Altitude Lab

We’re honored to receive the Ecosystem Excellence award at this year’s Best of BioHive event! ?? This recognition reflects the incredible founders, mentors, and partners who make Altitude Lab a thriving hub for biotech innovation. A huge thank you to BioHive Utah for celebrating Utah’s growing life sciences ecosystem and to everyone who contributes to our mission of building the future of health. ?? We had a fantastic time connecting with so many inspiring leaders and celebrating the momentum of our biotech community! ? A special shoutout to Katherine Matsumoto, PhD from Recursion, who was named Storyteller of the Year—congrats, Katherine! ?? She’s also been an incredible resource for Altitude Lab, taking the time to help our startups strengthen their storytelling. #BestOfBioHive #Ecosystem #BioHive #AltitudeLab #BiotechInnovation #utahbiotech #utahstartups #StartupCommunity #BioTech

"SBIR funded startups are 10-15X more likely to go earn venture capital with 65% raising more than $5M." – Chandana Haque. Our Executive Director, Chandana Haque, shares a firsthand perspective on the critical role of SBIR funding in fostering innovation and maintaining the U.S.’s leadership in medical and healthcare advancements in her latest blog post - Creating a Beacon During a Time of Uncertainty for the Biotech Community. Drawing from her experiences at SBIR-backed company Fluidigm Sciences, Inc. (now Standard BioTools), she highlights the necessity of these programs in translating scientific breakthroughs into real-world impact. The numbers speak for themselves. With an estimated 1,500 health-related startups in financial limbo due to federal funding policy shifts, the need for action is urgent. That’s why Altitude Lab is stepping up and launching a pre-seed fund in collaboration with biotech leaders Chris Gibson (Recursion), David Bearss Ph.D. (Halia Therapeutics, Inc.), and Chandana Haque. This initiative aims to support the next generation of groundbreaking biotech startups during this period of uncertainty. Join us in supporting scientific innovation—because the future of healthcare depends on it. The Altitude Lab Fund ?? https://lnkd.in/ghK6CuPk #Biotech #Innovation #SBIR #StartupFunding #AltitudeLab #HealthcareLeadership #SBA

As thousands of healthcare startups are caught in limbo by The National Institutes of Health funding cuts, one company is offering a potential lifeline: Altitude Lab, a biotech accelerator started by Recursion in Salt Lake City, has created a pre-seed venture fund targeting startups with promising science but no federal dollars. Read more how this new fund will support Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) reviewed companies that demonstrated merit but are stuck in funding uncertainty: https://lnkd.in/eJ4Rurcb

“The future of American health care innovation is hanging in the balance.” In an op-ed in STAT, Recursion co-founder and CEO Chris Gibson discusses the recent policy changes that have added uncertainty to critical funding paths, including the NIH Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) program – and why it’s time for industry to step up. Around 1,500 health care-related startups with SBIR funding are now in limbo, Chris writes. “These companies — many of which could be the next great American medical breakthrough — now face an uncertain future because they are stuck between halted funding and a lack of private investment.” He shares how these recent policy changes drove him to establish a new pre-seed venture fund – the Altitude Lab Fund – for early-stage startups impacted by SBIR funding freezes, and he calls on others to do the same, writing: “Those of us in the industry with the resources to help should step up to help keep the money going for the next generation of innovators.” Read in full ??

Did you know? Altitude Lab Edition At Altitude, we’re on a mission to build Utah’s biotech economy. Here’s how: ? We’ve launched a Pre-Seed Venture Fund to bridge capital gaps for life science startups affected by recent federal policy shifts. ? Since 2020, our companies have raised $150M+ to fuel the future of biotech. ? We’ve backed 30+ startups in our ecosystem. ? We’ve expanded our investor network to a national level, bringing the best to our companies and region. ? We offer grants and fellowship opportunities to lower the barriers of launching a company. Breaking into biotech isn’t easy—but you don’t have to do it alone. Whether you need funding, lab space, or a community of experts, Altitude is here to help. Let’s build the future of medicine together. Apply to Altitude Lab: https://lnkd.in/ec6J4Ye9 P.S. Did you know? Utah ranks #1 in innovation capacity & outcomes. The future of life science innovation is being built here—let’s make it happen. University of Utah Article - https://lnkd.in/ewT3FJku #venturecapital #healthtech #startups #innovation #funding #lifescience #biotech #techbio #UtahBiotech

