There is good news for early-stage Nordic start-ups in medtech, biotech and pharma. In 2019, BioInnovation Institute will award an extra DKK 35M which will amount to a total of DKK 150M awarded to life science projects since the inauguration of the institute in November 2018.
“After less than a year it is clear to us that there are more high-quality projects and promising early-stage start-ups than we can support. There is not only a need for further investments but also for the business development BII provides in terms of our strong, global networks, mentors, investor traction and infrastructure,” says CEO Jens Nielsen.
It is the Board of Directors of the Novo Nordisk Foundation that has agreed to push forward the DKK 35M to this year’s budget on request from CEO of BII, Jens Nielsen and the BII Board of Directors, that are appointed for the institute’s three years establishment period.
42 projects in 11 months
BII has already engaged with 42 projects and start-ups in the three different programs Proof of Concept, Business Acceleration Academy and Creation House. 22 projects are in pharma, 10 projects are in biotech and 10 projects are in medtech and all the Danish Universities are represented amongst the projects.
“The technology transfer offices play an important role in cultivating entrepreneurship at the universities and through the good collaboration we have established with them, we expect to over time see increased interest in translational research,” says Jens Nielsen.
Three new start-ups in Creation House
Most recently, three start-ups have been funded in BII’s Creation House program with DKK 10M each. During the coming 18 months, Synklino, PanCryos and ADCendo will progress on their development plans at BioInnovation Institute.
“The first couple of weeks have been busy with setting up the office- and laboratory logistics, but we have already felt significant benefits from being a Creation House start-up through valuable input on our business plan, as well as active pitching to a number of VCs and potential partners. Coming here has fueled our dream of creating novel treatments for cancer, based on our academic discoveries. As a Creation House company, we can dream bigger than before,” says Christoffer Nielsen, co-founder of ADCendo.
The extra DKK 35M will be awarded to start-ups joining the Creation House program. If your start-up is looking for support, check out the BII Creation House program that closes for applications September 12, 2019, at 14.00.
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Event: Talks at the Square on September 12