On 5-8 June 2023, 20 pioneering EIC- funded SMEs, startups and scale-ups with breakthrough healthcare solutions met in Boston, USA at BIO International Convention 2023, the leading medical biotech exhibition in the Americas. BIO brought together key international industry stakeholders and ensured attendees leave with precious insights and significant connections to unlock limitless future possibilities.
BIO has returned to Boston Convention Centre attracting thousands of life sciences companies from across the globe to the annual event that sparked strategic collaborations and business deals that will transform the future of the industry. Through thought-provoking sessions, the interactive exhibit hall, countless networking opportunities and One-on-One-Partnering, attendees connected directly with European leaders and innovators.
The European Pavilion hit the stage at this year’s tradeshow, featuring the latest developments in digital health products and sustainable biotech solutions, offering an immersive experience around the quality and authenticity of European novelties.
In addition to the exhibition, the European Innovation Council (EIC) joined forces with TradeEstonia, Italian Trade Agency, Switzerland Global Enterprise, Wallonia.be, EuropaBio and the Polish Investment and Trade Agency, organising the European Night Reception, an exclusive networking event to connect business counterparts and innovation leaders exhibiting at BIO 2023. The invitation-only business reception brought together more than 300 participants, including some of the best European entrepreneurs, who seized the opportunity to establish remarkable partnerships while attending the tradeshow.
The agenda of the event included a panel discussion moderated by Claire Skentelbery, Director General at EuropaBio with top European leaders as Hilary Stiss, Director International Affairs & Managing Director at International Council of Biotechnology Associations, Alessandra Rainaldi, Trade Commissioner at ITA Los Angeles, Benjamin Bollmann, CEO of swissnex in Boston & New York, Consul of Switzerland in Boston, Tineke Van Hooland, Deputy Secretary General at bio.be/essenscia and Cornelius Schmaltz, Head of Unit at EIC Accelerator at EISMEA & Head of OTF delegation at BIO 2023.
Among the key highlights stood out the high-level event organised by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) on The Healthcare System of the Future: Emerging Technologies that Enable Drug Development and Patient Treatment with the participation of Dr. Schmaltz. The panel focused on how to best advance and utilise emerging technologies for drug development facilitated by research into scientific principles and regulatory practices, involving regulators, pharmaceutical companies, technology developers, non-commercial and academic developers.
Under the Global Innovation Hub presentations, Dr. Schmaltz stressed out the fundamental role of the EIC in backing visionary entrepreneurs in Europe, emphasizing not only on the new models for innovation funding, but also on the policies that should be adopted in order to support emerging technologies, while he also participated in a round table discussion regarding Biomanufacturing for Health and the high-level conference organised by Enterprise Europe Network (EEN), ENRICH and NGI Enrichers at Northeastern University entitled Celebrating EU-US Collaboration in Biotech.
To find out more on the European SMEs that participated at BIO 2023, please click on the following link. Under the EIC OTF Programme 2.0, the next EIC delegation is getting ready to exhibit game-changing innovations in IFA 2023, taking place in Berlin, Germany, from 1 to 5 September 2023.
About EIC Overseas Trade Fairs Programme 2.0
The EIC Overseas Trade Fairs Programme 2.0 supports EIC-funded SMEs, start-ups and scale-ups to develop their large-scale commercialisation strategy in foreign markets and leverage entrepreneurial opportunities at global innovation hubs, strengthening the European Union’s (EU) brand around the world.
Building on the success of the Pilot OTF Programme, which took place between 2017-2018, the EIC OTF Programme 2.0 is running throughout 2022 and 2023, offering EIC beneficiaries the unprecedented opportunity to showcase their unconventional ideas at 15 international trade fairs in diverse sectors across EU and extra-EU markets.
Check EIC OTF Programme 2.0 for additional information and the list of the upcoming trade fairs. For stories, open calls and events, you may also visit the EIC Community Platform.
To follow the latest news and learn more about getting involved, please visit the EIC’s official social media accounts on Twitter and LinkedIn.
DISCLAIMER: This information is provided in the interest of knowledge sharing and should not be interpreted as the official view of the European Commission, or any other organisation.