Curie Bio Operations LLC

SAN FRANCISCO The irony isnt lost on Alexis Borisy. The famed biotechnology investor has, all this week, at the industrys biggest event, been taking meetings from a downtown hotel suite, on a glossy, powder blue couch that has an odd resemblance to a drug capsule. I guess it really does, he said with a booming laugh.Borisy has co-founded handfuls of companies, including his current passion project, the venture capital firm Curie.Bio, and the cancer drugmaker Revolution Medicines, which is rumored to be in talks for a deal worth tens of billions of dollars. Hes also been coming to the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference for decades, since it was run by Hambrecht & Quist. This year, for the first time in several, he found attendees significantly more optimistic. They have reasons to be.A historic downturn in the biotech sector that began in late 2021 is finally showing signs of subsiding. Acquisition activity spiked in the back half of last year, when at least 28 deals worth $50 million or more were announced.Money has also started to pour in again. HSBCs Innovation Banking division counted 157 venture capital deals, totaling $7 billion, in just the fourth quarter. Taking a wider look, RBC Capital Markets tallied $22 billion in biotech investing in the last three months of 2025, which was on par with levels seen at the peak of the 2020-2021 bubble. So far, the momentum has continued into 2026. So much for dry January, wrote Raymond James analysts, who highlighted big time biotech inflows of $1.2 billion in the first full week of the new year.Were in a good place right now as a sector, said John Maraganore, the founding CEO of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals and former chairperson of biotechs biggest trade group.Yet, alongside the excitement is an undercurrent of unease that this rebound may be fragile, and may not continue as hoped if the industry doesnt play its cards right.The tension could be felt throughout J.P. Morgan. There was real frustration when, on the conferences opening day, no major deals came. Brad Loncar, another prominent biotech investor turned media analyst, lamented the slowest JPM for news in a long time. Others appear to agree. The XBI, a closely watched biotech fund, ended the four-day meeting essentially flat.I think were in the early innings of the upswing, Borisy said. But we dont know for sure. Because when you're down in the trough, you can have false dawns, and you can bounce along there for a long period of time.Attendees at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference on Jan. 12, 2026.Jacob Bell/BioPharma DiveWhat is clear is that experts see a push and pull to all the biggest factors affecting the industry.The recent and rapid rise of Chinas biotech ecosystem, for example, has raised alarm bells that the U.S. may lose its dominant position in the life sciences. But some say this growing competition could also positively affect U.S. drug developers by forcing them to become more nimble and efficient.The Food and Drug Administration is also coming off one of, if not the most tumultuous years in the agencys history. But the FDA has shown a desire to speed drugs along, too. Drugmakers have also navigated the commotion well, and have shown an aptitude for negotiating with the Trump Administration on a broader scale.Even so, theres angst that recent change-ups among the FDAs top ranks last year could soon come to roost. The RBC team conducted a recent poll among biotech investors and found that more than half pointed to the unpredictable regulatory climate as the sectors biggest issue.All of us are hoping that things settle down [and] we get a more consistent agency, said Maraganore. If we see delays, if we see inconsistencies, if we see lack of stability at the FDA, then that would be a cause for more concern. But, again, I'm optimistic.Meanwhile, public markets that largely dismissed drug startups for the last few years now seem poised to embrace these companies again. That may have a knock-on effect on dealmaking. A fresh source of funding could make smaller biotechs less reliant on big pharma collaborations, or it could accelerate research programs and make them more attractive to potential partners.Hopefully, if the IPO market opens more in 2026 that won't mean the partnership model dries up, said Adam Keeney, head of corporate development at Biogen. It just means these companies could be taken to more advanced stages before partnering, which is good for us as well.We've still got some way to go before we're talking about a bubble, Keeney added.If the rebound does persist, industry backers will be under pressure to not repeat mistakes made at the height of the last hype cycle. During that period, it wasnt uncommon for young drug companies with fantastical goals to go public, even if their plans to develop medicines and build a business around them were fuzzy.Many of those companies then suffered greatly when the market corrected, frustrating public investors and causing many of the generalists that had fueled the sectors run to turn away from biotech. Particularly hard hit were cell and gene therapy developers, as well as platform companies that promised to create an array of new medicines with cutting-edge technologies.You can't get caught up in the moment, said Andy Plump, head of research and development at Japans largest drugmaker, Takeda Pharmaceutical. Platform companies, for example, were all the rage not long ago, but the reality is platforms often fail. So the exuberance it's just not worth it, he said.Conference attendees grabbing snacks between presentations at the Westin St. Francis Hotel on Jan. 12, 2026.Jacob Bell/BioPharma DiveThat sentiment has