Angel Oregon Life & Bioscience (AOBIO) is the premier PNW bioscience education & investment event.
AOBIO is designed to support early-stage life and bioscience startups based in Oregon and Southwest Washington by offering investment-readiness education, mentorship with successful local entrepreneurs in their sector, connectivity within the local bioscience community, and the opportunity to receive an equity investment from local angel investors.
The program is one in a series of Angel Oregon events facilitated by OEN in collaboration with Oregon Bioscience Incubator/OTRADI, OHSU and Oregon Bioscience Association.
THE DETAILS
WHY IS AOBIO IMPORTANT FOR FOUNDERS AND ENTREPRENEURS?
- To build your business: learn how best to finance growth, meet investors, connect with mentors, and solve operational problems
- To build community: connect with fellow founders and investors in the bioscience sector, learn the stories behind home-grown successes, and grow your network
- To build the local economy: earn investment, find local suppliers, and meet local talent
WHO IS INVOLVED?
- FOUNDERS: Life & bioscience founders and founding teams of all kinds – therapeutics, diagnostics, medical device, health innovation – are welcome to register for the education sessions.
- ANGELS: accredited investors invest collectively in a life or bioscience company and help grow the regional bioscience sector are welcome. Details below.
- MENTORS: specialists of all kinds support founders with their time and talents in grant applications, business model development, regulatory compliance and testing, and so on.
WHAT TYPE OF PROGRAMMING IS OFFERED?
- AOBIO kicks off Wednesday, February 15th with TWO informational sessions – one for entrepreneurs and one for investors.
- Then the Entrepreneur Education Series starts on Wednesday, February 22nd with a four-week investment-readiness education series for life and bioscience startups at any stage of development.
- Virtual Practice Pitch sessions and a FastPitch session will be hosted by the Oregon Bio Association.
- AOBIO Grand Finale & Innovation Showcase will be held live on Wednesday, May 17th from 3-7pm at Amaterra Winery, live and open to the public.
FINALE + INNOVATION SHOWCASE
Join us for the Angel Oregon Life & Bioscience (AOBIO) Grand Finale + Innovation Showcase, to be held in person on Wednesday, May 17th, 2023, 3-7pm at Amaterra Winery in Portland.
Get in on the ground floor of Oregon’s most important emerging sectors, and meet entrepreneurs literally building the future right now. All this and delicious wine too.
Purchase below to join us for this special celebration of entrepreneurship in Oregon.
REGISTER HERE
Investment Tracks
There are two capital programs available through AOBIO. Companies may only apply to one capital program as they support different stages. For early stage companies ready for dilutive investment, there is an investor track. For concept stage companies, led by at least one BIPOC founder, non-dilutive capital is available through the Emerge Initiative.
Investor Track
Early stage companies ready for dilutive capital investment may apply to this program.
What is an early stage company eligible to apply for investment through AOBIO?
Those with an established product/service, team, advisory board and roadmap may apply for consideration for the AOBIO equity investment.
The application will require a pitch deck and financials. Interested founders should be able to demonstrate traction for a proof of concept in the form of prior funding (via grants, loans, “friends & family”) and have a clear sense of the company’s valuation.
Emerge Track
Concept stage companies, led by at least one BIPOC founder, may apply to the Emerge Initiative
What is a concept stage company eligible to apply for non-dilutive capital through AOBIO Emerge?
Those with an idea; backed by some level of customer research and discovery that can demonstrably show a market need with a viable solution AND those who have at least one founder who identifies as BIPOC and has majority equity may apply for the AOBIO Emerge Initiative.
Ideally, applicants have a “side business” with some level of customer interaction that they are trying to expand into a formal small business. The application will require a pitch deck and explanation of the problem, solution, and traction with customer discovery and/or customer sales. No prior funding is required.
