QB3 Introduces Series of Life Science Investor-Startup Forums
"Life Science Pitch Summits" Will Facilitate Early-Stage Growth in San Francisco Bay Area
SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 27, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- QB3, the University of California (UC)'s hub for life science entrepreneurship, announced today the creation of the "Life Science Pitch Summits," a series of quarterly events to convene selected startups with accredited investors. Each Summit will focus on a different healthcare vertical: the March Summit on biotech and biopharma; the June Summit on medical devices and diagnostics; and the October Summit on consumer health. In January 2018, during the week of the J. P. Morgan Healthcare Conference, QB3 will host the Life Science All-Stars, a startup competition featuring the top companies from the 2017 Summit cycle.
QB3 will collaborate with local healthcare companies and organizations such as Johnson & Johnson Innovation to catalyze investment in some of the most promising startups in Northern and Southern California. The resulting investments will help entrepreneurs move toward market commercialization, retain innovation in the region, and create high-value jobs.
"We've organized the Summits to take advantage of strengths in QB3's startup network and the UC system, which allows us to attract companies and advisory expertise from all over California," said Christine Winoto, deputy director of QB3, who is managing the Summit initiative.
The Summits capitalize on several trends that have emerged in recent years. The number of startups in QB3's network has now grown to well over 500. Pitch sessions at QB3 events draw intense interest from startups keen on exposure: the state-wide primeUC competition, which QB3 hosted in 2015, with Johnson & Johnson Innovation, drew 270 applicants from across California. Investors attend QB3 events looking for dealflow. The Summits provide a regular, efficient forum to meet the needs of startups for funding and investors for opportunity.
Entry to the Summits is by invitation only. Startups and accredited investors can apply for an invitation through the Summit website.
Leading up to each Summit, QB3 – along with local healthcare experts – will select up to 40 startups from the application pool. A judging panel will then select the top companies to participate in that Summit based on criteria such as innovation, team, funding readiness, market potential, and exit strategy. Companies selected by the panel will receive feedback and coaching from QB3 advisers prior to the Summit. Investors will receive diligence packages on the selected startups, generated by UC graduate students under the guidance of experienced investors.
"We recognize that networking is key to success for both startups and investors," Winoto said. Participating entrepreneurs and investors will be able to interact through a confidential online platform after each Summit. At each Summit, investors can meet other investors, strategic partners, and life science innovation leaders from UC campuses and national labs.
The Summits fit into QB3's strategy to shape and foster the California life-science startup ecosystem. Historically, QB3 has operated largely in the San Francisco Bay Area. For primeUC, QB3 engaged participation from all 10 UC campuses and UC's affiliated national laboratories. Going forward, the network will expand to include leadership from other life-science incubators and accelerators across the state.
"We are all in this together, and can do more for our entrepreneurial community as a team," said Regis Kelly, executive director of QB3. "Sharing ideas and making connections and enabling resources for our startups will be a powerful way to support this blossoming ecosystem and ultimately California's economy."
About QB3
QB3 is the University of California's hub for innovation and entrepreneurship in the life sciences. The institute supports UC researchers and empowers Bay Area entrepreneurs to launch startup companies and partner with industry. QB3 helps bio-entrepreneurs create hundreds of high-value jobs and bring more than $750 million into the Bay Area each year. With campus divisions at Berkeley, San Francisco, and Santa Cruz, QB3 is also affiliated with the San Francisco incubator QB3@953 — home to more than 45 companies — and the seed-stage venture capital firm Mission Bay Capital. Visit qb3.org.
CONTACT: Kaspar Mossman, 415-514-9790, [email protected]
SOURCE QB3
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