played out in the public markets of late. Last year, all but one of the companies to price IPOs had drugs in Phase 2 testing or later at the time of their offerings. The majority are currently trading above their debut price. One, Metsera, just got bought in a $10 billion deal.Some could argue this performance suggests young drug companies have become better and more efficient, and their backers more disciplined. The dark winter, as Maraganore describes the prolonged downturn, resulted in a Darwinian survival of the fittest.The private companies that remain have a very, very strong vintage, he said. Im of the view that these initial companies that do go public may be some of the best we've seen in a long time.With biotech being so cyclic, newfound success has the potential to stir the formation of another bubble. Momentum investors, seeing strong clinical data or stock spikes, rush in and further bloat valuations. The net result, given an industry that's driven by animal spirits, is going to be an overcapitalization and a hangover, according to Borisy.Some firms are already seeing troubling signs. In a December report, RBC analysts warned that the XBIs lengthy run in 2025 had left many companies with stock values that priced in much more optimism for success. Further growth might be tougher to achieve, they wrote, and results investors view as less-than-perfect could cause share prices to tumble.Keeney, of Biogen, said a little bit of collective responsibility will be needed to avoid this outcome. If we could just stay disciplined, more money can go into a targeted number of companies that have the best opportunities and the best chance of success.Earlier-stage investors appear to be doing just that. Mega fundraising rounds worth $100 million or more have become commonplace over the past couple years, as larger and slower-moving investor groups have coalesced around fewer companies that stay private for longer. These bets have been seen as safer.While venture capitalists claim theyve learned their lesson from the last boom-and-bust era, not everyone is so convinced.Borisy, acknowledging that investors arent a monolith, couldnt help but let some disbelief show through.You can write down that I gave an eye roll, he said. '

Several top biotech executives are slated to speak at a “Make America Healthy Again” event on Wednesday that’s headlined by federal health officials, according to an agenda reviewed by Endpoints News . On a panel entitled “Making American Biotechnology Accelerate,” Regeneron co-founder and chief scientific officer George Yancopoulos will be joined by CRISPR Therapeutics CEO Sam Kulkarni and serial biotech investor Alexis Borisy, who co-founded startup accelerator Curie.Bio. It will be moderated by Amol Punjabi, described as a former special government employee at HHS and a biotech investor. The executives’ participation in the event, dubbed the MAHA Summit, is notable given how frequently Trump administration officials, including HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., have railed against the pharmaceutical industry and how it’s been regulated. The summit is slated to include prominent leaders across the federal health department. Kennedy will give closing remarks and FDA chief Marty Makary will participate in a fireside chat. CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz will speak to Katie Miller, a top GOP operative and wife of White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, alongside his deputy and top drug price negotiator Chris Klomp. Vice President JD Vance will make a keynote address. Details of the event were first reported by Politico. A spokesperson for HHS directed questions to the organizer of the event, which was not immediately clear. Opening remarks will be given by Tony Lyons, head of the Kennedy-aligned group MAHA Action; MAHA Holdings CEO Alex Hardy; and Kennedy’s son Finn, a board member of MAHA Holdings. A spokesperson for CRISPR Therapeutics said that Kulkarni was invited “to share his perspective as a leader in the field and will be discussing how gene editing has the potential to fundamentally change the treatment paradigm for patients across a range of diseases.” A spokesperson for Curie.Bio declined to comment and a spokesperson for Regeneron did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Kennedy invested in CRISPR Therapeutics prior to taking the helm of HHS. Financial disclosures ahead of his confirmation process showed that Kennedy owned between $1,000 to $15,000 in shares, which he subsequently pledged to divest . Kennedy also said in his financial disclosure that he’d divest from Dragonfly Therapeutics, a separate biotech. An HHS spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment on CRISPR’s participation in Wednesday’s event. Borisy and Curie.Bio’s participation also stand out. Curie CEO Zach Weinberg has been critical of China’s growing influence in biotech and has argued that the administration should restrict the outward flow of deals from there. He previously told Endpoints over the summer that the administration should consider executive action that would discourage US-China deals. The New York Times reported in September that there is a draft executive order that would do just that, though it’s unclear how likely that move is. In a speaking tour with biopharma executives over the summer, FDA officials — including Makary — heard from industry insiders who called on the agency to do more to expedite new trials and rival China and other nations like Australia, where earlier-stage trials have become popular. John Crowley, CEO of the trade group BIO, underscored at a Senate hearing last month that reforms are needed to keep the industry competitive in the years ahead.

