With the launch of this newsletter, we are pleased to add another channel to help connect and amplify life sciences founders, build a peer-to-peer exchange, highlight resources supporting the startup journey to scale and, most importantly, support you in your fundraising quest by offering access to capital opportunities. 2022, for us, was defined by restructuring and building a new strategic innovation and entrepreneurship roadmap comprised of programs, thought leadership, networking events, and curated opportunities to meet with select investors. We began 2023 with several notable milestones:
Featured 8 FAST Alumni at RESI at JPM in January 2023.
Doubled the FAST cohorts in 2023 to add additional slots for MedTech and Diagnostic startups.
Introduced a Positioning for Capital workshop to help move the needle for funding for founders with transformational technologies.
Enhanced peer-to-peer exchange for our FAST CA community with CEOs and founders in other top innovation hubs outside CA.
Coming soon! A resource page on the CLS website for members that are entrepreneurs.
Currently, our key focus is to help you navigate the challenging economic environment by supporting you to find ways to extend your run rate. Here’s how you can help:
Connect with Shikha Sharma and me on LinkedIn to find out about potential funding opportunities.
Tell us (and your FAST advisors) about your progress and how we can help you advance to the next stage of your organization’s lifecycle.
Become a CLS member. For a nominal fee, entrepreneurs can benefit from discounts at industry leading conferences, attend regional happy hours, and save on lab and scientific equipment, HR, and other business solutions including insurance, waste removal, shipping, moving and storage.
Stay focused on your science with Agilent Subscriptions for Start-Ups. For a limited time, new companies that acquire their next lab instrument through an Agilent Instrument Subscription are eligible for a two-year CLS membership for the price of one. This promotion applies to CA-based pre-commercial companies with 12 or fewer employees that have raised less than $5M in funding.
I’m looking forward to connecting with you and to building a vibrant, innovative, and supportive life sciences ecosystem!
Executive Director, Innovation & Entrepreneurship
California Life Sciences
CLS’s Innovation Showcase, taking place June 21, will bring investors and entrepreneurs together to spotlight California’s innovation. We will foster connections and vital conversations for startup companies, creating a unique experience for entrepreneurs and investors alike. The 12 companies comprising the 2023 Spring FAST cohort will be featured. The founders will pitch their technology to a panel of early-stage investors and gain valuable feedback to facilitate their and your future growth. Join us and find new potential collaboration partners and network with CLS’s robust innovation network. Click here to view sponsorship opportunities.
Now Accepting Applications for the Fall FAST Cohort
FAST is a bi-annual business advisory program that matches entrepreneurs with a tailored group of investors, analysts, and strategists across the value chain for up to 12 hours of customized guidance over a three-month period.
At the end of the program, you will have an opportunity to present your company to an audience of investors, pharma company executives, and life sciences leaders at the Innovation Showcase. Please apply online here.
Companies and academia who are developing innovative therapeutic approaches in oncology, auto-immune diseases, and genetically driven neurodegenerative and movement disorders are encouraged to apply for the Servier Discovery Award.
Join us on May 22 as we kickoff the premier bioscience conference in LA County, LABEST 2023. Network and foster partnerships with your colleagues from across the county as well as local startup companies while promoting awareness of the growing life sciences entrepreneurial ecosystem in Los Angeles.
“Welcome to LABEST 2023! Developing curative therapies for patients requires a community effort across stakeholders, especially in the academic-biopharma space. LABEST strives to facilitate relationships between these stakeholders by raising awareness of leading multi-disciplinary research programs, brilliant scientists, and emerging startups across LA institutions including UCLA, USC, COH, Cedars Sinai and Cal State Universities. LABEST is a “one-stop shop” for the biopharma industry and investors to facilitate collaborations with the best of LA’s institutions.” - Mark A. Wisniewski MA, MBA, Senior Director Biopharmaceuticals, UCLA, TDG
Upcoming live sessions
May 4 – Avoiding Mistakes: Cap Tables and More: Understand the importance of cap tables and why they can be a challenge for investment from institutional investors. Instructor: Peter D. Weinstein, Ph.D., J.D., Founder & Managing Partner, Entralta May 11 – Mastering Due Diligence: How to analyze risks and mitigate uncertainties, improving potential for funding. Instructor: Maileen Flores, CPA, Richtr Financial Studio May 18 – Term Sheet Negotiation: What to watch out for and how to negotiate the financial terms of an investment. Instructor: Brian Appel, of Counsel, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
Archived Workshops
Investor-Ready Pro Forma: How to translate the milestone plan into a financial story or investor-ready pro forma | Instructor: James Graham, CPA, CEO & Founder, Richtr Financial Studio Assessing Pre-Money Valuation: How investors would assess the value of your project | Instructor: Peter Adams, Executive Director, Rockies Venture Club
CLS is proud to spotlight current FAST participant Dr. Bhawanjit Brar PhD, Founder of Jaan Biotherapeutics
Dr. Brar has been developing new treatments for heart disease for over 20 years. She’s always had an interest in the heart muscle. “Heart disease affects every family including my own,” she said.
“There are no treatments that can regenerate heart muscle within the organ. Developing a drug that could potentially help millions of people, without them requiring rare, invasive, and costly surgery is what drives me on a daily basis.”
Dr. Brar founded Jaan Biotherapeutics in 2015, and she has extensive experience in developing treatments for heart failure. During her seven-year tenure at Zensun USA, she held various positions including the Vice President of Clinical Research, managing a United States Phase 2 clinical trial for a first in class therapeutic for the treatment of heart failure. Dr. Brar has served as a consultant for many years helping companies develop therapeutics through to clinical testing before founding Jaan Biotherapeutics. Dr. Brar is an inventor/co-inventor of numerous patents. She received her PhD in Physiology/Endocrinology from the University of Reading UK. She was also one of the first members of the Women in Bio Founders Forum Group.
US Pharma Partnering Summit is an exclusive life sciences industry event, with the aim to help companies expand their network and put together licensing deals.
The 5th Age-Related Disease Therapeutics Summit is the only industry-focused meeting dedicated to uniting 100+ biopharma drug developers, pioneering academics, and prominent investors striving to develop effective, novel drugs.
2023 BIO International Convention, June 5 – 8 / Boston The BIO International Convention attracts 14,000+ biotechnology and pharma leaders for intensive networking to discover new opportunities and promising partnerships. Visit us at the CA Pavilion (booth 2035).
BioTechX, September 6 – 7 / Santa Clara BioTechX USA covers diagnostics, precision medicine and digital transformation in pharmaceutical development and healthcare.
California Life Sciences, 685 Gateway Blvd., Suite 100, South San Francisco, California, 94080
