Next Phase Newsletter

A tech-driven pharmaceutical company based in the U.S. leverages its AI-powered drug development platform, the firm seeks to acquire promising drug candidates and develop them in-house faster and more efficiently than industry norms. The firm is interested in early clinical-stage therapeutic assets, and its typical deal structures include acquisitions and in-licensing. While equity investments are occasionally possible, the firm prefers to take a majority share and does not typically act as a minority investor. The firm is open to opportunities globally. 
 
The firm is interested in traditional therapeutic assets such as small molecules and biologics, with a primary focus on immunology, dermatology, and orphan diseases. Other indications of interest include CNS, cardiovascular, and metabolic diseases. The firm generally avoids cell therapy and oncology. As for development phases, the earliest the firm will consider is within 12 months of IND, with no limitation on how late the asset is in the clinical stage. 
 
The firm does not have specific requirements for a company’s management team, as the firm aims to take over the asset and typically does not act as a minority investor. 

If you are interested in more information about this investor and other investors tracked by LSN, please email salescore@lifesciencenation.com.

An early-stage investment fund supporting innovation across human health, food, agriculture, and climate, brings experience and expertise across both investing & operating in the Food and BioTech, ClimateTech and AgTech sectors. Its operating model allows access into the nearly 100 years of capability, ingenuity, manufacturing and distribution experience within Fonterra, while maintaining the agility and responsiveness to be a strong partner to start-ups and innovators in the space. 

The firm typically invests in seed to Series A opportunities, though remains open to companies at later stages. The average check size ranges from $2M to $5M USD, with the ability to go beyond this. The fund is open to both leading and co-investing and will consider board positions on a case-by-case basis. The firm is actively seeking opportunities globally and is open to deal structures beyond equity investments, such as co-development and in-licensing, especially for technologies that align strategically with Fonterra. 
 
The firm is generally interested in technologies that use nutrients to improve human health, such as those targeting the microbiome, cognitive function, sleep, and more. Areas of interest include the microbiome, alternative ingredients, and the application of molecules and proteins. The fund places a strong emphasis on data. In terms of development stages, the firm is open to working with companies from the pre-clinical stage through all phases of clinical and commercial development. 
 
The firm does not have specific requirements for the company or management team. However, the fund seeks founding teams with passion and strong technical expertise. 

If you are interested in more information about this investor and other investors tracked by LSN, please email salescore@lifesciencenation.com.

An investment firm headquartered in China with offices in the US, is focused on early-stage investments in life science and healthcare sectors. The firm typically engages in pre-A to series B financing rounds, with initial investment sizes ranges from $500k to $8M, and potential for follow-on investments. The firm looks for opportunities mostly in Europe, and in the US and UK as well. The firm is open to both leading and co-investing.

The firm is interested in therapeutics, medical devices and diagnostics. The firm is open to looking at digital health, AI -related companies but has not invested in one yet. The firm is opportunistic in terms of subsectors and indications. Some areas of interest include immunology, immuno-oncology, CNS disorders and kidney-related diseases. For therapeutics, the firm is open to looking at companies from phase I to beyond, particularly those with proof of concepts or clinical data validating their technologies. For medical devices and diagnostics, the firm tends to look for more mature companies, with product or prototype ready and as well as plans for regulatory approvals.

The firm does not have specific requirements for a company’s management team but prefers to work with founding teams that have entrepreneurial experiences previously.

If you are interested in more information about this investor and other investors tracked by LSN, please email salescore@lifesciencenation.com.

Founded by entrepreneurs with deep sector experience, a venture capital firm headquartered in Western Europe, focused on novel therapeutics. The firm is an early-stage investor, investing from seed through late stage pre-clinical. The firm will typically stay with the asset until after clinical proof-of-concept, at which point they will exit. The firm is currently investing from a Europe-focused fund, and plans to invest in more USA-based companies with their next fund. The firm makes initial investments of $3M – $5M in equity and occasionally convertible loans. The firm can make follow-on investments, up to a total of $15-20M per investment.