Mon, 09/29/2025 Kyle Marshall, NCBiotech Original article: https://www.ncbiotech.org/news/therapeutic-innovations-stand-out-investors-triangle-venture-day If you want to know how therapeutic innovation in the Triangle stacks up against other life sciences hubs, just ask an investor who knows the national and global landscape. Nima Ronaghi, principal at Breakout Ventures, a San Francisco fund that invests in early-stage, science-backed companies, said the Triangle’s maturity as a life sciences hub was evident at a recent Triangle Venture Day event. “What really stood out to me was how grounded the founders were in both the science and the execution,” he said. “Of course, you’ve got exciting science coming out of world-class research centers. That technical depth is the bedrock of any great biotech, and it’s always been a strength for the Triangle.” Triangle Venture Day, a private gathering of startups and investors focused on therapeutics, was held earlier this month in Research Triangle Park. Nearly two dozen life sciences startups and academic labs presented their discoveries, milestones and plans to a packed room of potential investors and strategic partners. Founded in 2022, Triangle Venture Day showcases early-stage companies and innovations spawned from laboratories at Duke University, North Carolina State University, and UNC-Chapel Hill. The event also included North Carolina Biotechnology Center portfolio companies. Those three institutions, along with NCBiotech, collaborate to bring companies, researchers, venture capital firms and potential corporate partners together for a day of networking and to learn about novel innovations and emerging companies More than 50 partners and associates from at least a dozen venture capital, private equity and other investment firms took part in this year’s Triangle Venture Day. In addition, representatives from the strategic investment groups of biotech and pharma companies attended. “The support system in the Triangle, like the universities and the venture groups, is very professional,” said Helen Sun, an associate at Curie.Bio, a global venture capital firm that invests in drug discovery startups across multiple therapeutic areas. “They know what the investors are looking at. They know what pharma is looking at. They’re doing a really great job shaping up the ecosystem.” Companies that made their pitches agree that the fusion of groundbreaking research and a supportive environment have put the Triangle on the global map for life sciences startups. “We have a really vibrant industry and entrepreneurship ecosystem here,” said Alessanda Pavesio, CEO and co-founder at Doron Therapeutics, a Series A startup in Chapel Hill that has developed a biologic derived from placental tissue for treatment of osteoarthritis. “Fundraising is hard and lonely. This is a great event for understanding what’s going on in the Triangle for talent and entrepreneurship and to build each other up.” For therapeutics companies that have transitioned out of the lab and onto a commercialization path, Triangle Venture Day is a chance to communicate to potential investors about progress on product development including scientific and clinical validation, while also highlighting the market opportunity and company strategy. Timm Crowder, whose Raleigh company, Iditarod Bio, is using lung properties to develop treatments for gout and metabolic disorders, spent much of his day talking with potential investors he had encountered previously only through videoconference calls. “Some of the investors we had only been talking to, and not meeting because they’re at a distance, are actually here,” he said following his presentation. “This [event] draws from a much wider area than the Triangle. It’s always great to get together in person.” Sun, with Curie.Bio, is getting more opportunities to gain first-hand knowledge of the Triangle’s therapeutic startup scene. She recently moved to the region from San Francisco. “I think everyone is interested in this region,” she said. “I’m really excited about learning more about this ecosystem. I think we found a lot of interesting ideas here.” Ronaghi of Breakout Ventures, which was founded by technology investor Peter Thiel’s