Jun

2025

Issue 4: Summer 2025

Progress in the United States has often come from unlikely coalitions brought together around shared values and goals. In challenging times, we believe it’s crucial to identify ideas with broad support and build alliances that can make positive changes.

One important issue that unites many policymakers: making healthcare more accessible and prescription drugs more affordable. A wide range of Republicans and Democrats have spoken out against the House of Representatives’ wildly unpopular decision to cut $800 billion from Medicaid. When it comes to lowering drug costs, Peter Welch (D-Vt.) introduced legislation with bipartisan support to ensure that U.S. drug prices don’t exceed the international average.

Increasing economic opportunity is another issue with bipartisan support. There are many ways investors can help bolster financial well-being in this country. This includes advancing tax reform, like expanding the child tax credit, and advocating for real estate policies that encourage an increase in both the supply of and affordability of homes. We can also support workers in building wealth by promoting employee ownership through ESOPs and other innovative models. As Rep. Lori Trahan puts it: “Employee ownership can transform a nine-to-five job into a retirement plan with dividend benefits.”

As we work to advance issues on a bipartisan basis, we shouldn’t take key institutions for granted. Higher education requires thoughtful reform but is under attack in ways that endanger long-term scientific progress and undermine America’s role as a global innovator. It’s good to see students and alumni from Harvard and other universities across the ideological spectrum work together to push back on the Trump administration’s assault against higher education and science.

As we seek consensus and ways to collaborate, we’re encouraged by hopeful actions peers and partners in our network are taking. The Sorenson team is leading conversations on addressing the U.S. wealth gap through home and employee ownership. Additionally, Better Taxes for a Better America, a funders table, is assembling stakeholders in the tax policy space. We’re inspired by those who not only stay the course but reach out to others to solve problems.

– Liesel and Ian

IMPACT PLAYER: NEWSGUARD

FIGHTING THE DISINFORMATION CRISIS

IS THE INTERNET DESIGNED TO SPREAD LIES?

OUR TAKE:

Yes, and We Need Credibility to Go Viral

The flood of misinformation in our news and social media outlets is doing more than confusing us; it’s eroding trust in institutions and threatening democracy.

We’ve all seen how false narratives can spread like wildfire: Climate change is a hoax; USAID is funding a DEI musical; Project 2025 proposed slashing Social Security; and Volodymyr Zelenskyy bought a $35 million villa with aid money. None of it’s true.

Veteran journalists Steven Brill, a best-selling author and founder of Court TV, and Gordon Crovitz, previously with The Wall Street Journal, founded NewsGuard in 2018 to address this growing problem. Alongside 50+ journalists, NewsGuard’s specially trained analysts are media-reliability experts who rate the trustworthiness and credibility of news and other information websites. The company, which prizes its nonpartisan stance, uncovers online disinformation and has rated over 35,000 news sources to date, including websites, podcasts, and more.

By the Numbers

78% of Americans believe significant online misinformation claims to be true.
More than 2,500 fake “news” local sites are secretly funded by partisan groups or Russia.
$2.6 billion in ad revenue from blue-chip companies inadvertently funds misinformation each year.

Source: NewsGuard

Blue Haven Fund at ImpactAssets was an early investor in NewsGuard. Over the past few years, NewsGuard has been evolving its model to fight back as the media and digital landscape shifts and government officials scrutinize the work of disinformation watchdogs. It is also attempting to stop the spread of misleading information within AI platforms and models.

Recently, NewsGuard journalists uncovered a Moscow-based disinformation ring using AI to crank out Russian propaganda at an industrial scale—an estimated 3.6 million articles in 2024 alone. And in 2025, it rolled out a service to provide AI companies with real-time data to protect models from false information and foreign influence. The company is also investing in a small language model, TrueNews AI, that pulls data from 8,500 vetted, credible news outlets.

Did you know…

Disinformation is intentionally false information, while misinformation is false information shared without intent to deceive.

When facts are treated as just another opinion, those with the loudest megaphones win. “We’re trying to establish the idea that there are knowable facts and that a democracy and market can’t function unless people agree on the same set of facts,” Brill tells Blue Haven. If we want to save democracy, we need to fight for the truth.

