KQ Labs, an accelerator programme for high growth potential companies in the area of data-driven health, delivered by the Francis Crick Institute and funded by LifeArc, hosted its Demo Day on Tuesday 28 March to an invited virtual and in-person audience of investors and corporate partners. The event showcased the Cohort 5.0 start-ups that are now graduating from the KQ Labs accelerator programme.
The Demo Day 5.0 marked the culmination of the accelerator programme for our fifth cohort of exciting data-driven health start-ups. These ten companies began their 5-month journey in October 2022, and have attended weekly customised workshops, received personalised introductions to mentors, major corporates and investors. Each company also receives £40k in funding through a convertible loan as a part of the programme.
The Demo Day was an opportunity for our fifth cohort to showcase their companies and to connect with a specialised network of investors and industry leaders- a huge congratulations to our ten innovative start-ups for their excellent pitches!
Through five cohorts, KQ Labs has now supported fifty companies to build and validate their ideas with the help of many fantastic partners and supporters, including our principal funder LifeArc, as well as Cancer Research Horizons who once again sponsored a cancer focused company. Looking back at the past year, we have been delighted to evolve this curriculum and introduce over 20 new sessions. We have continued our existing partnerships and collaborations, for example, the internship exchange programme with London Business School and the collaboration with world-renowned arts and design college Central Saint Martins. We are excited to see our alumni from Cohorts 1 to 4 make great strides, having raised £67m since joining the programme. The total portfolio is currently valued at £206m (a 30% increase since the last Demo Day), according to online sources such as Beauhurst and PitchBook.
Mandeep Dhillon, KQ Labs Lead, said “I've been very impressed with the quality of Cohort 5.0 - they are exceptional entrepreneurs, leaders and problem-solvers. It’s been a pleasure to witness the questions and discussions throughout the programme with our expert network of mentors and advisors as the startups have evolved their business models. They all presented extremely well yesterday and we look forward to watching them progress on their entrepreneurial journeys and to continuing to support them as KQ Labs alumni”.
KQ Labs will be opening its next cohort for applications in May 2023, with a view to running the next programme starting late October 2023, with the selection process running over the summer.
Early-stage data-driven health start-ups are encouraged to express interest early by registering on the website and the KQ Labs team are available to discuss the programme content and applicant eligibility. Please see the KQ Labs website for more information.
