Having been appointed executive director in June 2022, what is your vision to take QB3 forward?

QB3 fosters the translation of technologies from the public to the private sector to help solve societal problems. I have been building from our existing strong programs, and I’m interested in expanding our umbrella. The three universities part of QB3 – Berkeley, Santa Cruz and San Francisco – have a lot of synergies, and there is major potential to develop resources to further interact together on the scientific as well as the technology translation side. We also have Northern California UC campuses that are not formally part of QB3, and I want us to partner with them. Conversations have started, and there are definite synergies, particularly in the therapeutics space with cell and gene therapies as well as in agricultural technologies.

How is Bakar Labs supporting start-ups’ growth toward commercialization?

Companies start with a big idea and a small team, and they face lots of challenges in translating that idea into solutions to societal needs. We have systematically tried to build programs and institutions that can help companies form, grow and succeed. For example, we have invested considerable effort in Bakar Labs at UC Berkeley, whichopened in late 2021 and is the largest university-owned and operated biotech incubator in the US. We have 29 companies on board, on our way to 35 at steady state. Several existing companies have already grown, financed, and will soon be graduating.

Bakar Labs supports all biological sciences, though many of our companies are currently in therapeutics. We have companies developing small molecule, protein, gene and genome editing, and cellular therapeutics. Our companiesspan multiple therapeutic areas including oncology, neuro, infectious disease, and inflammatory and immune.Looking ahead, we would also like to further grow in aggrotech, food tech, and tool development.

What is your outlook on the funding environment for incubators?

We are continuously developing the capital we need to support our programs and grow. Companies similarly need financing, and we are creating partnerships at several levels to help this process. QB3 created the first university-affiliated venture capital firm – Mission Bay Capital – whose portfolio has had exits both by IPO as well as acquisitions, and we are expanding this model with new funds. We are also forming partnerships with blue-chipinstitutional investors.

How do you view the decade ahead for gene editing tools like CRISPR?

There is the possibility of having the first regulatory approval of a genome-editing product this year from CRISPR Therapeutics and Vertex. Overcoming a couple of challenges would further amplify the impact that genome editing is having. One is delivery. As delivery improves, it will further unlock the power of editing, as genome editing toolscan then reach more cells and genes in the body to treat disease. In addition, genome editing is by and large being targeted toward rare diseases, where you know what the broken gene is. If analogous drug targets can be identified for more complex diseases, such as congestive heart failure or Parkinson’s, the impact of the field would grow as it reaches more patients.

How can Bakar Labs contribute to keeping innovation in the Bay Area?

Universities spark innovations, but there is a complex ecosystem needed for those discoveries to translate into products that solve societal problems. We need well-educated people keen on taking risks and building companies, from scientists to clinicians to investors. Government can be supportive too, and Massachusetts, for example, has made major investments in its biotech economy. California has invested too. In general, the Bay Area offers a confluence of universities, investors and companies, and we are interested in strengthening bridges between these institutions to streamline the process of technology translation.

What do you hope to achieve in 2023?

There is a lot of opportunity to grow QB3. I would love to interact with other California universities to further foster scientific innovation and to help spread knowledge of how to build incubator/accelerator programs to help technology transition. We are considering a visiting entrepreneur program where programs worldwide can send an intern and embed them within Bakar Labs for two years, then bring knowledge back to their home country. We are already helping a California UC in the early stage of building an incubator, and we also have a lot of incoming interest from other countries.