Bay Bridge Bio

Supporting the next generation of biotech entrepreneurs


Programs, events, and resources to help young scientists learn about, and create careers in, biotech startups and venture capital.

Explore our startup database

We maintain a database of biopharma startup funding and exit activity. The database covers $17B worth of venture investments from 2018 to today and hundreds of companies and investors.


Who will fund your startup?

See which investors fund companies like yours. This is best for Series A rounds and beyond, data for seed rounds is more sparse. All of these investors have funded at least one therapeutics company since January 2018.



Which startups might be hiring?

Search for recently funded startups (have raised venture money since January 2018). These companies may or may not be hiring, but typically companies hire aggressively after a fundraise.










Monitor venture funding activity

See how venture funding in 2019 compares to 2018's record levels of funding.

Our database contains additional detailed data on startups, IPOs and M&A activity. To learn more, contact us.


Learn about our programs


Alumni testimonials

We have done two programs so far with 17 alumni from Berkeley, Stanford and UCSF. Half are PhD students and half are postdocs.


"I got so much out of it; way more than I thought I would when I signed up. This program really reduced the barrier to entry for me for careers in VC and made it way less intimidating to network with VCs and other big names in biotech. I appreciate everything you've done!" -- Spring 2018 alum

"I really enjoyed the course and I learned so much. It has made me really excited for someday starting my own venture and I think the connections made here will be very helpful." -- Fall 2017 alum

"This has been a mind-opening experience. I really appreciate the opportunity to participate and I learned a ton." -- Fall 2017 alum







Recent event: building and investing in biotech startups


Hear how top biotech VCs evaluate science and build companies


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Panel moderated by Michael Hostetler, WSGR:

  • David Allison, 5AM Ventures
  • Dan Becker, New Leaf Ventures
  • Sarah Bhagat, Sofinnova
  • Mira Chaurushiya, 5AM Ventures

Closing remarks by Karl Handelsman, Roche Venture Fund



Thanks to our sponsor, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati







Topics covered:

Overview of biotech venture capital

1:42 Panel start

2:56 Panelist introductions

15:00 How to get into venture

18:51 Getting in front of VCs

23:10 How early-stage funds source deals

25:12 How VCs start companies

30:14 Accelerators and incubators

What do VCs look for

31:29 What do late-stage funds look for?

33:07 What do early-stage funds look for?

34:33 What do VCs look for in a team?

37:39 How do VCs evaluate deals?

Advice for founders

42:06 Advice for first-time scientific founders

43:52 Value of grit

46:25 How to handle feedback

49:33 How long does it take VCs to make an investment?

Trends and opportunities

51:23 Interesting trends in biotech

52:07 Opportunities in CNS / neuro

55:37 Next-gen immuno-oncology

56:25 Getting to clinical proof of concept faster and cheaper

59:15 Precision medicine -- what it really means and why it matters

1:00:02 Programming organisms, new therapeutic modalities

1:00:42 Digital therapeutics -- need for evidence

Q&A

1:02:45 What makes a great team?

1:07:38 Biotech VCs vs. angel investors

1:10:17 IP for early-stage companies

1:14:11 IP for late-stage companies

1:16:04 IP attorney's thoughts on startup IP

1:17:39 Valuing platforms vs products

Closing remarks: Karl Handelsman

1:23:31 The case for the entrepreneur

1:25:47 Lean startup principles applied to biotech