As the life sciences landscape continues to evolve, Philadelphia is carving out its niche in the biotech ecosystem. The Philly Builds Bio+ 3rd Annual Symposium for Life Science Innovation and Development, which takes place Tuesday, October 1st, highlights this transformation, showcasing the city’s burgeoning capabilities in collaboration, innovation, and commercialization.
While cities like Boston and San Francisco have long been regarded as the epicenters of biotech, Philadelphia is rapidly establishing itself as a formidable competitor, driven by significant scientific advancements, startup innovation, and collaboration.
The Philly Builds Bio+ 3rd Annual Symposium for Life Science Innovation and Development being held on Tuesday, October 1, is not only proof of this, but a facilitator for continuing to build the ecosystem to its full potential.
“Philadelphia is rapidly building its reputation as a biotech hub and Philly Builds Bio+ is helping to play a key role,” said Eric Hacherl, Chief Operating Officer for Kyttaro Therapeutics and Founder and CEO of SMART Bio Works. “Their events educate, engage, and highlight essential ecosystem stakeholders, including patient groups, science, clinical and manufacturing sectors, supply chains, real estate, workforce development, and government, fostering meaningful relationships across a broad spectrum of individuals who don’t normally have an opportunity to interact in this way.”
Organized by Builds Bio+, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to bringing the life sciences innovation community together, the 3rd Symposium promises to deliver the best year yet.
So what’s new for 2024?
“What remains the same this year is the quality of speakers, the focus on science, and the attention given to the startup and investment community, highlighting how science and commercialization are evolving into new therapies for patients. What’s different, however, is almost everything else,” stated Nancy J Kelley, President & CEO, Nancy J Kelley + Associates, and Founding Member of Builds Bio+.
While the event has successfully run at the Union League in years past, the move to the Crystal Tea Room this year provides the necessary capacity to grow.
Startup Innovation
One of the most exciting results of this growth is the introduction of the Incubator Innovation Hall to the Symposium this year.
Designed to connect startups with essential resources and investors, it’s a first for Philadelphia, but has successfully run at NY Metro Builds Bio+ events the last five years. Eight incubators will exhibit October 1, showcasing their portfolio companies and growth plans, including:
- Matthew Burkhardt, Director, B+Labs
- Robert Christmas, Chief Operating Officer, Pennsylvania Biotechnology Center
- Melina Blees, Site Director, BioLabs Philadelphia
- Sarajane Blair, General Manager, CIC and Innovation Campus, Science Center
- Tracy Brala, Senior Vice President, Strategy and Partnerships, University Science Center
- Denita Henderson, Managing Director, Pennovation Center
- Tomas Isakowitz, PENN I-Corps
- Stephen G. Nappi, Associate Vice President, Technology Commercialization and Business Development, Innovation Nest
This addition will not only help their emerging portfolio companies connect with potential investors but will foster and facilitate collisions with event attendees based on the increased number of investors already registered to attend.
Philadelphia’s Scientific Advancements + Its Companies
And those investors are set to be impressed by the groundbreaking research and development emerging from Philadelphia.
“Every year when we review what’s happened over the last twelve months, it is just incredible,” stated Kelley.
“Philadelphia’s life sciences ecosystem is the most accessible and collaborative research environment I have ever experienced. This collaborative nature spans research and development, workforce, industry, and educational institutions,” furthered Rebecca Grant, Senior Director, Life Sciences & Innovation, Philadelphia Department of Commerce.
Examples of this collaborative and groundbreaking work include the new ten-year, $250M research program backed by the Rockefeller Foundation, focusing on using nutrition to prevent disease. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s new gene therapy procedure to treat genetic hearing loss as well as their successful restoration of sight in children with inherited blindness through gene editing. And AI, which is not just happening in Philadelphia, but in which Philadelphia institutions are doubling down on as evidenced by Penn’s recent appointment of its inaugural vice dean of artificial intelligence and computing and Temple Health and Drexel University’s continued research programs in the space.
Equally noteworthy is the funding of Philadelphia-based companies despite the barren funding landscape.
Latus Bio, a gene therapy spun out of CHOP, recently raised $54M. Vivodyne, a biotech that discovers and develops more effective drugs by testing them on lab-grown human organs, raised $38M. Aro Biotherapeutics, a clinical stage biotechnology company pioneering the development of tissue-targeted genetic medicines, raised $41.5M. Imvax, a Jefferson University spinout, raised $35M to advance brain cancer treatment.
The list of headlines is endless and not only reflects Philadelphia’s commitment to innovation but its impact in commercialization, paving the way for future breakthroughs.
“It takes time for executives to graduate from homegrown companies,” said Kelley. “Success stories like Spark Therapeutics, which has maintained its operations in Philadelphia post-acquisition, demonstrate that the foundations for a thriving ecosystem are being laid. As successful companies exit and their leaders establish new ventures locally, the cycle of talent development will only strengthen what’s here.”
A Bright Future for Philly
Philadelphia’s future is bright and the Philly Builds Bio+ 3rd Annual Symposium represents a significant opportunity for local startups, investors, and institutions to connect and showcase the remarkable potential of Philadelphia’s life sciences ecosystem.
The Symposium is not just an event; it’s a celebration of Philadelphia’s growth in the biotech industry. The city is well-equipped to bridge the gap to commercialization and claim its place as a Top 3 Biopharma Cluster.
But as Matthew Burkhardt Director of B+ Labs so poignantly reminds us, “These events are useful to talk about where the City, its organizations and its leaders, are at the moment and where they need to get to to be competitive at a national and global level. But it needs to translate to action, ideally collaborative action. And that translation to action means taking the talking points from meetings like these and developing the roadmap to execution. It’s on all of us to deliver an outcome for the City.”
