Earlier in October, global accelerator Next Sequence held its AIxBIO Accelerator Cohort 1 Demo Day at the INSEAD Innovation Hub during a16z SF TechWeek. The event on October 11 spotlighted pioneering AIxBIO startups using advances in biology and computing to drive forward human and planetary health.

The event featured Next Sequence’s Founder and Managing Partner, Loretta Tioiela, Samet Yildirim, Founder & COO of Orbillion Bio, and Nabiha Saklayen, CEO of Cellino to set the scene for the challenges and opportunities in AIxBIO. Key takeaways included AI’s role in expediting drug discovery and the obstacles involved in securing funding in today’s competitive investment climate.

The event centred on presentations from Next Sequence’s Cohort 1 including:

• Christopher Reynolds, CEO of Eden Bio, who showcased AI-driven solutions for sustainable protein biomanufacturing through precision fermentation.
• Rory Ryan, CEO of Pentabind, whose AI-based aptamer design technology seeks to tackle previously "undruggable" drug targets.
• Raphaelle Taub, CEO of Matricis.ai, presenting advanced AI for medical imaging to improve research on endometriosis and women’s reproductive health.

The program also introduced two more startups: NeuroX1, which is enhancing neurotherapeutic drug development with AI foundation models, and Immunomind, a company focused on cancer research through advanced immunotherapy data tools.

The event concluded with a pitch competition featuring San Francisco-based early-stage startups that are addressing issues in drug development, scientific research management, lab automation, digital health, and reproductive health solutions. Notable participants included Synlico, Sanai, SyncBio, Prana, and Louise.

Next Sequence: Building a Global AIxBIO Ecosystem

As an accelerator focused on pre-seed and seed-stage AIxBIO startups, Next Sequence connects companies with over 500 global investors. Setting itself apart through a unique focus on technical and ecosystem support, it aims to assist startups transitioning from Seed to Series A by emphasizing operational needs, particularly cloud and AI infrastructure, which are essential for life sciences R&D.

During Cohort 1, Next Sequence collaborated with cloud service giants like AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Oracle Cloud, delivering essential support for data-driven R&D while helping de-risk future investments. The accelerator is planning to further expand its partnerships to include providers such as Google Cloud, Alibaba Cloud, Tencent Cloud, and Huawei Technologies.

In recent months, Next Sequence emerged from stealth, aligning with leading players in AIxBIO by hosting AIxBIO TechDrinks events during London and New York TechWeek. For its inaugural DEMO Day, founders from locations like London, Paris, and across the U.S. were brought to San Francisco. This event set the stage for Next Sequence’s annual showcases, where its network of over 4,000 founders and ecosystem partners aims to drive a future powered by biology.

Judges from prominent accelerators, investors, and tech companies, including Leonardo Rocchetti from Plug and Play, Philipp N. Sander of SOSV, Marie Schildt at Unruly Capital, and Vincent A. Alessi from Anthropic, were on hand to offer feedback to startups. 

"We like to say that ‘we complete and do not compete,’ as we have a strong sense of the supportive role we aim to play in this ecosystem—one that has been forged long before us by accelerators such as iGEM, Nucleate, and IndieBio, as well as ecosystem builders like SynBioBeta and HelloTomorrow, alongside major investors such as SOSV,” said Loretta Tioiela.

This community-focused approach underpins Next Sequence’s vision, positioning it to unite the best accelerators, ecosystem builders, and investors to build and expand a biology-powered future.

For those interested in early-stage AIxBIO startups, plans are already in motion for the 2025 event, which is set to expand into a major tech conference, or as Loretta Tioiela describes it, the “KubeCon of AIxBIO.” The next generation of innovators can express their interest here.