Neko Health, the AI-powered body-scanning startup co-founded by Spotify CEO Daniel Ek and CEO Hjalmar Nilsonne, has raised $700 million in Series C funding at a valuation of nearly $7 billion. The round was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and O.G. Venture Partners, with participation from institutional investors including Atomico, General Catalyst, Lakestar, and BDT & MSD [1][2].
The deal represents a roughly fourfold increase from the company’s $1.7 billion valuation at its $260 million Series B in January 2025, underscoring surging investor appetite for AI-driven preventive healthcare [1]. Neko Health said it will use the capital to fund its first expansion into the United States, starting with clinics in New York City later this year [3].
The round attracted an unusual roster of celebrity and tech-industry backers, including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan, record executive Jimmy Iovine, tennis champion Maria Sharapova, former footballer Thierry Henry, author Tim Ferriss, and musician will.i.am [2][3]. Existing investors such as Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian and actress Zoë Saldaña also participated [3].
The Business
Founded in 2018, Neko Health operates eight clinics across Sweden and the United Kingdom that offer hour-long health assessments combining proprietary scanning technology with bloodwork. The company’s flagship product centers on the Neko Derma Pod, an AI-powered device that captures high-resolution skin images to detect early signs of skin cancer and measure body composition. Each visit also includes a blood draw, ECG, and blood pressure measurements, with results processed within minutes and reviewed by a clinician [3].
Scans are priced at £299 (roughly $400) in the U.K. and 2,750 Swedish kronor (roughly $285) in Sweden. U.S. pricing has not yet been announced [3]. The company said more than 100,000 people have completed scans to date, with over 350,000 registered on waitlists or booked for appointments [1][3].
The Investors
Lightspeed Venture Partners, which also led the company’s Series B, returned as co-lead alongside O.G. Venture Partners. Institutional backers in the round include Atomico, General Catalyst, Lakestar, Liberty City Ventures, Positive Sum, and BDT & MSD [2].
The celebrity investor list spans industries: entertainment executive Ari Emanuel, filmmaker Matthew Vaughn, restaurateur Danny Meyer, and entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk all joined. Podcast host Steven Bartlett and health influencer Jessie Inchauspé are also among the backers [2]. The breadth of the investor base reflects growing mainstream interest in preventive health technology beyond traditional healthcare venture circles.
U.S. Expansion Plans
Neko Health’s New York City waitlist is already open, with the company targeting a launch later in 2026 [3]. The startup plans to open additional U.S. locations in other cities following the New York debut, though it has not disclosed a specific timeline or number of planned clinics [3].
The U.S. entry will pit Neko against a growing field of preventive health startups and established players offering full-body scanning, including Prenuvo, which has raised over $100 million and operates MRI-based scanning centers in several U.S. cities. Neko’s approach differs in combining AI-driven skin imaging with bloodwork at a lower price point than full MRI scans.
Why It Matters
The $700 million raise is one of the largest health-tech funding rounds in Europe this year and signals that investor enthusiasm for AI applications in healthcare extends well beyond drug discovery and clinical trials into consumer-facing preventive care. The nearly $7 billion valuation places Neko among the most valuable private health-tech companies globally [1].
For Daniel Ek, who remains CEO of Spotify (NYSE: SPOT), the round validates a side venture he launched to apply consumer technology principles to healthcare. Spotify shares traded at $485.38 on July 16, giving the streaming company a market capitalization of roughly $100 billion [4]. Ek has previously said he views Neko as a long-term commitment separate from his role at Spotify.
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