Next Phase Newsletter

By Karen Deyo, VP of Product, Israel BD, LSN

One of the biggest challenges startups face when raising capital is simply getting in front of investors. Securing that first meeting often requires significant effort, and when outreach goes unanswered, founders are left wondering: Are they not interested? Are they just too busy? More often than not, the issue isn’t the technology – it’s the messaging. Without clear, concise, and compelling messaging, startups struggle to cut through the noise and grab investor attention.

Over the years, Life Science Nation (LSN) has developed a comprehensive library of educational content to guide first-time CEOs through the complexities of launching a successful partnering campaign. One of the most critical – and overlooked – components is messaging. Investors are inundated with inbound requests, and your company should make it as easy as possible for them to say “yes” to a meeting – ideally just from reading your tagline and elevator pitch. When working with scientist-entrepreneurs, we often go through 20–30 iterations of a company’s core messaging before it clicks. It’s hard work, but it pays off.

Another common pitfall: focusing too heavily on the science. Investors aren’t just investing in technology – they’re investing in companies. A strong scientific story is important, but it must be framed within a broader business narrative. Founders often get valuable feedback during their campaign, but the most successful teams anticipate objections and refine their story before they launch.

That’s why LSN created a structured messaging assessment tool to help companies get a head start. We’ve developed a proprietary questionnaire that, combined with your current marketing collateral, allows our AI agent to evaluate your messaging readiness and identify areas for improvement.

The assessment includes a first-pass tagline and elevator pitch based on our proven messaging criteria, along with an analysis across eight key areas – from management team to competitive landscape – to highlight potential weaknesses in your strategy.

We’re offering this service free of charge as part of our mission to help startups overcome the hidden obstacles that make fundraising so difficult. Click the link below to fill out the questionnaire – and we’ll be in touch with your personalized assessment soon.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

BioMetas Named Title Sponsor for RESI Partnering Events in 2025 and 2026
Boston, MA – March 17, 2025

By Dennis Ford, Founder and CEO of Life Science Nation; Creator of RESI Conference Series

Life Science Nation (LSN) is pleased to announce that BioMetas will serve as the “Title Sponsor” for all 2025 and 2026 Redefining Every-Stage Investments (RESI) partnering events. This strategic partnership highlights BioMetas’ dedication to advancing early-stage therapeutics by offering world-class preclinical discovery assay services specifically designed for emerging biotech companies focusing on Oncology and Immunology Therapeutic area.

BioMetas: Supporting the Next Generation of Therapeutic Startups
BioMetas is headquartered in Shanghai, China, with a Business Development presence in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.A., allowing the company to serve biotech startups across global innovation hubs. BioMetas is a trusted partner for early-stage biotech innovators, providing a comprehensive suite of preclinical research biological assay services. With expertise spanning in vitro biology, in vivo pharmacology, cancer biology, DMPK, protein science, and immunology, BioMetas enables startups to progress their drug discovery programs efficiently. By streamlining the preclinical process and providing milestone-driven support, BioMetas supports biotech companies de-risk their assets and position them for successful global partnering opportunities worldwide.

RESI Partnership: Expanding Global Opportunities for Startups
As Title Sponsor of all RESI 2025 and 2026 events, BioMetas will play a key role in fostering critical connections between early-stage biotech startups, global investors, and licensing partners. RESI, known for its highly curated networking opportunities, provides a unique platform where entrepreneurs can showcase their innovations, secure funding, and establish strategic partnerships.

Through this partnership, BioMetas will work closely with LSN to enhance the RESI experience for participating startups by providing tailored insights on preclinical discovery strategies, milestone planning, and investor readiness. Additionally, BioMetas will contribute to RESI programming, offering thought leadership on critical topics such as preclinical de-risking, translational science, and best practices for early-stage biotech fundraising.

Leadership Perspective
“We are excited to align BioMetas’ expertise in preclinical development with the RESI global partnering platform,” said Dennis Ford, Founder & CEO of Life Science Nation. “This sponsorship features BioMetas’ dedication to supporting the next wave of breakthrough therapeutics and accelerating their path to worldwide commercialization.”

