SINGAPORE – More biotechnology start-ups in Singapore will be getting support to boost their talent development and commercialisation capabilities.
A programme by pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson (J&J), launched on Tuesday in collaboration with the Economic Development Board (EDB) at the Singapore Week of Innovation and Technology (Switch), will help start-ups turn their early-stage discoveries into products such as medicine, medical technologies and other healthcare solutions.
J&J’s start-up incubator Jlabs, which was set up in Singapore in September, will work with local partners and incubators to help biotech start-ups here with hiring and talent development. More details will be announced soon.
The company did not reveal how many firms will benefit from this partnership, or how long the programme will run, but said eight start-ups have already been chosen to participate.
At a panel discussion on Tuesday marking the launch of the programme, EDB executive vice-president Choo Heng Tong noted the strong presence of research and development centres, as well as a growing pool of life sciences start-ups in Singapore.
He added that the partnership with J&J will not only support start-ups here, but also serve as an invitation for start-ups elsewhere to establish themselves in Singapore.
“In working with corporate incubators like Jlabs, what we can do is to make available J&J’s tremendous wealth of both medical and scientific knowledge to start-ups here to accelerate their developmental efforts,” he said.
“These companies can tap into the very valuable insights, in terms of product-market fit and commercialisation approaches, from Jlabs, which has operated in large markets such as the United States, Europe and China.”
Fellow panellist Melinda Richter, J&J global head of innovation, said the company chose Singapore because of the “richness” of its research institutes and ease of obtaining funding and doing business here.
“The needs of the next generation of global innovators, potential partners and early-stage companies are changing rapidly, and J&J is committed to pioneering new approaches to address them, like this significant collaboration with EDB,” she added.
“We know that we are going to find the best of the best here in Singapore... It’s a stable environment, which in today’s times is actually quite valuable.”
EDB and J&J signed a memorandum of understanding for the partnership on Tuesday at Switch.
The event, which runs at Marina Bay Sands till Thursday, is expected to host about 15,000 attendees, including entrepreneurs, those from government agencies and investors, from more than 100 countries.
Around 350 exhibitors have set up booths, with a focus on artificial intelligence, healthcare, sustainability and other tech innovations.
