BioPioneers: The Angel & Pre-Seed Playbook for Biotech + TechBio
Join BioPioneers, The Agentic, DropXCell, LeaderBank and MBC BioLabs for an evening dedicated to the earliest checks in biotech and techbio. We’re bringing together seasoned angel investors and early-stage operators for a candid conversation on what it actually takes to get funded today. We’ll move past the "pitch deck" basics and dive into how angels evaluate scientific risk, how to structure a pre-seed narrative that sets up a successful seed round, and the specific signals that make an investor lean in when the data is still early.
📍 Location: MBC BioLabs, San Carlos
📅 Date: Wednesday, February 25th, 2026
🕠 Time: 5:30–8:30 PM
Featured Panelists
Lavanya Anandan, Ph.D. - Executive in Residence, UCSF Innovation Ventures
Sammy Datwani, Ph.D. - Board of Director, Life Science Angels; CEO and Co-founder, Prisma
Elena Itskovich, Ph.D. - Founding General Partner, Nest Catalyst
Anastasia Budinskaya - Principal, NFX
Dana Foss, PhD (Moderator) - Co-Founder & CEO, Editpep
Agenda
5:30 – 6:10 PM: Check-in & Networking
6:10 – 6:30 PM: Opening Remarks (BioPioneers + TheAgentic + LeaderBank + DropXcell + MBC BioLabs)
6:30 – 7:30 PM: Panel Discussion + Audience Q&A
7:30 – 8:30 PM: Networking
Admission: Space is limited. Requires approval.
Who should attend
Biotech & TechBio founders, PhDs, Postdocs, early-career professionals, angel investors, and anyone building the Bay Area life sciences ecosystem.
About BioPioneers
BioPioneers is a Bay Area based community for people building and supporting biotech and techbio founders, operators, investors, and ecosystem partners. We host curated networking events, panels, and meetups designed to create warm, high-signal connections and help people move their companies and careers forward.
About TheAgentic
TheAgentic provides complete infrastructure for production-ready AI agents, currently powering companies in biotech, healthtech, cybersecurity, and fintech where accuracy isn't optional. Symbolic Fusion is our latest release: an ecosystem of products that fuses neuro-symbolic precision with LLM flexibility— infrastructure that used to require a massive team and budget.
TheAgentic Launchpad program partners with early-stage startups to build AI products on our infrastructure at zero cost and zero equity. Selective admission. Schedule a call to learn more.
About Leader Bank
Founded in 2002, Leader Bank is a Massachusetts-based entrepreneurial financial institution that approaches banking differently. The core tenets of Leader Bank include client services, exemplary products, and innovation to meet the needs of its clients. Leader Bank’s best-in-class staff has been at the forefront of supporting the bank’s rapid growth and client-oriented solutions, as the bank has continued to expand its commercial and retail products and solutions over the last two decades. Leader Bank is a committed corporate citizen and prides itself on partnering with and supporting philanthropic organizations. More information on Leader Bank can be found at www.leaderbank.com.
About DropXcell
DropXcell enables founders and pre-seed biotech companies to generate high-quality lead molecules without raising institutional capital upfront. Our platform allows us to rapidly design and affordably quantify 10,000x more antibody candidates, dramatically reducing discovery risk early. We partner with early biotechs to lower discovery costs 10x while being 4x faster to candidates.
Event Terms and Media Release
By registering for this event, you agree to release BioPioneers, its organizers, and all other event hosts from any liability related to your participation. You also consent to being photographed or recorded during the event, with such media potentially used for promotional purposes. Additionally, you agree to receive event updates, newsletters, and invitations from BioPioneers and other event hosts. You may unsubscribe from these communications at any time.