Interview with: Philipp Müller, Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund
The Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund is among the industry partners of AMR-focused incubator INCATE. We spoke with investment manager Philipp Müller who is part of 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://test.amr-conference.com/start-ups-amr-conference-pitching-session/
Among the industry partners backing INCATE is also Boehringer Ingelheim and its Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund. Please find below a short interview with investment manager Philipp Müller.
Why did you choose to join the INCATE program?
Müller: AMR poses a growing threat to public health and the viability of our health systems around the world. However, research and development of new antibiotics is challenging for various scientific, regulatory, and economic reasons. One of the biggest hurdles we need to tackle are challenges faced by innovators from academia to build investment-ready ventures and to translate their cutting-edge research into urgently needed drugs. That´s what INCATE was founded for and we hope to make our contribution.
What is success for the INCATE program for you?
Müller: Seeing a significant number of INCATE backed start-ups with novel innovative ideas being enabled to attract substantial investments.
What are you hoping that your organization can bring to INCATE and the ventures chosen in the program?
Müller: Created in 2010, the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund GmbH (BIVF) invests in groundbreaking therapeutics-focused biotechnology companies to drive innovation in biomedical research, including infectious diseases. Based on our scientific as well as company formation/shaping expertise we hope to provide valuable advice in selecting the most attractive projects and supporting the founders.
What do you think is the most important need in the field of antibiotic development?
Müller: The identification of novel, drugable therapeutic targets, out of the box thinking as well as enablement of new therapeutic modalities.
About Philipp Müller | Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund:
Philipp studied Molecular Biology at the Biozentrum in Basel (Switzerland), holds a PhD in Biochemistry (2009) and has a long track record of working in translational immuno-oncology research, the infectious disease area as well as drug discovery within the pharmaceutical industry. He joined Boehringer Ingelheim in 2015 as a research team and project lead within the newly formed department of Cancer Immunology and Immune Modulation in Biberach an der Riss, where he specifically engaged in integration of outside innovation into the BI discovery strategy. After joining the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund in 2020, Philipp serves as a board member of ImCheck Therapeutics in Marseilles and Asgard Therapeutics in Lund. In addition to contributing to the Venture Fund´s portfolio in the areas of immuno-oncology and immuno-modulation, Philipp engages in identifying cutting edge investment opportunities with groundbreaking therapeutic potential in the field of anti-infectives. He represents BIVF in the Selection Committee of AMR-focused incubator INCATE.
More information about INCATE can be found here: https://www.incate.net