START CODON VENTURE BUILDER

Start Codon is a venture-building fund that Discovers, Nurtures, and Advances next-generation healthcare and life science companies. Start Codon doesn’t just invest, the team becomes invested; in the people, the ideas, and in working together to build successful, data-driven ‘TechBio’ ventures with the potential to address unmet needs and positively impact lives.

Alongside pre-seed funding of £250,000, the team works hand-in-hand with founders, providing bespoke support through their innovative START Programme. The dedicated team also provides a combination of business support services, expertise, and access to an extensive network of industry-leading pharma, biotech, and venture capital executives. This combination helps founders to build and accelerate their company and increase their chances of success.

Since its first investment in April 2020, Start Codon, led by Dr Jason Mellad (CEO and Co-Founder) and Daniel Rooke (COO and Co-Founder), the team has amassed a portfolio of 26 companies, founded across the UK. Start Codon successfully raised its £15m venture fund with key strategic partners, including the Milner Therapeutics Institute, Babraham Research Campus, Cambridge Innovation Capital, Genentech/Roche, Novartis, Meltwind (Jonathan Milner), and Cambridge & Peterborough Combined Authority, as well as a wider network of leading commercial organisations including legal, finance and IP experts.

Start Codon also became a founding supporter of the inaugural Diverse Directors Programme in 2023, headed up by Start Codon Talent Director, Emma Plowman with her Co-Founder Emma Thorp. The programme is designed to address the diversity gap at senior levels of life science boardrooms, and has already completed a successful pilot.

Cancer Research Horizons and Start Codon have also co-developed an entrepreneurial training programme to educate the multidisciplinary oncology research community about company formation, operations, and fundraising.

The venture-building seed fund deploys capital and supports ambitious founders all year round, so aspiring founders and early-stage life science companies are encouraged to contact the team via the website