Start Codon secures $20 million in funding for its venture fund to invest in life science and healthcare startups

Start Codon, a Cambridge, England-based life science and healthcare business accelerator, today announced it has closed $20 million (£15 million) in funding for its Start Codon Fund I LP (the “Fund”). Start Codon leverages its unique resources of the Cambridge Cluster to identify and support highly disruptive healthcare startups from across the globe.

The Fund will be used to support its offering to promising life science startups, which includes a minimum of £250K seed funding, business support services, expert guidance, and access to cutting-edge office and lab facilities. Limited Partner (“LP”) investors in the Fund include Novartis International AG and Cambridge Innovation Capital.

In addition to their investment in the Fund, Novartis will work together with Start Codon and its founders to select exceptional technologies and entrepreneurs to join the Start Codon business acceleration program, which aims to translate early-stage research into successful companies, ready for funding and partnership. Novartis will also provide support and mentoring to the founders of the start-up companies, and opportunities for partnering as their research evolves.

Founded in 2019 with investment and support from Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, Cambridge Innovation Capital, the Babraham Research Campus through Babraham Bioscience Technologies, Dr. Jonathan Milner and Dr. Ian Tomlinson, Start Codon plans to invest in and support up to 50 start-up companies over the next five years. Start Codon showcased its first cohort of companies in June and recently enrolled its second cohort of start-ups.

Dr. Michael Anstey, Partner at Cambridge Innovation Capital, said: “This venture fund will provide start-ups with the opportunity to kick start their development and will bring novel and innovative ideas to commercialization. We are delighted to have supported Start Codon since its inception and are excited to see it act as an important facilitator in creating success in Cambridge and throughout the UK.”

Dr. Jason Mellad, Co-founder and CEO at Start Codon, said: “This venture fund is part of our strategy to provide our entrepreneurs with the funding they need for start-up costs, such as in-licensing of IP, recruitment, and proof of concept studies. In addition, we provide the opportunity to network and learn from the most successful industry leaders in our sector. With both Genentech and Novartis on board to support our cohort companies in their development, and potentially provide opportunities for commercial partnerships in the future, we are extremely well-positioned to nurture and commercialize the next generation of world-class healthcare companies, which we hope will positively impact many patient’s lives.”

Start Codon is now accepting applications for its next cohort of companies and early-stage startup companies in the life sciences and healthcare space are invited to apply via https://startcodon.co/application-form