The two biotech start-up companies MyoPax and Asgard Therapeutics won first and second prize at NLSINvest Awards, out of 40 companies that participated in Nordic Life Science Days’ start-up pitching challenge.
40 selected Nordic start-up companies attended Nordic Life Science Days, the largest partnering conference for life sciences in the Nordics, which was held in Malmö last month. As part of the conference’s investment track NLSInvest, the start-ups got to pitch their innovative solutions in front of an audience of investors and delegates at the conference.
A panel of judges scored each company based on pitch quality, innovation, impact, and investment readiness.
MyoPax was subsequently awarded the first prize at NLSInvest Awards. They are an early clinical stage biotech with sites in Copenhagen (BioInnovation Institute) and Berlin (spin-off Charité University Medicine/Helmholtz Association). They are developing a platform for regenerative stem cell therapies for the targeted treatment of multiple muscle diseases.
The runner-up, Asgard Therapeutics, is a Swedish private biotech company exploring the application of in vivo direct cell reprogramming for cancer immunotherapy. They are pioneering a gene delivery approach centered on their proprietary TrojanDC technology, designed to set in motion immune responses based on the biological properties of professional antigen presenting cells.
Chelsea Ranger, chair of the NLSINvest Committee and senior advisor to SwedenBIO, said: “Both of the winning companies had confident and engaging pitches that thoroughly showcased the unmet medical needs and the patient populations they serve.
However, what was so great about this competition is how close the scores were amongst all those the jury ranked highest. So, what that tells us is that we have a lot of potential amongst these innovative start-ups and I fully expect to see successful trajectories for many of them.”
The first and second prize consists of consulting and review support from some of the award sponsors, and access to NLSDays 2023 and a company presentation slot in next year’s program. The first prize also included a cash award.
The panel of judges consisted of representatives from JLABS, AstraZeneca, Hadean Ventures, Sciety, Erik Penser Bank, and Arthur D. Little. The awards were sponsored by Arthur D. Little, Back Bacy Life Science Advisors, BIO, SwedenBIO, JLABS, and Erik Penser Bank.