The firm is solely focused on therapeutics. The firm is indication- and modality- agnostic. The firm’s larger focus is on stage of development and that there is a large unmet need with high commercial value.

The firm will both lead and co-invest. They do not have strict team requirements, though prefer for teams with previous experience.

If you are interested in more information about this investor and other investors tracked by LSN, please email salescore@lifesciencenation.com.

A multinational conglomerate with multiple business areas including healthcare has been an active investor and strategic partner in areas that complement their core businesses, such as regenerative medicine, cell therapy, drug discovery enabling technologies, etc., through means of strategic investment, in-licensing, M&A, research collaborations.

The firm manages a life sciences strategic investment fund that seeks to invest in life science companies developing cutting edge technologies with high growth potential across the globe. Initial investment sizes will start with in the few hundred thousand range, and the firm focuses on Series A and B investments with potential for follow-ons.

The firm’s strategic investment fund is actively seeking new opportunities in life sciences. While mainly opportunistic towards specific sectors, technologies, and indications, the firm prioritizes investment opportunities that complement their core business areas including diagnostics, therapeutics, R&D enabling technologies and platforms. The firm seeks early-stage opportunities, and are open to those that are in pre-clinical stage / in development.

The firm will generally participate as a co-investor. The firm has no specific company or management team requirements.

If you are interested in more information about this investor and other investors tracked by LSN, please email salescore@lifesciencenation.com.

A venture capital firm based in the US is actively investing from their second fund. The firm is actively investing in the intersection of science, technology, and neurology, and has invested in over 30 companies to date. The firm invests primarily in Seed to Series A rounds. While the firm has mostly invested in USA-based companies, the firm is open to opportunities beyond.

Within life sciences, the firm is interested in drug development and drug development-enabling tools and technologies, medical devices with a software component, and wearables. Relating to therapeutics, the firm is particularly interested in psychedelics and plant-based therapies. The firm is most interested in technologies that target mental & behavioral health and CNS/neurodegenerative disease. The firm is open to early-stage, pre-clinical companies.

The firm has no specific company or management team requirements, and is open to acting as either lead or co-investor, seeking board representation when leading rounds.

If you are interested in more information about this investor and other investors tracked by LSN, please email salescore@lifesciencenation.com.

A global venture capital fund headquartered in Asia has a strong focus in the microbiome and adjacent fields. Atypical for a VC, the firm has multiple mechanisms to support early-stage innovators and entrepreneurs. In addition to equity investments, they have a sponsored research function that provides grants for academics or startups conducting fundamental research, which may lead to future pipelines or newco. They are also involved in developing a deep phenotyping platform that follows changes in the microbiome of healthy participants for an extended period of time. 

For capital investments, the firm is stage and country agnostic but tends to prefer earlier stages (Seed and Series A). Their interest within the microbiome field is diverse and not limited to therapeutics.  As scientists, entrepreneurs, and operators themselves, the firm fundamentally values the underlying science, team, as well as potential synergy with their mission and existing portfolio companies. Moreover, for startups looking to enter Asian markets, the firm provides additional value through their extensive networks and track record of launching businesses in these geographies. 
 
The firm is looking to partner with groups addressing complex challenges with the potential to impact society globally, with a preference for first-in-class or best-in-class innovations. While not exclusive, their current areas of high interest are: 1) skin microbiome/gut-skin axis, 2) women’s and infant microbiome, 3) gut-brain axis, 4) phage therapy, gene editing, and virome. That said, the firm is open to any promising opportunities, even if they are not directly focused on the microbiome, provided they include amazing teams with a global vision to positively impact society. 
 
The firm is looking for companies and technologies that can move its mission forward and have multiple options for funding, including equity investing and non-dilutive funding. They usually prefer syndicate investments with a smaller cheque size as an initial investment but may lead with substantial follow-on investments once the relationship is established.

If you are interested in more information about this investor and other investors tracked by LSN, please email salescore@lifesciencenation.com.