?? Introducing the Altitude Lab Fund! Chris Gibson and I announced Altitude Lab's pre-seed venture fund at Demo Day 2025. The fund aims to support SBIR-reviewed biotech startups impacted by federal funding changes. With $100K–$250K in investment capital, 12 months of lab and office space, and access to Altitude Lab’s exclusive accelerator program, we’re dedicated to empowering the next wave of biotech innovation. Learn more about how we’re driving life science innovation and supporting high-potential startups here : https://lnkd.in/gTnwZDZf https://lnkd.in/g54Ki7sM ?#AltitudeVentures #BiotechInnovation #StartupFunding #SBIR #HealthTech #LifeSciences #BiotechStartups #SaltLakeCityBiotech #VentureCapital #InnovationEcosystem

ABSTRACT SELECT: Orly Alter from University of Utah & Prism AI Therapeutics details how multi-tensor AI/ML is uniquely able to identify actionable & mechanistically interpretable predictors from small-cohort & noisy high-dimensional multi-omic clinical data at the 2025 AGBT - Advances in Genome Biology and Technology General Meeting. #AGBTGM

That’s a wrap on the inaugural BioHive Week! What an incredible week celebrating life sciences and healthcare in Utah. For those who missed it, here are some key highlights: ?? RISE Investor Summit took over the Delta Center, bringing together investors and startups for crucial Life Science investment landscape discussions and partnering meetings. ?? Announcing the First Chris & Summer Gibson Fellow – Congratulations to Carmen Kivisild of Elnora AI! ?? We launched the Altitude Lab Fund, a pre-seed venture fund dedicated to empowering a new generation of medicine and providing continuity for startups navigating recent funding policy shifts. ?? We crowned a new People’s Choice Award Winner – Daniel Rodriguez-Granrose, PhD, PSM of Intactis Bio Corp who wowed the crowd at Demo Day with his vision for engineering tissues to revolutionize biocomputation and regenerative medicine. A huge thank you to everyone who made this week a success! Here’s to pushing the boundaries of innovation in life sciences and putting Utah on the map as a national biotech hub. ???? #BioHiveWeek #LifeSciences #HealthcareInnovation #StartupFunding #VentureCapital, BioHive Utah, Recursion, Chris Gibson, Chandana Haque

Backing Science. Enabling a New Generation of Medicine. Big news from Altitude Lab! At our 4th annual Demo Day, we announced the Altitude Lab Fund—a pre-seed venture fund designed to bridge the gap between groundbreaking research and industry innovation. In partnership with Recursion’s Chris Gibson, Halia Therapeutics, Inc.’s David Bearss Ph.D. and our own Chandana Haque, we’re providing early-stage biotech startups with: ? $100K–$250K in pre-seed equity investment ? 12 months of lab & office space in Salt Lake City, next to Recursion HQ ? Admission to Altitude Lab’s accelerator, connecting founders with top-tier mentorship & national funds Why now? Science funding is at a crossroads, and we’re stepping up to ensure the next biotech breakthroughs don’t stall due to uncertainty. Recursion’s early success proves what’s possible—SBIR funding helped lay the foundation for what is now a $4B+ public company with eight therapeutics in clinical development. We’re also committed to diversity in biotech—with only 3% of VC funding going to female and underrepresented founders, we’re making sure bold, diverse innovators have the backing they deserve. ?? Learn more & apply: https://lnkd.in/ghK6CuPk #AltitudeLab #Biotech #VentureFunding #Innovation #Healthcare #Startups

“The biotech industry is standing on the shoulders of public investment.” –Chris Gibson In an interview with Heerea Kaur Rikhraj at MM+M, Recursion co-founder and CEO Chris Gibson shares his personal motivation for launching the Altitude Lab Fund, a new pre-seed fund for early-stage biotech startups, backed by $1 million of his own money, along with additional private investment from David Bearss Ph.D. The fund – launched to help fill the gap created by recent federal funding freezes – will “provide companies with between $100,000 to $250,000 in pre-seed funding — a year’s worth of lab and office space and — as well as entry into Altitude Lab’s competitive accelerator program, which includes mentorship from industry stalwarts.” In the article, Chris talks about how Recursion benefitted from NIH grants in the company’s early years, and how the cuts are impacting scientists. “I’ve got a close friend who was part of the early days at Recursion — who’s still in academia — who doesn’t know if he’s going to be able to pay his postdocs for their work. A blanket cut is almost never the right way to do budgeting.” He calls on the private sector to “step up and stabilize innovation in the industry.” ?? Read more: https://lnkd.in/eqDFAwWZ??