HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds

🌞 What a lovely day for pitches and networking! 💊 After the rains had gone, Life Science Pitch Day kicked off! IZB - Innovation and Start-up Center Biotechnology, Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, Leaps by Bayer, MEDICE - The Health Family and HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds once again brought together Life Science founders, investors in the life sciences and healthcare sector as well as representatives of the industry. 10 startups presented their pitches to more than 40 investors and industry experts: First to present was TECregen AG: Georg Hollander introduced this Immuno-Rejuvenation start-up and its vision to develop transformative, next-generation, synthetic ligands to regenerate the thymus. Then, Carlo Bertozzi, pitched for InCephalo and their approach to developing next-generation brain-cancer therapies. Torsten Mummenbrauer presented PreVacta: an integrated vaccine and therapeutics company, combining unique expertise in synthetic (glyco-)chemistry, immunology and clinical infectious diseases. Kupando GmbH makes use of the oldest mechanism of defense, as presented by Johanna Holldack: TLRs operate to detect signature molecules that herald infection and cancer by activating the innate immune system. Lukas Linning presented Akribion Genomics / Therapeutics and their new modality of guided cancer-cell killing, targeting cancer-specific RNA biomarker expression using easily programmable cytotoxic nucleases with high specificity for a wide range of RNA targets. Niels von Wardenburg pitched Teneura and its mission to cure neurological autoimmune diseases using engineered T-cell therapies. Dr. Arthur Dopler presented QUASAR THERAPEUTICS and their innovative regulators of the complement system to address rare but life-threatening diseases and to solve the problems of current inhibitors in the clinic. Dr. Teresa Wagner pitched for immuneAdvice and their visualization of immune cells to guide immunotherapy. Frank Pressler introduced Citrapeutics: First on target, first in class ACOD1 inhibitors to boost anti-tumor immunity and inhibit cancer cell proliferation for: Triple negative breast cancer, non-ICI responsive melanoma, Head and neck and Colon cancer. Finally, Christin Zuendorf presented TQ Therapeutics. This start-up is developing a novel manufacturing platform for cell therapeutics, that will enable the production of cellular drugs with an integrated, highly automated extracorporeal gene therapy approach. Our keynote speaker, Daniel Vitt, CEO of Immunic Therapeutics will close the day - which we'll now be rounding out with some networking. Thank you to Christian Gnam, Marion Köhler and the whole IZB Team for the logistics and the unique venue. Thank you also to Karin Hofelich for joining us! CC: Angelika Vlachou, Bernd Goergen, Niels Sharman, Katharina Severin, Laura Pedroza

Congratulations to Helge Lubenow and Heidelberg Epignostix GmbH! 👏👏 Dr. Katharina Severin, Investment Manager at HTGF, comments: “We are delighted to welcome Helge as CEO of Heidelberg Epignostix. Her industry expertise will be invaluable to further accelerate the promising developments of the brain classifier and further products.”

  💰 doinstruct raises €7.6M to address frontline-worker skills shortages. The funding round was led by Creandum, with participation from existing investors HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds and D11Z.Ventures GmbH & Co. KG as well as Bastian Karweg (Founder Dealfront) and Andreas Hettich (Hettich Group). 80% of the global workforce are frontline workers in industries such as food processing, logistics & warehousing, hospitality, retail and manufacturing. Current training options are time-consuming, inefficient and not designed with workers in mind. doinstruct’s simple, mobile-first approach is training as it should be - barrier-free, bite-sized and in the worker’s native language.   🗯 Charlotte Rothert, CEO and Co-founder at doinstruct: "Our customers are facing a rising number of challenges. They are affected by increasingly tough regulatory requirements and labor shortages. Shift workers are difficult to reach, language barriers make compliant training and information delivery nearly impossible, and inevitable employee turnover requires ongoing, time-consuming retraining. I know we can do better. And it's obvious that workers and industrial companies deserve better.”   🎉 Congratulations to Charlotte, her co-founders Daniel Marinkovic, Thorsten Gross, and Mona Feder, as well as the whole team at doinstruct! Learn more: https://lnkd.in/ezrnWDC3 CC: Christian Arndt

