# David Renteln

> David Renteln is the co-founder and CEO of Lucy, a Los Angeles consumer brand making tobacco-free nicotine gum and pouches built around a stated mission of reducing tobacco-related harm to zero. A Harvard human evolutionary biology graduate and former Harvard Rugby president, he deferred a Caltech bioengineering PhD to help build Soylent, where he served as co-founder and chief marketing officer. In 2016 he started Lucy with Soylent alumni John Coogan and Samy Hamdouche, raised a $10M Series A in 2020 from RRE Ventures, Vice Ventures, Greycroft and Y Combinator, and has since pushed nicotine into the productivity-and-wellness conversation.

- **Role:** Co-Founder and CEO at Lucy
- **Organizations:** Lucy (Lucy Goods, Inc.), Soylent, Y Combinator (W18)
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, PhD candidate, Biological Engineering (deferred), California Institute of Technology
- **Known for:** Co-founded Soylent and led its marketing as Chief Marketing Officer, Founded and leads Lucy, a venture-backed tobacco-free nicotine brand, Raised a $10M Series A for Lucy from notable consumer and tech investors

## Career timeline

- **2012** — Co-founded Soylent; served as co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer through 2017
- **2016** — Founded Lucy (Lucy Goods) with John Coogan and Samy Hamdouche
- **2018** — Lucy went through Y Combinator (Winter 2018 batch)
- **2020** — Lucy raised a $10M Series A led by investors including RRE Ventures, Vice Ventures and FundRX, with prior backers Y Combinator and Greycroft
- **2026** — Appeared on Dave Asprey's 'The Human Upgrade' podcast; Lucy featured in coverage of nicotine as a productivity and wellness trend

## Achievements

- Co-founded Soylent and led its marketing as Chief Marketing Officer
- Founded and leads Lucy, a venture-backed tobacco-free nicotine brand
- Raised a $10M Series A for Lucy from notable consumer and tech investors
- Y Combinator W18 alumnus
- President of the Harvard Rugby team

## Latest updates

- **2026-01** — Appeared on Dave Asprey's 'The Human Upgrade' podcast discussing the science of nicotine.
- **2026-02** — Lucy featured in STAT coverage of nicotine's resurgence as a wellness and productivity product, including its Excel pouches aimed at tech and finance workers.

## Links

- Website: https://lucy.co
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/drenteln
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dteln/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/david-renteln
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-13