Des Moines—4.2.26
BioConnect Iowa on Monday announced Bonnie Brayton as its new Managing Director for the InnoVenture Co-Investment Fund, an important State asset for venture capital deployment to Iowa startup companies.
Brayton will guide the deployment and portfolio management of $40 Million in State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) funds provided to Iowa by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, as a key part of the state’s SSBCI programs.
The fund has invested over $18 Million in 48 Iowa startups, in industries ranging from bioscience to agtech, to information technology, to advanced manufacturing and beyond.
“Bonnie has a unique background in both bioscience and venture capital, that will not only allow us to strategically deploy our venture capital, which is critical to the Iowa startup ecosystem, but also position us with vision as the InnoVenture Fund matures and evolves, said Jessica Hyland, President and CEO of BioConnect Iowa.
“I am honored to join the InnoVenture Iowa team. It’s clear that within our nation, Iowa stands out as an agricultural powerhouse, a pioneer in renewable energy and a hub for the bioscience and insurance industries. One of my passions over the past 8 years has been supporting the innovation ecosystem through collaboration, mentorship and investment. In this role with InnoVenture Iowa, I will combine the know-how of financial venture capital investing with my commitment to supporting entrepreneurs, and our team will help this state grow the next generation of cutting-edge technologies.”
Bonnie Brayton is a scientist and investor with 20 plus years of experience in AgTech. She is a graduate of Scripps College, University of California Berkeley and Brown University.
With a background in plant biochemistry, she worked as a research scientist at Mendel Biotechnology, Hawaii Center for AIDS and DuPont Pioneer (Corteva). At Corteva, she moved out of the lab and into continuous improvement, technology acquisition and collaboration management.
She entered the venture capital industry when she joined AgTech investor Fulcrum Global Capital as their Senior Venture Associate in 2022, investing in technologies that increase global food production, reduce waste and improve sustainability.
In 2022, Iowa made a bold move: create a public venture capital fund to support homegrown innovation. Backed by federal SSBCI capital and launched in partnership with the Iowa Economic Development Authority and BioConnect Iowa, InnoVenture Iowa opened its doors that fall and began investing immediately.
Since then, we’ve backed more than 40 founders who are building category-defining companies across bioscience, ag-tech, advanced manufacturing, Saas and AI. Our role is simple: invest early, and help Iowa’s innovators go further, faster — strengthening industries, creating jobs, and shaping the state’s future economy.
Our goal is to accelerate the growth of Iowa’s bioscience, advanced manufacturing, information technologies, and other deep-tech sectors—and we’re doing this by helping move good ideas into successful commercial endeavors. We provide entrepreneurs with resources, mentorship, and connections to the right people at the right time to help them turn dreams into reality.
We focus our efforts in four key areas: Biobased Products, Precision and Digital Agriculture, Vaccines, Diagnostics and Immunotherapeutics, and Medical Innovation.
Contact – Jessica Hyland, President and CEO BioConnect Iowa Jessica.hyland@bioconnectiowa.org