Interview with: Marc Gitzinger, BEAM Alliance & BioVersys

BEAM Alliance is among the partners of AMR-focused incubator INCATE. We spoke with Marc Gitzinger, CEO of BioVersys and Vice-President of the BEAM Alliance about his role in the incubator’s selection committee. 

With INCATE a new public-private consortium was launched on 25 August 2021 during the Summer Edition of the AMR Conference 2021 to boost the development of new drugs and start-ups in the AMR space. Partners from the academic, industrial and public sectors are working together to accomplish this task. (learn more) 

For the AMR Conference 2022, 7-8 April in Basel, INCATE has started a start-up competition. Want to take part? Learn more here: https://amr-conference.com/start-ups-amr-conference-pitching-session/

Among the partners backing INCATE is also SME organization BEAM Alliance. Please find below a short interview with Marc Gitzinger, Vice President of the BEAM Alliance and CEO of Swiss antibiotics developer company BioVersys.

Why did you choose to join the INCATE program?
Gitzinger: INCATE is a great opportunity to support early-stage innovation the field of AMR. As AMR represents a formidable threat to modern medicine in form of the silent pandemic, every initiative making a difference in this field is important. I’m happy to be part of this. Invest where it matters! 

What is success for the INCATE program for you?
Gitzinger: Motivating more academics and young entrepreneurs to get into developing novel antibacterial drugs. The world needs you! If in a couple of years we would get 1 or 2 of these early programs to reach patients, even better. 

What are you hoping that your organization can bring to INCATE and the ventures chosen in the program?
Gitzinger: I can bring a very holistic view of the entire AMR environment, the opportunities, the hurdles and what differentiates a successful program from a less successful one. I hope to also motivate and guide young entrepreneurs to achieve the best outcome for their programs. 

What do you think is the most important need in the field of antibiotic development?
Gitzinger: Clearly differentiated programs that address the most important unmet medical needs, a strong entrepreneurial character that comes along with persistence and the clear vision to develop medicines that humanity needs.