The firm focuses on investing in early stage companies in the technology and healthcare industries.

[8] Towards the end of 2013, the firm established Canaan Partners Israel in Tel Aviv which would manage a $30 million fund to invest in Israeli technology companies.

[5][10] In 2018, the firm unveiled a program named Canaan Beta where it sets aside part of its latest fund to its youngest employees to manage.

[3][4][9] Notable investments include Ebates,[9] Instacart,[4] LendingClub,[3][9] The RealReal,[1][4] Turo[4] and Zoosk.

[9] Compared to peer VC firms, Canaan invests in more female-managed companies.