As an integral part of Europe’s largest biotech conference, BIO-Europe, the Startup Slam offers innovative entrepreneurs the exciting opportunity to pitch their company to the celebrities of the European biotech industry and beyond.
Hosted for the sixth time since its launch in Stockholm in 2016, this year’s Startup Slam, sponsored by Johnson & Johnson Innovation-JLABS, will take place on Tuesday, November 12, 2019, at BIO-Europe in Hamburg, Germany. This is your chance to apply to pitch your company and gain visibility among more than 4,300 biotech and pharma executives from over 60 countries.
What’s in it for me and my company?
Selected companies will receive a complimentary presentation skills training webinar before presenting their innovative projects to a jury of leading biotech opinion leaders, key investors, and pharma dealmakers and an audience of biotech business experts and potential partners.
The 12 selected companies will receive a complimentary registration and a presentation slot from the BIO-Europe organizers, EBD Group, valued at over €3,600.
Also, pitching at BIO-Europe’s Startup Slam, will help young companies gain access to leading biotech and pharma experts, dealmakers and VCs who will want to meet entrepreneurs and learn about their innovations.
The top prize: Exclusive mentoring from J&J and more!
The winner of the BIO-Europe Startup Slam will receive exclusive access to a top-tier mentoring program with industry experts from Johnson & Johnson Innovation, as well as a complimentary registration (normally over €2,000) to a future EBD Group event.
On the publicity front, the victorious company will gain recognition through media coverage, press releases, and social media, as well as the possibility of interviews with journalists from Labiotech and EBD’s Partnering Insight.
The champion of the 2018 Startup Slam was Swiss startup SunRegen Healthcare. The company focuses on innovative treatments for ophthalmic, neurological, and neuromuscular diseases. We asked Yuhong Dong, Director and Co-founder at SunRegen Healthcare, about her experience at the Startup Slam at BIO-Europe 2018: “I feel this is an exciting program. I learned a lot. It’s really an excellent experience. I think we should do that more!”
The additional prize: The Audience Choice Award
Startup Slam participants can also win the Audience Choice Award, conferred upon one company by the BIO-Europe attendees themselves. Last year’s Audience Choice Award went to reVision Therapeutics, a company working on the treatment of ophthalmic disorders and focusing on the repurposing of drugs that have already been approved or even shelved.
“[The Startup Slam] is a great opportunity to be sure you hone your message,” said Paul Fehlner, President and CEO of reVision Therapeutics in an interview at BIO-Europe 2018. “It’s also a good chance to meet other people in the same boat, trying to raise money and trying to succeed. I learned that I could do it and that there are great teams out there.”
Is my company eligible to apply?
With a bit of luck, your company will be chosen as a participant in the 2019 Startup Slam. However, competition is fierce. Last year, 60 companies applied and only 8 lucky winners were chosen to pitch their innovations at BIO-Europe.
As an applicant, your company should have fewer than 20 employees and have been created in the past three years. Your company has to be working at the forefront of science, developing new therapeutic products, technology platforms, or working in digital medicine. Also, the total funding of the asset to be pitched is not allowed to exceed €10M.
As a participant in the BIO-Europe Startup Slam, one thing goes without saying: This pitching competition provides young companies and innovative entrepreneurs with the opportunity to mingle with the VIPs of the global biotech industry, introduces them to potential partners and investors, and allows them to present their innovations to a large and interested audience.
Want all of that and more? Apply NOW to pitch your company at the Startup Slam at BIO-Europe from November 11-13, 2019, in Hamburg, Germany!
Images via Shutterstock.com
Author: Larissa Warneck, Science Journalist at Labiotech.eu