Get Involved:

Subscribe to NewsGuard’s Reality Check newsletter.
If you are a funder looking to support independent media and information accuracy, contact us to learn about the NewsGuard team and fundraise.

INVESTMENT

SPOTLIGHT

HOW CAN WE MAKE HEALTHCARE MORE EFFECTIVE, DATA-DRIVEN, AND ACCESSIBLE?

OUR TAKE:

Innovation is One Lever to Drive Access and Equity

Holistic, accessible mental healthcare can be life changing. That was Kristian Ranta’s experience when he sought help from a therapist after his brother died by suicide in 2005. The treatment he received left a lasting impression and today shapes his work in digital health.

Kristian, a serial health tech entrepreneur, leads Meru Health, a San Mateo, CA startup created to make holistic mental health treatment available to people suffering from a range of psychological issues, especially those who aren’t near a therapist’s office or inclined to walk into one.

Kristian, who previously led a diabetes company, jokes that the successful heavy metal band he played in years ago in Finland was his “first mental health startup.” The music helped him, his bandmates, and fans express and manage emotions. Now, through Meru Health, he hopes to reach a larger audience.

The company’s integrated model is designed for clinical effectiveness and consistency. Its 12-week virtual program combines cognitive behavioral therapy led by licensed clinicians with complementary support for mindfulness, sleep, and nutrition. It includes a wearable biofeedback device that helps patients monitor their physiological responses to stress in real time.

This is Blue Haven’s first dedicated investment in mental health. As part of our due diligence, Hari Joy, our Director of Investments, completed Meru’s full 12-week program. “The program gave me a structured and thoughtful space to build healthier habits,” Hari says. “What stood out to me was how holistic it felt, seamlessly integrating therapy sessions with mindfulness, meditation, nutrition, community support, and biofeedback tools.”

Meru Health exemplifies how mental health care is evolving to meet today’s growing demand. As a virtual-first platform, it expands access beyond the limitations of in-person care—critical at a time when each year one in five U.S. adults experience a mental health condition, yet fewer than one-third of Americans live in areas with adequate provider coverage. The company also addresses structural barriers like affordability and reimbursement. Meru contracts with over a dozen insurers, including Aetna and Cigna, and it leverages a bundled payment model to streamline coverage and reduce out-of-pocket costs for patients.

“The program gave me a structured and thoughtful space to build healthier habits. What stood out to me was how holistic it felt, seamlessly integrating therapy sessions with mindfulness, meditation, nutrition, community support, and biofeedback tools.”

At Blue Haven, we’ve been consistently impressed by Meru Health’s leadership and the company’s sustained momentum. But beyond growth metrics, what truly sets Meru apart is its unwavering commitment to impact. The team brings a rigorous, data-informed approach to care, with a focus on delivering meaningful and measurable outcomes for patients. A few elements that stand out include:

Data and outcomes tracking. Only ~20% of clinicians in the mental health space track symptom improvement over time. In contrast, Meru’s team closely follows the program’s clinical efficacy, quality of care, and patient feedback, a data-centric approach that is unique in traditional therapeutic settings. Peer-reviewed studies by Harvard Medical School and Rutgers University have found that Meru’s program leads to symptom reduction rates two to three times higher than what is observed through traditional care models.
User engagement. Meru users are engaged. The company reports average platform use of 15 hours per member during treatment, compared to just 3 to 5 hours with other digital mental health platforms. The 12-week program boosts loyalty and accountability, Kristian says: “From week to week you learn new skills, watch your progress, and work with a therapist.”
Employee care and ownership. The Meru team doesn’t just support patients—its close-knit community of about 80 remote healthcare providers receive ongoing performance feedback, workshops, and even stock options. The result? Higher retention among the therapist employee group, ensuring invaluable consistency for patients.

In 2025, Meru Health is expanding partnerships with several Fortune 500 employers and major health systems, making its program available to more people who previously lacked access to quality mental health support.

Building on the momentum of companies like Meru, we’re excited for Blue Haven to launch a strategy focused on mental health innovation and believe venture capital can play a powerful role in supporting breakthrough solutions. At the same time, we recognize that venture alone isn’t enough to address the mental health crisis in our country. As we explore other ways to address the issue, policy advocacy is emerging as a critical lever. This was a key theme in a recent conversation Blue Haven convened in New York City focused on behavioral health.

