Early-Stage Mentoring

So you’ve got an idea for a biotech or biopharma technology that can change the world, make people’s lives better. You have preliminary data. What now? How do you get on the road to commercialization? How can you set yourself up for success? Mentorship is the answer. We can connect you to mentors who have decades of experience in life science, having founded, led and invested in multiple companies. They’re grateful for what they’ve achieved. They want to give back by helping you.

“I should have sought out people who had been down the road before.”

— UC Berkeley professor & Nobel laureate Jennifer Doudna, on the one thing she would have changed about her experience commercializing CRISPR

Our deadlines in 2025 are February 14, May 30, and October 10.

Our goals for this elite program

QB3 and Bakar Labs, the incubator that we operate in partnership with UC Berkeley, both serve entrepreneurs translating new technology to solve the most important problems facing society. Through this program, we offer training for entrepreneurs, and hope to generate high-quality tenant companies for our incubator. But if your company decides another space is better, we’ll be just as happy to have helped you advance your technology!

Why you want this

Expert guidance

We’ll match you with experienced mentors who can advise you on:

• Technology-market fit: Where can your discovery or invention be most profitably employed and generate the most benefit to society.
• How to separate your commercial and academic work.
• How to handle your intellectual property: patents and more. (Mentors will sign CDAs).
• How to develop your fundraising strategy.
• How to plot the quickest path to an IND or 510(k) approval.

Welcome to Our Community

• Concierge service. You’ll get invitations to all in-person speakers, showcases, and networking events at Bakar Labs.
• You’ll have fun connecting with and learning from your peers and the mentor group.
• We arrange group meetings so you can get answers to your questions about IP law, financing, investing, and more.

Potential for Funding

• You’ll get exposure to our affiliated venture firm BEVC.
• Mentors will nominate select candidates to pitch for for $100K proof-of-concept support. This could take the form of a grant to a UC academic lab, or in-kind support to an incorporated company: $100K worth of rent at Bakar Labs, in exchange for a SAFE note. (This is contingent on acceptance to the incubator.)

What it costs

There is no fee for the program.

It is anticipated that after a 3-month trial period, if the entrepreneur-mentor relationship is productive, a mentor will begin to receive equity in the company as a consultant. Amount: If pre-incorporation, none. If recently incorporated, 1% to vest over months 4-6 of the program. If seed funded, 0.5%. If Series A funded, 0.25%.

Eligibility

• Pre-incorporation or recently incorporated company commercializing biotech with a wet-lab component.
• More than just a concept. Initial data in hand.
• Based in California, or intending to move here soon.
• No university affiliation required.

How it works

If you meet the criteria above, please scroll down to apply. Our team will assess your technology and connect you to a mentor or mentors with experience in your field. We assess applications and assign mentors on a quarterly schedule.

You’ll work with the mentors directly. We can reserve meeting space at the Bakar Labs incubator on the UC Berkeley campus.

Our deadlines in 2025 are February 14, May 30, and October 10.

Companies in the program