🧪 Vom Labor bis zur industriellen Anlage ist es nicht leicht: Prozesse müssen validiert werden und #ScaleUps benötigt oft enorme Investitionssummen. Ein Marsch durch das berüchtigte Valley of Death. 🏜    Im Vorfeld des Chemistry Pitch Day 2024 nimmt Dr. Nik Raupp, Senior Investment Manager beim HTGF auf dem #HotSeat beim Chemie-Cluster Bayern GmbH Platz und gibt Einblicke in die Geschichte des HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds und wie innovative Start-ups aus dem Bereich #Biotech und #Chemie den #ChemistryPitchDay 2024 als Startrampe für Ihren Durchbruch nutzen können.   Hier geht es zum Interview 👉 https://lnkd.in/dr7tMtsk Zur Bewerbung für den Chemistry Pitch Day geht es über den Link in den Kommentaren⬇

🚀 Die DWIH SP Startups Connected 2024 Challenge „AI: Spotlight on People and Society“ ist offen für Bewerbungen. Gewinne ein Jahr bei der Außenhandelskammer Brasilien und eine einwöchige Roadshow in Brasilien!  📅 Bewerbung bis 25. Juli. ℹ Mehr Informationen dazu: https://lnkd.in/dhTWNUwe Im letzten Jahr gewann das HTGF-Portfolio Start-up COLIPI den Wettbewerb zum Thema “Resilient Society.” Gesucht: innovative Lösungen, die zur Resilienz der brasilianischen Gesellschaft beitragen. CC: Deutsches Wissenschafts- und Innovationshaus São Paulo (DWIH) | Câmara Brasil-Alemanha do Rio de Janeiro | AHK Brasil

💸 HepaRegeniX GmbH, a clinical-stage company developing novel regenerative therapies for the treatment of acute and chronic liver diseases, announced the closing of a Series C round led by Vesalius Biocapital IV with the participation of existing investors Novo Holdings, Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund (BIVF), and HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds. The new funds of €15 million will be used to advance the clinical development of the Company’s clinical candidate HRX-215. Elias Papatheodorou moves from Chair of the Board to CEO of HepaRegeniX. Dr. Linda Greenbaum joins HepaRegeniX as CMO. 💬 Elias Papatheodorou, Chair of the Board and designated CEO of HepaRegenix, said “We are thrilled to secure this significant financing, which underscores the confidence our investors have in our science and our capabilities to bring effective treatments to patients suffering from liver diseases. With the new funds, HepaRegeniX will advance with its clinical plans for a Phase Ib study in the US and an international Phase IIa study to enhance liver recovery and prevent liver failure.” 🗨 Frank Hensel, Principal at HTGF, comments: "We welcome Vesalius BioCapital to HepaRegeniX and are looking forward to further developing HRX-215 in a phase IIa trial. Linda Greenbaum joining the company as CMO underlines the positioning of HepaRegeniX as a leading player in the transplantation space. The HTGF is pleased have followed another interesting asset from a German University all the way into the patient." 🥳 Congratulations to the whole team at HepaRegenix! Learn more: https://lnkd.in/dX6pe7fX

🧫🚀 Today, SciRhom, a biopharmaceutical company pioneering the development of first-in-class therapeutic iRhom2 antibodies, announced the closing of a €63 million (US$ 70 million) Series A financing round. The round was co-led by Andera Partners, Kurma Partners, Hadean Ventures, MIG Capital, and Wellington Partners, with participation from new investor Bayern Kapital and existing investors including HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds and PhiFund Ventures from New York, USA. The new funds will be used to accelerate and broaden the impact of the company’s innovative therapeutic strategy in autoimmune disorders. The first clinical study evaluating SR-878, a highly specific monoclonal antibody for iRhom2, is expected to start dosing in the second half of 2024. 💬 Co-founder Dr. Jens Ruhe, Managing Director & COO of SciRhom says: “Since its foundation, SciRhom has applied rigorous science to establish a leading position in iRhom2-targeting biopharmaceuticals including a comprehensive IND/CTA-enabling data and CMC package and strong patent protection. Now is the time to shift gears and accelerate our novel and potentially groundbreaking therapeutic strategy toward clinical proof-of-concept and beyond to reach patients in need of better autoimmune treatments.” 🗨 Frank Hensel, Principal at HTGF comments: "We are pleased that SciRhom attracted a consortium of renowned investors and raised significant funds to perform state-of-the-art clinical development of its first-in-class monoclonal antibody. Targeting iRhom-2 holds great promise to be the next game changer in treating autoimmune diseases and we hope to see clinical validation soon." 👏 HTGF congratulates! Learn more: https://lnkd.in/ee-vyZex

