Accelerate@Babraham pitch day orchestrated by new lead on Campus
“It couldn’t have gone any better,” said Jenny Hirst, senior lead for science and entrepreneurship at Babraham Research Campus, after Pitch Day for the 2024 Accelerate@Babraham cohort.
The events marked the end of the eight-week taught phase of the Accelerate@Babraham programme. The six start-ups on the current Accelerate@Babraham course put some of their newfound skills to the test by pitching to an audience of invited guests and representatives from the incubator’s strategic partners and supporters.
Run by Babraham Research Campus, Accelerate@Babraham provides a strong package of support which includes a year’s free lab space, £10k funding and access to an unrivalled network of experts, mentors and investors.
The ventures chosen from a strong field of contenders to make up this year’s cohort are:
- Athernal believes cancer can be prevented and is developing new vaccines designed to lower the risk of cancer.
- enstic is dedicated to transforming the understanding and management of insect populations through innovative sensor-based devices to provide real-time, data-driven insights into ecological impacts and health risks.
- Ephyra is developing an innovative sponge RNA technology that targets microRNA disease drivers to restore cellular health during disease.
- The New Platelet Company manufactures universal platelets for transfusion from induced pluripotent stem cells to add to the supply of platelets from donors, which is not sufficient to treat all patients at risk of bleeding.
- OvartiX is a women's health drug discovery company that harnesses large-scale human multi-omics data, state-of-the-art cell engineered and animal models to identify, validate and develop next-generation therapeutics for female reproductive disorders.
- U-Ploid biotechnologies Ltd develops next-generation IVF therapeutics for treating female infertility by improving the egg quality within the IVF cycle, generating more eggs capable of supporting a healthy pregnancy.
“It was clear how much impact the expertise they have experienced via workshops, round tables, talks, speed networking, 1:1s, consultancy and mentoring has had,” said one of the attendees at the pitch day, and more than one company has already secured pre-seed funding.
“There were 70 people at the Cambridge Building,” says Jenny Hirst, who has taken over the role from Kathryn Chapman, who is due to join Innovate UK. “It couldn’t have gone any better. The presentations were fantastic and everyone has contributed to that. The quality of teams and quality of science really came across, and the teams and even non-scientists understood what the potential of each of the companies is.”
Jenny is enjoying her new role at Babraham Research Campus, having switched from academia.
“I joined in November,” she says. “I was a long-term academic studying cell biology at the University of Cambridge –my work involved understanding the mechanisms of disease. I decided to pivot and transition into a different space and am really enjoying the new challenge of working with start-ups. They have energy and enthusiasm, and it’s a real privilege to help them go through this journey.
“This is totally new to me but incredibly exciting, I’m learning all the time. My journey has in some ways mirrored their journey.”
Accelerate@Babraham is backed by a core group of strategic partners – AstraZeneca, BioMed Realty, Eisai, Kidney Research UK, LifeArc and Novo Nordisk – and supported by delivery partners Medicines Discovery Catapult and Triple Chasm.
The next phase of Accelerate@Babraham will see the companies join LiveLabs – the Campus’ communal lab facility.
Additional reporting by Sarah Brereton.
