Nana Yaa Mensah is a scientist, venture capitalist, and ecosystem builder with deep experience at the intersection of clinical research, biotechnology, and life sciences, supporting the early-stage deployment of venture capital into life-saving therapies.
Nana Yaa has over two decades of experience at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), where she served as a Research Scientist, Clinical Scientist, and Quality Assurance/Quality Control Lead in Infectious Diseases and Diagnostic Molecular Pathology.
Nana Yaa invests in life sciences, biotechnology, healthcare AI, and Software as a Medical Device (SaMD). She is active across the startup ecosystem as a mentor, reviewer, speaker, and judge. She has supported founders and innovation programs through Techstars Chicago, AMIA, Yale Ventures’ Blavatnik Fund, Nucleate (NY/Boston), Amazon-MSKCC aiTDIF, and Cornell University’s ABI BioVenture eLab through mentoring, panel discussions, and judging.
Nana Yaa also serves as the Director of Project 2.8 within the Columbia Venture Community, where she focuses on expanding access to capital and increasing visibility for women founders.
Her work bridges scientific innovation, venture capital, and community-building to help translate breakthrough ideas into scalable, fundable companies.
Nana Yaa holds an MBA in Finance from Columbia Business School and a BA in Biology from Grinnell College.