Meet the 197 Biotech Ventures in Nucleate’s 2025 Activator Program
Nucleate, the nonprofit organization committed to empowering the next generation of biotech leaders, proudly announces the selection of 197 venture teams for its 2025 Activator cycle.
Throughout the six-month Activator program, teams will translate cutting-edge academic research into transformative life science ventures. Participants gain access to a world-class network of mentors, expert-led programming, legal support, and a suite of highly subsidized perks — all at no cost or equity.
Following a dynamic team formation process, this year’s ventures join the ranks of Nucleate alumni such as Manifold Bio’19, Concerto Bio’19, Glyphic Bio’21, Kano Therapeutics’21, and Range Biotech’22 — founder-led companies shaping the future of biotech.
🔬 Meet the 2025 teams at 2025teams.nucleate.org
“Our mission is to educate and empower the next generation of life science leaders,” said Zach Cogan and Heer Joisher, Nucleate Co-Presidents. “We had over 2000 applications for the Activator this year, and couldn’t be more excited about this cohort of technologies and future leaders. It’s a privilege to support the teams as they develop and refine their business theses.”
The 2025 Nucleate Activator cohort is pioneering innovations across therapeutics, synthetic biology, diagnostics, and climate tech — developing solutions ranging from AI-driven drug discovery and gene editing platforms to sustainable biomanufacturing and women’s health technologies. These ventures are poised to address critical challenges in human health, planetary health, sustainability, and beyond.
These teams represent leading research institutions and business schools from around the world. They’ll complete their Activator journey through either a traditional Demo Day or a new capstone experience at The Forum — connecting with top investors, innovators, and industry leaders in their regions along the way. Explore the full calendar of Forums and Demo Days here!
“The 2025 Activator cohort reflects the incredible global momentum behind biotech innovation,” added Julia Zhao, Nucleate Global Director of Activator. “These 197 teams represent not just scientific excellence, but a bold commitment to solving real-world problems. At Nucleate, we’re proud to provide the infrastructure, mentorship, and community to help these ventures take root and grow into tomorrow’s transformative companies.”
Interested in joining the ecosystem? If you’re a founder, operator, investor, or scientist looking to support early-stage biotech, sign up to be a mentor or lead a workshop: mentor.nucleate.org
About Nucleate
Nucleate is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering the next generation of biotech leaders, with chapters spanning more than 40 regions and participation from over 200 academic institutions. Nucleate identifies future biotech entrepreneurs, removes barriers, and helps founders concentrate on building transformational technologies.
About Activator
Activator is a six-month, equity-free program designed for academic biotech founders. Its curriculum has served over 400 life sciences ventures that have raised over $420 million in venture funding. Julia Zhao, PhD, is the full-time Global Director of Activator.
The Activator program is made possible thanks to our generous sponsors: (platinum) Alnylam, Eli Lilly, Genentech, Millipore Sigma; (gold) Excedr; (silver) Sanofi; (banking) Mercury; (spend) Brex; (venture) Pillar, Amino Collective; (in-kind) lens.org, academiclabs, synbiobeta; (grant writing) Fedsprout and philanthropic support from Lyda Hill Philanthropies, and Schmidt Futures. Visit www.nucleate.org for our regional sponsors and more information.
