LARGER THAN LIFE SCIENCE | Behind Every Breakthrough

Behind Every Breakthrough

Early lessons, ugly truths, and bouncing back

Even the most promising biotech startups hit a few bumps on the road to success. Join us for an evening of insight, humor, and some holiday cheer as founders share the early missteps, inefficiencies, and growing pains that helped shape their startups.

In the early stages, even small mistakes can slow progress or strain limited resources. Founders often underestimate regulatory timelines and costs, overlook the importance of team dynamics and leadership culture, or start investor conversations before fully validating their hypotheses. Through open reflection and shared experience, these founders will explore what went wrong, what they learned, and how those lessons refined their approach to building resilient companies. Whether you’ve overhyped preliminary data or discovered that your “documented process” was actually a trail of post-its, you’ll get a laugh and maybe a little solidarity.

Registration

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AGENDA:

4:00 – 4:30 PM | Registration, check-in

4:30 – 5:15 PM | Fireside Chat – Ugly Mistakes to Avoid When Launching a Biotech Startup

• Abubakar Jalloh, PhD, Site Head, BioLabs San Diego
• Dillon Flood, PhD, Co-Founder and Scientific Director at Elsie Biotechnologies

5:15 – 6:00 PM | Ugly Sweater Contest

6:00 – 7:00 PM | Networking and hors d’oeuvres

7:00 PM | Ugly Sweater Contest winners announced

Founders often face early missteps that can make or break their ventures — from underestimating regulatory timelines and costs to overlooking the importance of team dynamics and leadership culture. Some jump into pitching investors before fully validating their hypotheses, while others misapply a platform-versus-indication strategy or place too much confidence in preliminary data. This event offers entertaining, candid insights from founders who’ve weathered those challenges firsthand — and learned the hard way.

Ugly Sweater Contest

• Format: Attendees arrive in their most eye-watering holiday sweaters
• Judging: Audience voting during early networking.
• Prizes: Awards in categories like “Most Hilariously Hideous,” “Most Over-the-Top,” and “Best Biotech-themed."

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