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GLP-1 Cooperative Model Raises $4.5M, a16z's Big Ideas for 2026, and the 20/80 Rule for Angel Groups

GLP-1 Cooperative Model Raises $4.5M, a16z's Big Ideas for 2026, and the 20/80 Rule for Angel Groups

🔥 Angel Deals of the Week | January 8, 2026

Andrew Kazlow
January 08, 2026 • Reading Time: 6 minutes

Happy Thursday.

In today’s issue:

Angel Deals of the Week | 128 Deals, 92 Networks
Bookmarks I think you’ll enjoy
The best nugget from my conversation with Juan Sebastian Garzon, Executive Director of Alamo Angels

🔥 Angel Deals of the Week

Angel funding rounds announced in recent weeks, compiled from public sources. These deals represent the elite few that survived an angel network’s vetting process. Note: I have not personally analyzed these companies and am sharing for informational purposes only.

📊 Angel Network Investment Tracker: 128 Deals, 92 Networks.

Inventory Ally | Cloud-based veterinary inventory platform

Participating Groups: Veterinary Angel Network for Entrepreneurs (VANE)

Inventory Ally is developing a cloud-based platform that automates inventory replenishment for veterinary hospitals. The company combines data science and automation to reduce waste, lower cost of goods, and free up staff time for patient care. The company recently secured investment from VANE to support continued expansion and innovation in veterinary hospital operations.

Emmitt Nantz | Vancouver, WA | November 2025 | Source

Groupize.ai | Modern meetings management platform

Participating Group: SideCar Angels

Groupize is developing a comprehensive platform for groups, meetings, and events management. The solution unifies travel, spend, and compliance while delivering streamlined experiences for planners and attendees. SideCar Angels recently announced investment in the Beverly-based company through a convertible note.

Alisa de Gaspe Beaubien | Beverly, MA | December 2025 | Exclusive

Andel | Employer-supported medication marketplace

Participating Group: Springboard Health Angels

Andel is developing a cooperative platform that gives employers direct access to below-market drug pricing for GLP-1 medications. The company's marketplace lets employers subsidize these medications affordably as a benefit, while employees receive brand-name medicine with next-day delivery and no insurance hurdles. Andel recently raised $4.5 million from Lightbank, Seedcamp, Bertelsmann Investments, Houghton Street Ventures, and Springboard Health Angels to launch the platform.

Jay Bregman | $4.5M | New York, NY | October 2025 | Source

📣 Have an Angel Deal to Announce?

🔖 Bookmarks

💡 a16z’s 14 Big Ideas for 2026. Personal favorite: “curation is king.”
💸 AI Pricing is Hard: Pricing masterclass from Madhavan Ramanujam, including why AI coding tools may have already doomed themselves.
🎙️ Worth the Listen: Bill Gurley goes deep with Tim Ferriss on AI bubbles, China's tech scene, broken IPO markets, and his new book on career fulfillment.

🥇 The Nugget: My Top Takeaway from A Conversation with Alamo Angels’ Juan Sebastian Garzon

Great Companies + Great Investors = Happy Angel Group 😊

Angel group operators tend to spread ourselves thin across marketing campaigns, fancy events, and 1 million ideas.

But after growing Alamo Angels from 32 to 132 members in four years, Sebastian learned to ignore everything except the core value exchange: great companies meeting great investors.

From Sebastian: "If you ask me, what is the 20 percent that we need to focus on, I will say definitely curating good quality companies as well as getting the right investors in the room. That's really where it's at.

At the end of the day, if you have good quality companies, your investors are going to be happy. If you have good investors that are actually participating, your companies are going to be happy."

Takeaway: If your angel group is struggling with member engagement or quality deal flow, audit the team’s time allocation.

Is it mostly focused on the 20% (sourcing quality deals + recruiting active investors) or is it consumed by the 80% (social media obsession, complex operational procedures, etc)?

P.S. I love simple frameworks that focus attention on what matters most, and this one has fundamentally deeply shaped how I think about running angel groups.

Want more? Check out my full conversation with Sebastian 👇

Listen now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and more.

Until Next Week 👋

Thanks for reading - have a great week.

-Andrew

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