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Earlier this spring, members of the Founders at the University of Cambridge Community came together at St John’s College, Cambridge for an evening focused on life sciences and biotech.
Bringing entrepreneurs, investors and industry experts around the table, the dinner created space for open conversation about what it really takes to build science‑led companies today – and how that journey is evolving across healthcare, therapeutics and deep tech.
The discussion was led by Daniel Mahony, Senior Partner at Novo Holdings, alongside Susan Hill, Founder and CEO of Mestag Therapeutics and Venture Partner at SV Health Investors. Together, they helped frame the evening around both investment and operator perspectives.
A small number of questions sat behind much of the discussion – where innovation is accelerating and which problems people are most passionate about solving. These echoed around the room over the course of the event, shaping conversations across precision medicine, therapeutics, healthcare systems and the practical realities founders are navigating today.
While the wider funding environment remains challenging, discussion reflected the continued resilience of the sector. The broader landscape points to a selective recovery, with global venture funding into life sciences and healthcare rising around 10% year-on-year to approximately $60bn in 2025. Beyond funding, attention quickly shifted towards what sustainable growth looks like in practice for startups operating over long development timelines.
Founders spoke openly about the systems they are building within – from navigating healthcare markets across the UK, US and Europe to working with institutions such as the NHS. Much of the opportunity lies in understanding this complexity deeply, particularly where data, infrastructure and operational delivery intersect.
“What we’re building right now has been only recently possible because of breakthroughs in AI and synthetic biology.”
Deepanshu Singh, Co-founder and CEO of Neela Biotech
Advances in AI, computational methods and synthetic biology ran naturally throughout. Several pointed to how recent breakthroughs are opening up new possibilities across a wide range of applications – from therapeutic work in healthcare through to areas such as sustainable fuels and industrial biotechnology – influencing both how problems are approached and how teams think about scale.
Capital also remained a recurring thread; how it flows, how it is structured and the role long‑term backing can play in supporting companies through critical stages of growth. As the market evolves, investment is becoming more focused, with larger amounts of capital backing companies with strong foundations and clear potential – signalling a growing emphasis on sustained support as ventures scale.
Reflecting on the strength of the Cambridge ecosystem, Jim Glasheen, Chief Executive of Cambridge Enterprise, noted:
“Cambridge has such a wealth of incredible innovation coming out of the University – and it’s particularly rewarding to be able to build on that with the next generation of startups.”
That next generation was represented by three founders from our START pre‑seed accelerator programme. Andrew Welchman, Co-founder and CEO of Prodromic, Yasunori Watanabe, Co-founder and CEO of Gastrobody Therapeutics and Deepanshu Singh, Co-founder and CEO of Neela Biotech, each offered a snapshot into how their research solution from the University of Cambridge is now an early-stage startup:
On the value of creating space for these exchanges, Caroline Hyde, Head of Ecosystem Initiatives and Partnerships at Cambridge Enterprise, shared:
“Having dinners like this gives us the chance to have really great conversations about what’s happening across particular fields and industry sectors.”
Daniel Mahony, Senior Partner at Novo Holdings, built on this:
“They bring people together to share problems and possibly find solutions that they weren’t looking for.”
Moments like this sit at the heart of our community. By bringing together people working across science, investment and company‑building, they create space to step back, share perspectives and learn from one another – all to support the next generation of founders emerging from Cambridge and beyond.
Melanie Leong
Investor, Wild Tree Ventures
My biggest takeaway was the value of having different perspectives in the same room. Conversations moved naturally from company‑building and investing to discussions about biological systems and AI, making the evening particularly interesting.
Susan Hill
Co-founder and CEO, Mestag Therapeutics
An energised and engaged group of entrepreneurs and investors, thoughtful discussion and some excellent pitches - it was a genuinely enjoyable evening to be part of.
Paula Dias Figueiredo
Non-Executive Director and Board Advisor
A truly exceptional evening. The quality of the conversation and the calibre of the room made it both thoughtful and highly relevant.
Whether you’re an investor, mentor, partner or future founder, there are plenty of ways to get involved. To see what’s happening now, visit our programmes page or follow us on LinkedIn for the latest news, events and opportunities to connect.
Image and video credit: Ben Bellairs
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