Our mission is to fund the future of life sciences. In real terms, this means we provide working capital and support to start-ups developing innovative tools, technologies, and services, which will shape the landscape of biomanufacturing, as well as cell and gene therapy production. Our vision is an entirely new manufacturing approach based on novel technologies, which will help reduce operating costs and accelerate time to market. We believe that there is a critical mass of next-generation technologies ready to commercialize and deploy, provided that they receive the critical funding needed to launch and scale.
We are evaluating several opportunities related to contract development, contract testing, and contract manufacturing in the biotechnology space, especially as the number of candidates and treatments in cell therapy and gene therapy advance through the pipeline. An emerging area of interest is the work in regenerative medicine with stem cells, specifically mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). CDMOs that have capacity to manufacture this technology may have a significant advantage in the marketplace. Several months ago, we added RoosterBio to our portfolio, a manufacturer of MSCs on demand with strong IP and capabilities. We are currently evaluating cell therapy CDMOs and hope to close one of those investments this year.
Large pharma and biotech companies are trying to establish fewer but stronger strategic relationships with their outsourcing partners. This approach provides several advantages for the customers, including stronger, more effective, and collaborative relationships, more buying power, the ability to secure capacity, and the capability to explore projects in partnership with their outsourcing partners.
As an investor, we see opportunities for the consolidation of several smaller players into a larger company that can provide integrated solutions. For example, if you work in the CAR-T space, you need to manage several suppliers to get your product manufactured. If a single supplier could produce DNA, viral vectors, and cell therapies (including filling), that would be significant in the marketplace — however, such integration is easier said than done.
It’s interesting to reflect on market trends forecasted years ago. As part of another project, we combined market reports from 2000 to 2005 where predictors were pointing toward a significant shift toward outsourcing to manage capacity. This has most certainly become a reality. If we take current surveys as a sign of things to come, we can expect a continued strengthening of outsourcing partnerships, as well as value-added and more integrated offerings.
We actively invest most in North America and Europe, although we have recently been looking at opportunities in Japan and Korea. Those two markets have significant technological developments in cell therapy and present opportunities for businesses to expand; some of our strategic investors’ partners are leaders in healthcare. Beyond receiving funding, our partners gain access to our intelligence on market innovations.
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