Health Startup Backed by Rory McIlroy Hits $1B Valuation

LetsGetChecked, the world’s only personal health testing service, has raised $150 million, giving the startup a valuation of $1 billion, according to Bloomberg. 

The round was led by Casdin Capital and included an investment from professional golf superstar Rory McIlroy through his VC Firm Symphony Ventures. 

The service joins a diverse portfolio of business ventures for McIlroy, who won the Wells Fargo Championship in May — his 19th PGA Tour victory. 

Earlier this year, McIlroy partnered with Drive Shack on its tech-driven mini golf brand Puttery, which plans to launch in Dallas and Charlotte this summer.

LetsGetChecked, founded in 2015 with offices in New York and Dublin, has raised $260 million in total capital with the latest round, benefiting from an online health industry that has accelerated due to the pandemic. 

Last year, 1.7 million patients used its services, growing revenue more than 15-fold year-over-year.

Despite its early success, LetsGetChecked faces stiff competition in a digital health market worth more than $116 billion. 

During the first quarter of 2021, digital health startups generated $6.7 billion in venture funding, the best-funded quarter to date. 

Babylon, a startup that connects patients and doctors via an app, announced last week it’s going public via a merger with Alkuri Global Acquisition Corp., a blank-check company, for a valuation of about $4.2 billion.