“BioMetas is committed to providing best-in-class preclinical biological assays that empower biotech startups,” added Simon Hua, Chairman of BioMetas Group. “We’re keen to provide robust preclinical discovery solutions that advance biotech startups. Partnering with RESI, we’re bridging early-stage companies with the right investors to drive innovation.”

About Life Science Nation (LSN)
Life Science Nation accelerates the funding of early-stage life science companies by bridging entrepreneurs with global investors and strategic partners through its RESI partnering events and Global Partnering Campaigns.

About BioMetas
BioMetas is a leading worldwide provider of preclinical drug discovery services, offering comprehensive solutions that help biotech startups advance from concept to clinical readiness. Our Laboratories are based in Shanghai, China, with a Business Development office in the Hub of Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.A.. Through its expertise and commitment to high quality with fast data cycle-time, BioMetas enables life science innovators to develop transformative therapies efficiently and cost-effectively.

Learn more about BioMetas: https://biometasgroup.com/
For inquiries, contact Kelvin Lam (U.S.-based), Vice President, Head of Business Development at kelvin.lam@biometasgroup.com, or connect with him on LinkedIn.

For more information on RESI 2025 and 2026 events and strategic partnership opportunities, please contact: resi@lifesciencenation.com

By Claire Jeong, Chief Conference Officer, Vice President of Investor Research, Asia BD, LSN

The Life Science Nation (LSN) team is preparing for next week’s RESI Europe conference in Barcelona, where life science and healthcare innovators will connect with a global network of investors. With a curated agenda featuring six panels, attendees will gain key insights into emerging investment trends and strategies shaping the industry.

This year’s panels will cover Medical Devices, Digital Health, Corporate VC, Cross-Border Investments, Seed Funds, and Therapeutics Innovations. LSN has assembled a distinguished lineup of panelists representing diverse investment groups, from corporate venture capitalists to early-stage investors and sector specialists. These experts will share their approaches to evaluating startups, their perspectives on the evolving investment landscape, and their insights into fostering successful partnerships. As a truly international event, RESI Europe will bring together investors from across the globe, creating opportunities for cross-border collaboration and meaningful networking.

RESI panels are designed to facilitate constructive dialogue between investors and fundraising CEOs. Attendees will receive tactical advice on capital raising and partnership development, helping them refine their strategies and accelerate their fundraising efforts. These must-attend discussions offer founders and executives direct access to investors, providing an invaluable platform to expand their networks and gain actionable insights.

Join the panelists below at RESI Europe and take the next step in your fundraising journey.

Carla Benichou Senior Investment Analyst RV Invest GmbH	Jorge Blasco Venture Partner (Spain) Lumo Labs	Nils Bottler Principal (Berlin) Angelini Ventures
Matthieu Coutet Partner, Biovelocita Strategy Sofinnova Partners	Geoffrey D’hondt Investment Director Heran Partners	Jordi Ferrer Healthcare Investment Director Ship2B Ventures
Lina Gaydarova Investment Manager Novaterra	Simon Hua Chairman BioMetas	Santiago Lozano Healthtech Funds Director Clave Capital
Jim McGough Managing Partner Mid Atlantic Bio Angels	Erki Mölder Managing Partner Verge Health Tech Fund	Daniel O’Mahony Partner Seroba Life Sciences
Luis Pareras Managing Partner Invivo Partners	Sanchita Pasi Investor EQT Life Sciences	William Pay Venture Partner Winhealth Pharma
Laura Rodriguez Partner Invivo Partners	Artemy Shumskiy Senior Associate LongeVC	Florence Thueux President & CEO M2Care
Louise Warme Head of We Venture Capital We Venture Capital

By Joey Wong, Director of Investor Research, Hong Kong BD, LSN

Hosted by Life Science Nation (LSN), co-moderated by Labiotech.eu, and sponsored by ShareVault, last Thursday’s Investor Fireside Chat brought together four active investors in the life sciences and healthcare sectors. Each panelist shared insights from their unique investment focus and fund background, offering perspectives on key investment trends and the 2025 landscape.