foundation, added: “I trained at Georgia Tech, and many of us at Breakout were educated and trained in the South. That shared foundation gives us a deep appreciation for how the region combines world-class research with a growing bench of experienced operators. Especially in a tighter funding environment, this kind of thoughtful urgency is exactly what we’re looking for as investors.” For the universities and NCBiotech, Triangle Venture Day represents one of the year’s biggest opportunities to showcase the region’s innovations on the national stage. Innovation leaders from each organization noted the high level of interest among investors and partners, as well as the quality of the presentations. “We have now held five venture days in various industry domains in partnership with all of the Triangle Region’s key institutions over the past three years,” said Jeff Welch, director of the Duke New Ventures program in Duke University’s Office of Translation and Commercialization. “This year’s Therapeutics Venture Day has maintained a track record of continuing to bring together ever larger numbers of national and international venture capital and strategic investors with each event to showcase innovative potential startups in the Triangle. “Especially in a biopharma venture capital environment that has been in decline since 2021, we are gratified that Duke and the broader Triangle’s early-stage biotech innovation machine continues to attract the highest quality investors on the hunt for new medicines to this event – and we are excited by the continuing dialogue toward investment in our presenters’ opportunities that has been catalyzed by Triangle Venture Day,” Welch said. “We are very proud of the startups and teams that presented at this year’s event. I thought it was especially impressive to see the maturity of our pipeline to have companies returning two years later with key milestones complete and raising significant rounds of investment,” said Tim Martin, interim assistant vice chancellor of new ventures and investments at NC State’s Office of Research Commercialization. “From lab spotlight to Series A, NC State displayed unique and innovative startups who are going to build great companies and deliver therapies that will change patients’ lives. Our collaboration across the Triangle is a cornerstone of the innovation ecosystem unique to North Carolina and we are humbled by the response from the VC community.” Mireya McKee, director of UNC’s KickStart Venture Services, said, “The Triangle is a hub of therapeutic innovation, and this showcase highlights the region’s strength. With each event we see investor enthusiasm grow for what’s emerging here as we make connections that will drive the next generation of life-science breakthroughs.” Jason Doherty, senior director of investments in Emerging Company Development at NCBiotech, said that the Triangle Venture Day collaboration between NCBiotech and the university partners continues to be a catalyst for investment activity. That close collaboration is also what enabled the partners to develop a successful Venture Day event. “The event drew excellent turnout from out-of-town venture capital investors and pharma technology scouts who provided high praise regarding the quality of the event and our region’s investment opportunities,” Doherty said. “Triangle Venture Day has grown to be a powerful platform for evaluating deals and forging new relationships, reinforcing the incredible potential of our region’s biotech startup ecosystem.” Presenting companies and research labs *Denotes NCBiotech portfolio companies Duke New Ventures: ● Fecci/Patel Lab ● Nackley Lab ● Nazare Bio ● Pollara Lab ● Scaglione Lab ● Sipkins Lab ● Surana Lab NC State Office of Research Commercialization: ● Ancilia Bio ● CerteraBio (Brudno/Pierce Labs) ● Helixomer* ● Intra Therapeutics ● Persistence Therapeutics* UNC KickStart Venture Services: ● Carey Lab ● Delgen Biosciences (You Lab) ● Freeman Lab ● Nabgen* ● Scherrer Lab NCBiotech: ● Diorasis Therapeutics* ● Doron Therapeutics ● GeneVentiv Therapeutics* ● Iditarod Bio* ● Junipero Therapeutics ● Tellus Therapeutics* Sponsors ● Alexandria ● KdT Ventures ● Hatteras Venture Partners ● Breakout Ventures ● Curie.Bio