Key Entrepreneur Dates & Details
- ENTREPRENEUR INFO SESSION: Feb 15th 8:30-9:15 AM, via Zoom (Register here)
- ENTREPRENEUR REGISTRATION DEADLINE: Feb 21st (Register here)
- EDUCATION SESSIONS: (All sessions recorded and transcribed) Feb 22nd, Mar 1st, Mar 8th and Mar 15th
- PRACTICE PITCH: March 23rd 9:00-11:00 AM (via Zoom)
- AOBIO FASTPITCH: April 11th 5:00 – 7:00 PM hosted (via Zoom) by the Oregon Bioscience Association
- AOBIO INVESTOR/FOUNDER MIXER: Monday, April 24th from 5:00 – 7:00 PM participating entrepreneurs and investors
- AOBIO GRAND FINALE & SHOWCASE: May 17, 2023, 3-7pm at Amaterra Winery, live and open to the public
Entrepreneur Education Session Details
Goal: Illuminate the path to scaling in the life and bioscience sector so founders can make the smartest possible decisions in the early stages of their companies’ development, particularly as it relates to taking investment. Founder registration deadline is February 21st, 2023.
Meet your heroes! The workshops will be entrepreneur-led and driven, featuring successful local founders and mentors.
- February 22: Navigating the Funding Landscape with Frank Lau, Keliomics; Amanda Oborne, Ideaship
This session will explore the types of funding available to founders and go deep into navigating funding based on the stage of your business and the development phase of your product. The speakers will touch on market analysis, customer segmentation, and sales and marketing strategies to build a solid case for investment.
- March 1: Equity from the Ground Up with Ricardo Lopez, Business Oregon; Himalaya Rao-Potlapally, The BFM Fund; Arsh Haque, PSU Business Accelerator
This session will foster a conversation about the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in your company was well as the expectations and requirements of funders that organizations take DEI seriously. Details about the Emerge Initiative grant program for early stage founders of color will be shared for those considering that program.Em
- March 8: What Investors Really Want: Discussions, Due Diligence, & Data Rooms with Kabir Bhatia, Investor; Jason Boone, Floragenex
Get it straight from the investors themselves: What’s the process and rhythm of equity fundraising? What do you need to prepare for due diligence? How do you approach the investor conversations?
- March 15: Pitch Perfect: The Dos and Don’ts of Investor Pitching with Jenn Lynch, Portland Seed Fund; Travis Rush, Reperio Health; Patti White, Hemex Health
This session will focus on what not to do, such as getting too detailed on the science. We will also cover what to absolutely include in your pitch such as tailoring it to your audience and other tips for the perfect pitch. - March 23: Practice Pitch – Carl Anderson, Physician; Kabir Bhatia, Investor; Charla Triplett, Suncoast Ventures
- April 11 – 5:00 pm: AOBIO Fast Pitch hosted by Oregon Bioscience Association – During these fastpitch sessions, AOBIO entrepreneurs will give a 3-5 minute pitch introducing their company to local investors.
All workshops and the practice pitch will be conducted via Zoom. Content portions will be recorded and transcribed. Recordings and transcripts will be available to all registered participants.
A live AOBIO Mixer will be held for registered founders, committed investors and select media in Portland in mid-April.
Key Investor Dates & Details
- INVESTOR INFO SESSION: Feb 15th 4:00-5:15 PM, via Zoom(Register here)
- INVESTOR COMMIT DEADLINE: March 23rd to participate in all due diligence
- INVESTOR DUE DILIGENCE KICK-OFF: March 24th, 9:30am, via Zoom
- DUE DILIGENCE I: Week of April 3rd
- FINALIST SELECTION: April 17th
- AOBIO MIXER: Monday, April 24th from 5:00 – 7:00 PM for committed investors
- DUE DILIGENCE II: April 18th – May 16th
- AOBIO GRAND FINALE & SHOWCASE: May 17th
As an AOBIO Investor, you’ll buy units ($5k/ea) to join a collective angel investment in a local bioscience startup. You’ll participate in conducting due diligence on applicant companies as a group and then will vote at the end of the process on one company to received the entire equity investment. The investment fund is professionally managed by a third party entity through the life of the investment to ensure compliance with all applicable laws and tax regulations.
To learn more or to sign up, please email info@oen.org.
AOBIO Grand Finale & Showcase
The Grand Finale & Showcase featuring finalist and showcase pitches will be held live on Wednesday, May 17th in Portland at Amaterra Winery
This is where the whole program comes together and the community is invited to attend! AOBIO investment finalists and Emerge Initiative winners will present on the main stage and an industry showcase will be open to the public.
THANK YOU SPONSORS
