like diabetes or Alzheimer’s, where regulatory designations are clearer. Others go direct-to-consumer (DTC) with digital clinics, diagnostics, or medical food categories. These are the examples of the main regulatory pathways we see right now.
What emerging technologies or trends in longevity biotech are you most excited about?
I’m very excited about stem cell therapies, ADC platforms, metabolic diagnostics, and AI-enhanced health tools. Total plasma exchange, biological age measurement, and personalized preventive care are also emerging.
Thanks to public figures like Bryan Johnson, we’re seeing more interest in screening biomarkers, total plasma exchanges, and other longevity protocols. What used to be niche is now getting more attention and is being adopted by the early adopters.
Where do you see the longevity biotech market in 5–10 years?
In 5–10 years, I think we’ll see longevity tools—especially diagnostics and preventive health—integrated more deeply into consumer and healthcare ecosystems.
The challenge will be making these technologies accessible and scalable, not just for the wealthy. Right now, we see interest growing in the U.S. and abroad—from the Middle East to Africa—and I expect that demand to grow rapidly so that those proven technologies can benefit the more broaden populations globally.
What drew you personally to focus on the longevity sector versus other areas of biotech?
I’ve seen how much life extension has improved, but I’ve also seen how quality of life hasn’t kept up. Longevity for me isn’t about reaching the age of 150—it’s about helping people live with purpose and dignity as long as they’re alive.
Independence is core to that. Once someone can’t socialize or manage their daily life, their sense of dignity fades. Supporting innovations that preserve autonomy and resilience is what excites me most about this space.