A central theme that emerged was cautious optimism in early-stage life science and healthcare fundraising. While investors have remained highly conservative in recent years, there is still dry powder available, and some are considering deploying capital to generate returns. However, overall sentiment remains cautious, with investors seeking greater certainty about capital allocation. Panelists emphasized that companies should plan their runway carefully, as raising funds between seed and Series A may take longer than anticipated. Additionally, securing continued support from existing investors was highlighted as a critical factor in navigating the current fundraising environment.

When asked for advice, panelists underscored the importance of capital efficiency. They encouraged companies to focus on fundamentals, set clear milestones, be strategic about pipeline expansion, and extend their runway as much as possible. One panelist suggested planning for at least 12 to 30 months of runway. While high valuations are always appealing, the panelists advised founders to recognize today’s challenges and seize investment opportunities when available – after all, cash is king, and survival is key.

By Karen Deyo, VP of Product, Israel BD, LSN

Partnering for RESI Europe, co-organized with Biocat, is now live. As of March 10, the system is already buzzing with activity, demonstrating the strong demand for early-stage deals. The conference begins with an in-person RESI Europe event on April 1 in Barcelona at the InterContinental Hotel, followed by two days of virtual partnering on April 2-3.

This is a key opportunity for life science startups, investors, and strategic partners to connect on a global level. RESI offers flexible registration options, including a one-day in-person pass, two-day virtual access, or full participation across all three days. The RESI partnering platform is unique, utilizing the LSN Investor and Licensing Partner database to ensure that companies can identify which investors are the best fit before requesting a meeting.

There is still plenty of time to register and start booking meetings with investors actively seeking early-stage technologies. RESI is a truly global event, and we encourage you to attend the upcoming partnering tutorial to make the most of the platform.

March 18, 2025 11:00 AM ET
RESI Europe Partnering Tutorial – Sign up 

By Sougato Das, President and COO, Life Science Nation (LSN)

The Barcelona and the Catalonia region of Spain achieved record investment in life sciences startups, venture, and growth companies in 2024. Catalonia hosts the HQs of 1500 life science companies, of which 90% are early stage/startups – an average of 1.25 startups are created in the region weekly. Combined with commensurate increases in scientific publications (over 54K, ranked 5th in Europe), clinical trials, and other bibliometric measures, Catalonia is becoming a major life science hub in Europe, with 25% of Spain’s life science companies. With RESI Europe, the largest life science investor event in the EU in terms of number of attending investors, taking place April 1 – 3, the trend is positioned to continue in 2025.

In fact, Catalonian life science seed, venture, and growth companies received €350 million in investment in 2024. The increasing draw of the region for Spanish investors, pan-European investors, Asian investors, and US investors can be seen not only across investments, but also across conference participation. 80% of the investment is from VCs, with 75% from investors outside of Spain, including prestigious firms like Sofinnova Partners, Merck, and Novartis Venture Fund. The remaining 20% of the investment is from non-dilutive sources. Not to be outdone, M&A activity also hit a record for the region, with 11 life science M&A deals.

In terms of modality, medtech has led in gross investment amount, primarily due to Impress (dental health). Next was biotech, accounting for €143 million. Digital health investment, however, saw a drop of 40% vs. 2023. This is likely due to the digital health sector experiencing rapid growth in 2023, with a 61% increase from 2022 – most first-round investments were likely made in digital health during that time and now the receiving companies are engaged in the funded R&D. Catalonia also boasts 71 investment organizations.

Finally, Catalonia is a hotbed of clinical trial activity, host to 87% of trials in Spain. The plurality (one-third) of these trials are in oncology. Recognizing this potential, global pharmaceutical and life sciences leaders have set up production centers and R&D departments in Catalonia, taking advantage of the region’s exceptional pool of local talent. Now is the time to take advantage of RESI Europe to partner with international investors, if you are local to Spain, or get your bearings in the booming Catalonia life science sector if you are new to the region.