Let's dive into a conversation with Ayla Ellison, Fierce Biotech Editor-in-Chief and Michelle Benz as they discuss the highlights and excitement surrounding this year's Fierce Biotech Summit.
Fierce Biotech Summit on September 30-October 1 in Boston is your gateway to the future of biotechnology. By attending, you’ll gain unparalleled insights, network with industry leaders, and position yourself at the forefront of biotech innovation. Learn more here and register today!
Michelle Benz
Hi, my name is Michelle Benz, and I'm a conference production director here at Fierce. I manage the agenda and speaker recruitment for the Fierce Biotech Summit and several other events. Joining me today is Ayla Ellison from the editorial team.
Ayla Ellison
I'm Ayla Ellison, I'm the editor-in-chief of Fierce Healthcare and Life Sciences, which includes three of our prestigious publications: Fierce Healthcare, Fierce Pharma, and Fierce Biotech, which we're going to be talking about a lot today.
Michelle Benz
I'm really excited to dive into this and talk about why we're so excited about the upcoming Fierce Biotech Summit. Ayla, what is the theme of the summit this year?
Ayla Ellison
This year, the theme for our biotech summit is the future of biotech. It's meant to cover all of the developments and advancements in the industry and what comes next. It's a more positive outlook than some of the conversations in the industry in past years. I'm really looking forward to diving deep into discussions. We have some really interesting ones planned on cell and gene therapies.
We're also looking ahead at the IPO market and examining how the industry has navigated some regulatory challenges and what lies ahead in this election year. There’s a lot of interesting things to come, but we're really taking a look ahead in the industry. Michelle, you've been involved in planning all parts of the event since its launch. Is there anything different about the summit this year?
Michelle Benz
The big news is we have two new tracks this year. We've added our pre-clinical & CMC track, as well as our PR and communications track. You can move in and out through all the different tracks and find content that's most interesting to you throughout the two days.
We also have more sessions, more speakers, and more topics than ever before. There's a lot of great opportunities to find new connections. You can have those in-person conversations and make new friends and contacts a lot easier at the summit, which I'm really excited about. I think that's one of the most fun parts of this event—the networking opportunities.
Michelle Benz
What are you most excited about for the conference this year, Ayla? Are there any sessions you want to mention?
Ayla Ellison
The agenda for this year's biotech summit is really standout from start to finish. There are a few that I'm particularly excited about. There's one panel discussion that focuses on the obesity drug boom, which I think is going to be wonderful. GLP-1s have been a major part of the news cycle for quite some time now.
This panel is going to delve into the topics shaping the future of obesity drugs. We're going to cover everything from notable clinical trials to reimbursement issues and really cover it from all aspects. I think it's going to be a really insightful conversation for everyone involved.
Another one I'm really excited about, and that I love to be a part of every year, is the "Fierce 15: Where Are They Now?" panel. We bring together a group of past Fierce 15 winners, get them on stage, and talk about what's going on with their companies now, how things have played out since we interviewed them a few years ago. Some of the executives we'll have on stage, and scientists, sometimes they've moved companies, or their company has a different name. It's always interesting to hear from them about the challenges they've overcome, the successes they've had, and the advice they have for other biotechs.
Michelle Benz
Yeah, I have so many favorite sessions, so it's hard to narrow them down, but a couple stand out. We have one on day two that’s going to be really exciting—it's on empowering women's health. We have two fantastic females who are really going to bring this session to life. Dr. Moni Gary, a breast surgeon and co-host of The Doctor Is In, and Dr. Charlotte Owens, Head of Medical Affairs and Outcomes Research from Organon. They’re going to discuss what's going on in the women's health space since President Biden's executive order on biotech innovation and research earlier this year. They'll talk about what that did for the industry, how it's facilitating easier access to resources and funding, making women's health initiatives more accessible and impactful.
We also have a really exciting panel called "Cracking the Code: Effective Biotech and Big Pharma Partnerships." This panel includes some big pharma companies and smaller biotechs, and they’re going to talk about the different successful collaborations and partnerships they've each had. They'll discuss what really makes those collaborations effective, share their strategic blueprint for cultivating effective partnerships within this ecosystem, and what they determine are the components for success.
We have some great speakers from Eli Lilly, Bayer, Innovent Biologics, and Mirador Therapeutics, and I think it will be a fantastic conversation.
Michelle Benz
You mentioned the Fierce 15 panel that we have on the agenda this year. I was curious if you could tell me a little bit more about the Fierce 15 winners and what's new this year.
Ayla Ellison
Fierce Biotech's Fierce 15 has been around for years. The special report went live on August 6th, so the 15 winners for this year are now publicly out there. We have the special report on our website, but I'm really excited because at the biotech summit every year, it's our chance to honor the Fierce 15 winners in person at an award ceremony. This year's Fierce 15 list is incredibly impressive—I think it's one of our best ever. It's truly a global list. We even have a biotech on the list this year that's out of New Zealand, which isn’t typically brought up when talking about biotech startups. We have different companies on the list that are not only doing amazing things with science and clinical outcomes but are also making strides in diversity within their own companies and leadership. I'm personally looking forward to meeting many of the winners this year at the biotech summit, to honor them and their achievements so far, and to see what's next for them as well.
Michelle Benz
That sounds so exciting. I know it's one of my favorite events at the conference each year—the big reception where everyone gets to celebrate and recognize their accomplishments. I think it's going to be the best one yet.
We hope you can all join us on September 30th and October 1st in Boston. We hope to see you there.
Ayla Ellison
See you in Boston.
For more details and to view the full agenda, visit the agenda!