LMU goes DEEP · Earlybird Salon
November Session · Guests: Prof. Dr. Heinrich Leonhardt (LMU Biocenter) & Jonas Helma-Smets (Co-Founder, Tubulis)
“LMU goes DEEP”, the joint conversation format of LMU Munich and DEEP – Institute for Deep Tech Innovation at ESMT Berlin, brings together selected guests from science, deep tech, venture capital, industry and politics once a month in an intimate setting: early in the morning, without a stage in the conventional sense, but with room for open discussion, dissent and fresh perspectives.
For the first time, this session brings two guests into conversation with the moderator, and with them both sides of one of LMU’s most remarkable transfer stories: Prof. Dr. Heinrich Leonhardt, Chair of Human Biology and BioImaging at the LMU Biocenter, whose fundamental research gave rise to Tubulis; and Jonas Helma-Smets, who built the company as co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer.
Tubulis develops next-generation antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), cancer therapies that deliver highly potent agents directly to tumour cells while largely sparing healthy tissue. In May 2026, the US pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences completed its acquisition of the Munich-based company: US$3.15 billion upfront, plus up to US$1.85 billion in contingent milestone payments. It is one of the most significant exits in German biotech history. The team remains in Munich, where it is building the Tubulis ADC Innovation Center. This is proof that cutting-edge university research can generate global value without leaving the place where it began.
The conversation traces the path from lab to company: the moment a scientific finding becomes the idea for a startup, the interplay between academic chair and spin-off, funding rounds, pharma partnerships and the decision to sell. It also asks what universities, researchers and investors in Germany can learn from this, so that excellent science more often gives rise to companies of this scale.
Programme
08:30 · Coffee & croissants
08:45 · Welcome by LMU & DEEP
08:55 · Fireside chat with Heinrich Leonhardt & Jonas Helma-Smets
09:20 · Discussion & Q&A
10:10 · Networking
10:30 · End of event
By invitation only.
A curated circle of 30–50 guests.
The session will be held in English.