Event Details

Date: Thursday, May 8, 2025
Time: 3:00 - 5:30 PM (Doors open for networking at 2:30 PM)
Venue: Lau Auditorium (MY 150), Myhal Centre for Engineering Innovation and Entrepreneurship (55 St George St, Toronto, ON M5S 0C9)

Join us in-person for the Building a Biotech Venture Pitch Competition, where the next generation of regenerative and precision medicine innovators will showcase their entrepreneurial vision.

Six trainee-led teams from the University of Toronto and its affiliated hospitals will pitch their cutting-edge ventures to an expert panel of judges. The winning team will receive $25,000 in research funding to propel their technology toward real-world impact.

This year, the program is led by the PRiME Next-Generation Precision Medicine in close partnership with Medicine by Design, Health Innovation Hub (H2i) and Talk Boutique.

Over the past months, teams have worked with mentors to advance early-stage company concepts based on their research and have participated in a series of workshops to develop their business cases.

This competition represents the culmination of their journey, where ground-breaking research meets commercialization.

Come support these up-and-coming entrepreneurs as they take the stage to drive the future of biotechnology!

Agenda

Meeting the Judges

Sarah Farr
Senior Associate, Genesys Capital

Dr. Farr joined Genesys Capital in 2020 as an Associate, bringing to the team eight years of experience at the bench in laboratory research and discovery. She is responsible for sourcing deal flow and carrying out diligence on biotech and medtech investment opportunities. She is also a board observer for Giiant Pharma Inc., and Questat Inc.

Before Genesys, Dr. Farr worked as a Business Development Officer in the Industry Partnerships & Commercialization office at the Hospital for Sick Children, where she managed IP, industry partnerships, and start-up opportunities.

Dr. Farr received her PhD from the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto where she studied the effects of an anti-diabetic hormone on lipid and lipoprotein metabolism. She also has a Bachelor of Health Science (Honours) with a minor in Biochemistry from McMaster University.

Evelyn Pau
Principal, Amplitude Ventures

Evelyn joined Amplitude Ventures as a Principal in August 2024. She works directly with Amplitude's portfolio companies while supporting the deal team on active diligence and nomination.

Prior to joining Amplitude, Evelyn was the Vice President, Investment Banking at Bloom Burton & Co., a healthcare-focused investment banking firm. At Bloom Burton, her responsibilities included deal origination, strategic advisory, and venture creation for pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and healthcare companies. Previous to that, Evelyn was a Business Development Analyst at Tornado Medical Systems (acquired by Bruker) and a Research Fellow at SECOR Consulting (acquired by KPMG).

She completed her PhD in immunology at the University of Toronto, specializing in the genetics of lupus, and her BMSc (Hons) in microbiology and immunology at Western University.

Mathew Platt
Director of Community, Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) – Toronto

Mathew's career started in the health sciences with a PhD in Human Physiology from the University of Guelph. In the Winter of 2019, Mathew pivoted towards entrepreneurship by launching the Guelph Chapter of the Science to Business Network, a non-profit event-based networking group that connects academics with non-academic career paths and mentors.

In the Winter of 2020, Mathew formally launched his post-academic career with the Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) as a Venture Manager, where he has since reviewed over 800 applications from deep tech seed-stage startups from around the world and worked with over 50 health tech startups as they participate in the CDL mentorship program.

Over his 5+ years at CDL he’s managed and trained a diverse team as the Associate Director of Health at CDL-Toronto and as the Head of Global Venture Recruitment, and is now the acting Director of Community for CDL-Toronto and Stream Lead for CDL Cancer.

Mark Steedman
Senior Business Development Director, Quebec Consortium for Drug Discovery (CQDM)

Mark is a seasoned business development professional with deep expertise in biotech commercialization, venture creation, and strategic partnerships. He was a founding member of Interface Biologics Inc., where he played a key role in capital raising, licensing agreements exceeding $100M, and IP portfolio development. Mark currently serves as Senior Business Development Director at CQDM, Director of the Board at the Ontario Bioscience Innovation Organization (OBIO), and Strategic Advisor at NLAJ Consulting.

Meet the Finalist Teams

A2O

Reprogramming for brain recovery

Many central nervous system diseases are characterized by a loss of oligodendrocytes, the cells that enable fast and efficient communication in the brain, as well as dysfunction of astrocytes. A2O has developed a platform gene therapy technology to generate new oligodendrocytes by reprogramming these dysfunctional astrocytes – a two birds with one stone approach to brain repair. 

Team members: Justine Bajohr, Maryam Faiz

BoutIQ Solutions Inc.

Innovation in every drop

BoutIQ Solutions Inc. leverages AI/ML-driven optimization to revolutionize cell culture media. Our cutting-edge approach enables the rapid development of complex, custom formulations. We are pioneering next-generation, chemically defined media that enhances physiological function and maturity, unlocking new possibilities for disease modeling, drug discovery, and cell therapy. BoutIQ Solutions is redefining media innovation for the future of regenerative medicine.

Team members: Neal Callaghan, Alice Feng, Doris Adao, Heta Lad, Julie Audet, Craig Simmons

Chase Biotherapeutics

Breaking barriers to advance tissue regeneration

Chase Biotherapeutics is pioneering a breakthrough therapy to improve the quality of life of stroke and spinal cord injury survivors. With no viable treatments for over 12 million patients worldwide, our disruptive technology enables the precise and localized promotion of neurorepair. Proven safe and effective in preclinical studies, we are now advancing toward clinical trials with expert collaborators, addressing a critical unmet need with a truly disease-modifying solution.

Team Members: Nitzan Letko Khait, Quinton Sirianni, Elisa Guo, David Li, Molly Shoichet

Linker

The missing lnc for regenerative medicine

Linker mined the dark transcriptome of humans to re-engineer long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) molecules into therapeutic products that treat inflammation associated with atherothrombotic cardiovascular disease, which addresses a significant and underserved global clinical need.

Team members: Janice Pang, Omar F. Khan

PI16 Biosciences

Pioneering regenerative medicine-based solutions for skin vitality

Our vision at PI16 Biosciences is to harness the potential of regenerative fibroblasts to treat skin conditions with clinical grade skincare formulations that prevent infection and promote vitality.

Team members: Anthony Altieri, Maye Cheng, Erika McCartney, Jia Du, Yein Chung, Matthew Buechler

ZearUp Biomed

Putting an End to Low Blood Sugar: No Pill, no Pain, just a Patch!

ZearUp is a team of UofT pharmaceutical scientists dedicated to translating their diabetes research technology into a first-in-class clinical solution for hypoglycemia prevention in insulin-dependent individuals. Their patent-pending ‘smart’ microgel formulation embedded within a biocompatible, user-friendly microneedle patch is designed to raise blood sugar only when needed. Eliminating dependence on glucose monitoring and hypoglycemia rescue solutions (e.g., glucose pills/juice, glucagon injections/inhalers), ZearUp’s patch offers unparalleled peace-of-mind, transformative to diabetes management.

Team members: Jackie Fule Liu, Brian Lu, Jamie Lugtu-Pe, Xiao Yu (Shirley) Wu