Marijuana vape firm Pax Labs raises $20M but seeks to avoid VC dependence

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San Francisco-based Pax Labs has closed a $20 million funding round, Bloomberg reported.

CEO Bharat Vasan told the news outlet that the company wanted to keep the investment small to “avoid becoming overly dependent on venture capital.”

Launched by the founders of e-cigarette maker Juul, Pax Labs vaporizers allow users to control the device with a mobile application.

Juul spun the company out from its portfolio in 2017.

According to Bloomberg, “two people familiar with the Pax deal previously pegged the (company’s) valuation at $5 billion but later said the number was based on expectations for future potential, not on the terms of the investment.”

Marijuana Business Daily could not reach Pax Labs officials for comment.

The company’s previous investors have included Tiger Global Management, Fidelity Investments and Tao Capital Partners.