High-Tech Gründerfonds organized the 4th Munich Life Science Pitch Day in cooperation with Bayer AG, Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund and the Innovation and Start-up Center for Biotechnology (IZB).
Venture capital companies invest only in innovative companies with excellent research and high market potential. Nine projects were presented to ten experienced investors at the 4th Munich Life Science Pitch Day on June 13, 2018. The High-Tech Gründerfonds organized this event with the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, Bayer AG and the IZB. Bayern Kapital, Forbion Capital Partners, MSD European Innovation Hub, NLC Healthtech Venture Builder, Seventure, VI Partners AG and Wellington Partners Life Science Venture Capital participated. During her keynote speech Dr. Christine Schuberth-Wagner, Senior Vice President Research of Rigontec GmbH, describes the development of the biotech company from start-up to sale to MSD (Merck, Sharp & Dohme). Dr. Marianne Mertens, Investment Manager in the Life Science Team of the High-Tech Gründerfonds and Christian Jung, Principal of Wellington Partners Life Science Venture Capital, moderated the event.

“It’s nice to see that the Munich Life Science Pitch Day has established itself as a format that allows ideas and experiences to be discussed between start-ups, VCs and pharmaceutical companies in an open atmosphere and at an early stage. We are pleased to have two strong strategic partners on board the HTGF, Bayer and Boehringer Ingelheim, who can bring their expertise to bear in this regard”, explains Dr. Marianne Mertens.
“As the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund we value the creative energy and pioneering spirit of biotech founders to address future medical challenges. The Pitch Day provides an ideal platform to expand the network of innovation partners and strengthen interaction with the biotech start-up community”, said Dr. Ilka Wicke, Director at Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund.
“We are happy to organize the Pitch Day with the HTGF and the IZB in Munich for the fourth time. We are very interested in partnerships with young life sciences companies. The Pitch Day at an attractive start-up center is an excellent format for this”, explained Prof. Dr. Stefan Jaroch, Head of External Innovation Technologies, Bayer AG.
The research teams delivered science at the highest level. “We are pleased to host this pitch day once a year with the leading VC and pharmaceutical companies in the Innovation and Start-up Center for Biotechnology. The professional feedback of the investors is of enormous importance for the start-ups on the way to successful life science companies. Many times after the Pitch Day there was a successful cooperation between the founding teams and the venture capital companies”, said Dr. Peter Hanns Zobel, Managing Director of the IZB.