As system investors, we’re starting to explore where other forms of capital, action, and voice can be leveraged. If you are interested in exploring state-by-state mental health scorecards and policy recommendations, check out Inseparable’s research and resources here.

TEAM SPOTLIGHT:

SIMON THOMPSON

At Blue Haven, strengthening democracy and working toward a fairer and more productive economy are top priorities. Leading the charge: Simon Thompson, our Managing Director of Civics.

Working closely with our Principal Ian Simmons and teammates Sanzida Mohsin and Dereka Young, Simon focuses on strengthening civic institutions, combating foreign money and authoritarian threats in U.S. elections, and advancing overdue tax reform. In today’s climate, that’s no small task—and Simon is all in. He’s most energized when a Blue Haven-incubated initiative grows into a self-sustaining effort under independent leadership. One example: Better Taxes for a Better America, a funders table for smart tax reform launched at Blue Haven and now led by Sarah Pray.

His passion for civic action started early. In high school, Simon campaigned for marriage equality in Maine, learning the fundamentals of organizing and advocacy one phone call at a time. He says he relishes the “deep, important work that goes into changing hearts and minds.” Activism runs in the family: His grandfather marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma and was an early advocate for socially responsible investing.

Simon joined Blue Haven after graduating from Harvard and helped build the Civics portfolio in its early days. He stepped away for a few years to serve as the organizing director in Maine for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and to lead civic efforts, including founding the Portland Parks Conservancy.

These days, when he’s not working on Blue Haven projects, Simon stays active. He’s a competitive runner, aspiring surfer, and passionate autograph collector (20,000 and growing!).

WHAT

WE’RE READING

4 Underfunded Strategies to Lift the Working Class and Strengthen Democracy

The Chronicle of Philanthropy outlines four high-impact opportunities that philanthropic investments often miss, including tax reform and labor organizing, that could strengthen both the working class and democracy.
Mental Health Treatments Need More Collaborative Innovation

Breakthroughs in digital therapies, prescription medicines, and community-based care are reshaping mental health, but scaling them equitably will take coordinated investment across sectors the World Economic Forum shares.
Systems Thinking for Impact Investing: Primer, Playbook, and What’s Next

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors introduces resources to help impact investors apply systems thinking, offering practical tools to navigate complexity and drive more sustainable change.
Despite DEI Backlash, Only 19% of Companies are Cutting Diversity Funding

Fast Company reports that while some companies are scaling back public commitments to DEI, many are quietly maintaining or growing their efforts. However, many are shifting strategies amid the current polarized climate.
How to Structure Impact-Linked Carried Interest and Other Impact Incentives

Some impact investors are incorporating impact-linked incentives to reward recipients or managers of capital for meeting impact targets, Impact Alpha reports.
Why We Need ‘Revolutionary’ Cooling Tech

With temperatures rising, the cooling market is growing. The BBC covers what’s happening in sustainable solutions, including solid-state cooling.
Yale Youth Poll: Spring 2025

The Yale Youth Poll Spring 2025 highlights significant generational divides in perspectives on social issues, institutional trust, and political preferences, with younger voters expressing views that differ notably from older generations.

WHERE

WE’VE BEEN

Recent events the Blue Haven Team attended:

GIIN Events: GIIN West Coast Impact Forum; San Francisco, its 15-year strategy event in Italy; and the Investors Council Annual Meeting in New York
Road Ahead 2025, Ballot Initiative Strategy Center, Las Vegas
The ImPact Strategy Summit, Miami
Committee on States, Snowbird, UT
Generation Private Markets Investor Day, New York
Recast Capital Summit, Sonoma, CA
ILPA Members Conference, Chicago
Rethink, Generate, Resilience VC, Jonathan Rose, Reach, and Vision Ridge AGMs
Milken Institute Global Conference, Los Angeles
MWE Family Office Symposium, New York
Intentional Endowments Network Virtual Forum

Reach out if you’ll also be at these upcoming events, and you want to connect!

Rika HR Summit in Nairobi, July
Toniic Member Gathering in Los Angeles, September

The Blue Haven Brief