🧠💬 Auf der #PrivateEquity-Konferenz der NRW.BANK sprach Christian Arndt, Principal beim HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds, mit dem VentureCapital Magazin über #KI und unter anderem darüber, dass (eigene) Daten eine wichtige Voraussetzung für den erfolgreichen Einsatz von KI sind. 📹🎤Hier gibt es das ganze Interview als Video: https://lnkd.in/e3dsXBXV

👐 Vielen Dank für die Einladung, Maschinenraum! 💡🧩 Hier die Key-Learnings aus Gregor Haidls Vortrag zum Thema Product-Market-Fit 👇

🌈 Wir setzen uns für Vielfalt in der Venture Capital- und Start-up-Landschaft ein, weil wir davon überzeugt sind, dass Diversität zum Erfolg von Gründer:innen-Teams und Unternehmen beiträgt!  Dies ist auch der Grund, warum wir den Impact of Diversity (IOD)-Award "Diversity in Start-ups" gesponsert haben. 🏆 Gestern wurde auf der IOD Gala das Kölner Start-up DeepSkill GmbH als erster Gewinner des Awards ausgezeichnet. Jessica Lingenfelder, Head of People & Culture beim HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds, lobte in ihrer Laudatio den Ansatz von Deep Skill "eine Arbeitsumgebung zu schaffen, in der die Vielfalt der Mitarbeitenden nicht nur akzeptiert, sondern aktiv geschätzt und gefördert wird, um eine kreative und integrative Arbeitsatmosphäre zu entwickeln." Co-Founderin Miriam Mertens nahm den Preis entgegen. Wir gratulieren Ihr auch an der Stelle nochmal ganz herzlich! 💬 "DeepSkill hat von Anfang an den Fokus auch in seinem eigenen Team darauf gesetzt, sich divers aufzustellen und somit eine möglichst große Bandbreite an Erfahrungen und Blickwinkeln zu nutzen, um sein Geschäftsmodell laufend weiterzuentwickeln," ergänzt Claudia Raber, ESG-Managerin des HTGF und Initiatorin des Preises für junge Unternehmen.   🗯 Barbara Lutz, Initiatorin des Impact of Diversity: „Mit dem Preis Impact of Diversity möchten wir herausragende Personen und Initiativen auszeichnen, die die positive Wirkung von Diversität und Inklusion auf unsere Gesellschaft deutlich machen. Die gegenwärtigen Entwicklungen zeigen uns, dass es noch nie so wichtig war wie aktuell, den Wert und Impact von Diversität zu erklären und für viele Menschen zugänglich zu machen.“ Herzliche Glückwünsche an alle weiteren Preisträger: Best DEI Project: anonyfy - Bias-Free Recruiting Contribution to LGBTQIA+: Proudr | Das queere Karrienetzwerk Diversity Dad: Men@Work (Initiative von Johnson & Johnson) Gender Inclusion: Women@Freight – Sichtbarkeit & Inspiration durch authentische Mitarbeiterinnen-Porträts bei DHL Freight Inclusive Workplace: andererseits - Magazin für Behinderung und Gesellschaft Age Inclusion: Silbernetz - einfach mal reden für Ältere mit Einsamkeitsgefühlen Diversity in Start-ups: Diversity als Basis für menschenzentrierte Führung – DeepSkill GmbH Best Diversity Campaign: „Let‘s Change The Picture“ – Palais F*luxx & Schauspielerin Gesine Cukrowski Diverse Middle-Sized Industry: FemPowerMentoring Ethnicity & Social Inclusion: JOBLINGE e.V. University Award: Agnes-Mackensen-Programm der Technical University of Munich Women in MINT/STEM: FRIDA - Frauen in der digitalen Arbeitswelt Audience Award: Annette Kempf - MINT Role Model als Elektrotechnikingenieurin, Netzwerkerin, CEO Most Influential Woman: Mina Saidze Sonderauszeichnung Building Bridges: Eintracht Frankfurt Diversity Ambassador: Carsten Knobel – CEO Henkel