Chicago BioCapital Summit 2026
The summit brings academics, entrepreneurs, and startups together with investors, operators, and industry leaders.
- Date
- November 12, 2026
- City
- Chicago
TL;DR
- The summit is scheduled for November 12, 2026, in Chicago.
- It connects academics, entrepreneurs, and startups with investors, operators, and industry leaders.
- The organizer says past summits have drawn more than 600 attendees, alongside an exhibition featuring over 100 academic entrepreneurs and early-stage companies.
Who you'll find in the room
Academics
The summit's stated audience includes academics.
Entrepreneurs
Entrepreneurs are among the groups the summit connects.
Startups
Startups are among the groups the summit connects.
Investors
Investors are part of the summit's stated audience.
Operators
Operators are part of the summit's stated audience.
Featured speakers
18 listedAlexis Borisy
Co-Founder and Chairman · Curie.Bio
Martin Burke, PhD
May and Ving Lee Professor for Chemical Innovation, and Professor of Chemistry · University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Mark Michalski
Chief Information Officer · Deerfield
Matt Tremblay, PhD
Chief Executive Officer · Blackbird Laboratories
Ci Chu, PhD
Chief Discovery Officer · Xaira Therapeutics
Sasha Huhalov, PhD
Head, Search and Evaluation · Takeda
Lore Gruenbaum, PhD
Chief Scientific Officer · Blood Cancer United
Clay B. Thorp
General Partner · Hatteras Venture Partners
Shana Kelley
President, Bioengineering & Head · Biohub Chicago
Grace Zheng
Co-founder and CEO · PerturbAI
Jacob Johnson
Founder and Strategic Advisor · innovosource
Michael Carleton
Senior Scientific Director · The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research
Luiz Miguel Camargo, PhD
Head of Data Foundry and Small Molecule External Innovation · Eli Lilly
Nicola La Monica, PhD
Sr. Director Search & Evaluation · J&J Innovative Medicine
Doug E. Frantz, PhD
Vice Chancellor for Innovation and Chief Commercialization Officer · Washington University in St. Louis
Henry Gosebruch
Chief Executive Officer · Lakefront Biotherapeutics
Wendy Yajnik
Global Head Academic Partnerships and External Innovation · Novartis
Dushyant Pathak
Chief Executive Officer · Autobahn Labs, Inc.
Questions people ask
8 answeredChicago BioCapital Summit 2026 is scheduled for November 12.
The organizer reports that past summits have drawn over 600 attendees; this figure is not specified as the 2026 attendance.
The 2026 summit is held in Chicago.
The stated audience includes academics, entrepreneurs, startups, investors, and operators.
It fits academic founders and early-stage biotech teams looking for capital or pharma partners, since speakers include search and evaluation heads from Takeda and J&J Innovative Medicine as well as Hatteras Venture Partners, and the Hall of Inventions showcases early-stage ventures from Midwest universities. Established companies seeking late-stage deals would find the attendee pool skewed toward early work, given its focus on connecting academics and startups with investors.
Attendees at biotech investor and partnering events usually wear business casual, such as slacks and a blazer or button-down, with founders and investors rarely in full suits.
The organizer says past events have drawn over 600 attendees and featured an exhibition with more than 100 academic entrepreneurs and early-stage companies.
The stated audience spans academics, entrepreneurs, startups, investors, and operators, with industry leaders also part of the summit's connections.
Related events
Find more events with this kind of reach.
We score 300,000+ B2B events by decision-maker density, so you can find the next one for your ICP.
Also listed in