Investing in the earliest stages comes with a high risk and a potentially high reward. Whether investing in a therapeutics or digital health company, seed investors have to make difficult decisions with a lot less data than other investors. The panelists will discuss topics such as:

• How much proof-of-concept validation is needed for seed funding
• What increased benefit is needed to mitigate the increased risk
• What is unique in the structure of seed-stage deals (convertible notes vs straight equity)
• Does the early stage of the company lead investors to take a more active role

Many investors prefer to wait for later stages due to the decreased risk of failure. Those investors who are willing to take the risk of seed-stage investment will share their approach and selection criteria when assessing early-stage companies.

Big pharma companies are actively looking outwards for innovative new therapeutics to add to their pipelines. This panel brings together speakers from various big pharma companies discussing topics such as:

•  How big pharma sources assets
• The evaluation process
• Key factors and areas of interest
• How early-stage big pharma is willing to look

These panelists will shed light on the process that big pharma goes through when sourcing early-stage assets and advise startups on how they can best make a case for themselves. Panelists will also explore various trends within the therapeutics marketplace, what assets are of interest to their company, and what they think will be big in the future.

This panel focuses on investing in innovative digital health products that bring new efficiencies to the healthcare system, change how care is delivered or managed, and how patients are involved in their own care. Panelists will explore topics related to investing in digital health, including:

• In what kinds of digital health technologies are they interested in investing?
• What metrics and evidence do you look for in a digital health startup?
• How can an early-stage digital health company demonstrate the value of their products?
• What are the main challenges for startups raising capital in this space?

The moderator and panelists will discuss this rapidly evolving field of healthcare investment and will introduce the audience to the key fundraising opportunities and challenges facing digital health entrepreneurs today.

This panel is a discussion on topics relevant to investment in current innovations in the oncology space. Topics of discussion can include:

•  The technologies/approaches that investors find the most compelling  
• Whether platform technologies or single assets are preferred for investment/partnerships
• What criteria do investors use when assessing companies for their portfolio or pipeline

Panelists can discuss the industry-wide changes currently seen, including the advance of personalized medicine and the rise of new therapeutic approaches (CAR-T, oncolytic viruses etc.), and how that is affecting the investing landscape.

Investing in medical devices has become more complex with time. While standard medical devices are still a mainstay, there are an increasing amount of combination devices, software-enabled devices and diagnostic devices that require investors to have expertise in multiple sectors. Panelists may discuss topics such as:

• Areas that are currently popular and expected to grow in 2024
• The benefits vs. risks of devices that cross sectors  
• Regulatory hurdles / challenges
• Amount/type of data they want to see before investing

Panelists will discuss how to meet the challenges of raising financing for a new device and advise startups on how to make the investment case for their novel technology. Panelists will also explore what technology areas are of top interest to them and how a startup can make themselves stand out in the crowd.

This panel aims to bring a diverse group of experts & senior decision making staff from VCs, corporate pharma, and other investor types who focus on biotech/ therapeutics investments together to discuss topics such as:

• The decision-making process
• Current areas of interest and areas of high need
• How companies can better differentiate themselves, especially those in overcrowded indications  
• Common mistakes/red flags  Recently successful deals and how they were successful

The moderator will guide the discussion through topics including how the investors source and vet novel therapeutic assets, what kinds of technology are of interest to them right now, and how they as investors work with a startup to move a new drug toward commercialization.

When Life Science Nation (LSN) first launched the Redefining Early Stage Investments Conference Series (RESI), we focused on bringing investors from beyond venture capital to meet face to face with entrepreneurs. Angels and family offices are two of these alternative sources of early-stage capital. These investor types are distinct from each other in many ways but also work well together. The Angels & Family Offices panel will introduce RESI’s entrepreneurs to these distinctions and also the ways in which these private capital pools are working together to fund healthcare innovation.

• What do Angels and Family Offices have in common?
• How do Angels and Family Offices plan their investment horizons?
• Are Angels and Family Offices looking at the same sectors and opportunities as VCs?

This panel focuses on investments in innovative diagnostics, ranging from IVD, genomics, precision medicine, and more. Topics may include:

•  Current areas of interest
• Current challenges in this ecosystem – Navigating the competitive landscape
• Commonly observed red flags
• Successful deals Panelists will discuss how companies can successfully fundraise for their budding diagnostics technology and the best way to successfully approach and develop a relationship with relevant investors.

Panelists will also explore current areas of interest and why they are relevant, as well as developmental and regulatory hurdles and how companies can address these problems to attain key milestones.

These days, seeking capital from cross-border investors, pharmaceuticals, and other strategic partners may seem like nothing new. Many groups continue to expand into geographies outside of their headquarters to set up new offices, establishing open innovation departments, etc. How can companies better work with buy-side partners outside of their geographies? This panel will discuss the following topics and more:

• Differences in market and regulatory hurdles
• What do cross-border investors seek in companies outside of their headquarters? How are they similar or different to their viewpoint on domestic companies?
• Will cross-border investment activities continue to increase?
• What are some common mistakes investors see from entrepreneurs, and how can they be avoided?

Panelists will discuss how they have been evaluating cross-border investment opportunities, and what the future holds for cross-border activities in the industry. Panelists will also uncover general topics such as navigating the global market and the regulatory challenges associated with market entry, how to approach investors and strategic groups with a global mindset, and more.

Corporate venture capital firms are an important source of capital for early-stage companies. Many major pharmaceuticals and large corporations have set up a corporate investment arm to identify early-stage companies. Strategically and financially driven in varying degrees, the implications of working with CVCs are huge, as the resources, network, and guidance provided by the CVC and the associated parent company are incredibly valuable to an entrepreneur who is actively growing their business.

This panel will discuss the following topics and more:

• How are CVCs different from traditional VCs?
• How strategically vs. financially are CVCs driven, and how does this affect their decision-making process?
• How closely does the CVC communicate with the parent company?
• What does working with a CVC entail?

Panelists will discuss each of their investment mandates and how they relate to corporate interests, and how they have been sourcing opportunities during COVID. Panelists may also explore current trending areas of interest, and what they see as emerging fields in the near future.