On July 9, Zoë Foundry, a Redwood City, California-based venture capital firm, secured a $5 million investment. The company said the investment, led by Principal Financial Group and Reinsurance Group of America, Incorporated (RGA), will accelerate Zoë Foundry’s mission to transform the employee benefits industry.

As the first investment studio focused entirely on the employee benefits ecosystem, Zoë Foundry uses a structured, data-driven approach to developing and launching insurance technology startups. Since its inception, the studio has been backed by experienced founders and advisors, marking a period of strong growth and successful company launches between 2012 and 2022.

The company said the new partnership with Principal and RGA will enable Zoë Foundry to expand its operations and invest more in its portfolio startups. The company plans to launch three startups each year, focusing on sectors such as software as a service (SaaS), business-to-business (B2B), and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies.

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Zoe cited two examples from its existing portfolio, SlineTech and Pentection, that the company said illustrate its ability to make an impact. SlineTech specializes in automating healthcare portfolios for small groups, while Pentection has developed tools aimed at driving executive benefits sales. Both projects have proven themselves in the market with impressive customer growth and revenue generation, Zoe said.

Kara Hogansen, Principal’s senior vice president of workplace benefits, praised the initiative, calling it closely aligned with Principal’s strategic goals to expand access to advanced solutions. Similarly, Dean Abbott, senior vice president at RGA, emphasized the promise of the collaboration to drive forward progress in insurance technology.

Zoë Foundry’s leadership team, which includes CEO Garrett Figgers, COO/CIO Jason T. Andrew, and CTO Jonathan Molieri, has more than two decades of experience in employee benefits.

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