Johannes Fruehauf has great visibility into the changing landscape for life sciences startups as a seasoned entrepreneur, a venture investor, and co-founder and president of the biotech startup co-working space BioLabs. While the public market downturn has changed the financing environment, it hasn’t slowed the pace of entrepreneurs looking to translate breakthrough science into commercial enterprises. We spoke to Fruehauf about the landscape for biotech startups today, the key challenges bioentrepreneurs face, and how they can best position themselves for success.

Navigating the Changing Landscape for the Bioentrepreneur

Some of the biggest challenges executives of early-stage life sciences companies face is securing financing and forging their first licensing deals. Though they may possess deep scientific knowledge, finding the right investors and partners, and telling their story in a compelling way may require skills they have not yet developed. Life Science Nation works with entrepreneurs to tell their story, identify potential investors and partners, and connect with them. We spoke to Dennis Ford, founder and CEO of Life Science Nation, about the mistakes life sciences entrepreneurs make when they set out to raise money, what investors care about, and what steps they can take to best ensure their success.

The Art of Raising Money for a Life Sciences Company

Universities around the world are driving scientific advances that could provide needed new medicines, but despite the billions of dollars that fuel this research every year, academic researchers lack the capital and expertise to perform the necessary translational science to advance promising therapies out of the lab and into the clinic. Ocean Biomedical seeks to accelerate the development of promising innovations by providing needed funding and expertise. We spoke to Elizabeth Ng, CEO of Ocean Biomedical, about the company’s business model, how works with academic researchers to set up subsidiary companies around each asset, and what it looks for in the candidates it in-licenses.

Ocean Biomedical Seeks to Capitalize on a Wave of Academic Innovation

At the end of March, RESI South 2024 will convene in Atlanta and is expected to bring together more than 500 bioscience and medtech entrepreneurs with premier investors, family offices, and key executives. The event, the result of a partnership between Life Science Nation and the Southeast Life Sciences, will highlight the innovative start-ups in the Southeastern region and connect them with early-stage investors. We spoke to Georgia Bio CEO Maria Thacker and NC Life Sciences Organization President Laura Gunter, about the growth of biotech in the southeast region, the upcoming RESI South 2024 conference, and how it expected to help fill a gap in access to capital for companies in the region.

Southeast Regional Biotechs Get Chance to Connect with Investors and Potential Partners


The IPO market remains unwelcoming to biotechs and venture investors are reticent to back younger companies. In the absence of reliable funding sources, many biotechs are trying to advance their most promising programs while keeping their operations lean until they can get to a fundable milestone. We spoke to Kevin Sarney, Life Sciences Practice Leader for Charles River CFO, about the current uncertainty biotechs face, the need for capital efficiency, and how companies can best prepare for future opportunities.

Surviving and Thriving in the Long Biotech Winter

When the biotech industry gathers in San Francisco for the annual JPMorgan Healthcare Conference week in January, people will be closely watching dealmaking activity, who potential acquirers may be, and what targets they may hope to pick off in the year ahead. We spoke to Krist Werling, partner with the law firm McDermott Will & Emery, about the environment for life sciences dealmaking, who has the upper hand at the negotiating table these days, and what smaller companies should do to give themselves leverage.

The Environment for Life Sciences Dealmaking and How to Gain Leverage in Negotiations

In 2017, a long list of high-profile cases of sexual harassment grabbed the headlines and triggered soul searching in corporate America that cut across industries. As the new year begins and biotech companies think about what’s ahead in 2018, we sat down with Virginia Capezio, senior human resources consultant with the HR outsourcing company TriNet, to discuss HR issues for biotech. Capezio offered her thoughts on what biotech companies should do to address and prevent harassment, create salary equality, and improve their ability to recruit and retain women in their ranks.

How Biotechs Can Tackle Tough HR Issues in 2018

The Big4Bio Podcast shares podcasts that give insight and information about/from biotech and life science leaders and organizations within the Big4Bio regions. Check out our Playlists to hear podcasts by region.

Surviving and Thriving in the Long Biotech Winter

The Big4Bio Podcast

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