Next-generation life sciences company, GenomeKey, was recently awarded $11.4m to transform sepsis diagnosis and treatment. We had a chat with CEO, Dr Michael Roberts, to hear his story…

GenomeKey at a glance:

• Market sector: Life Sciences
• Location: Bristol
• Number of employees: 25
• Amount of funding raised: Over £16m
• Company growth status: Commercialisation

Let’s start with GenomeKey’s elevator pitch

GenomeKey is building the next generation of diagnostics for infectious disease. We’re doing this by leveraging the power of whole genome sequencing to be able to sequence the DNA of a bacterial cell that’s affecting a patient, and from that we can tell everything about that bacteria. We can say what it is, where it came from, how it is going to affect the patient, and importantly, which antibiotics will be effective at killing the bacteria.

Why is what you do important and innovative?

We’re tackling the challenge of sepsis, which kills 11 million people every year. Worse yet, the antibiotics we’ve historically relied upon to tackle bacterial infections are becoming less and less effective due to the rise of antimicrobial resistance. What’s really shocking is that it’s rare for me to meet someone who hasn’t personally been affected by sepsis, whether that’s themself or a loved one. My wife had sepsis. She was desperately ill, but she survived because the antibiotics that were given to her were effective. I have a three-year-old daughter, and I want her grow up in a world where she can be confident that the antibiotics given to her will be effective too.

How did your startup journey evolve?

Three out of four co-founders, including myself, started in a very different field in oil and gas exploration. We spent about a year developing a product which aided in modernising historical oil and gas exploration data using AI. We built a product, started selling it, made some money and got really strong customer feedback. But we realised we were quite dissatisfied with the impact that the product was going to have in the world.

So, we took the entrepreneurial dubious decision to shelve a profit-making product to pivot to the idea behind GenomeKey. At the time we had no funding, it was just an idea, a science experiment. But of course, I can say with complete survivor bias, that it was the right choice for us to make. Genome Key is doing very well now, and what’s important to us is that it has such a strong mission and big impact in the world.

“Being able to access a pre-existing network that SETsquared has fostered with companies in all different stages of the life cycle is really valuable.”

How has SETsquared Bristol incubation support helped?

Starting a new company is a bizarre and lonely endeavour. Being able to access a pre-existing network that SETsquared has fostered with companies in all different stages of the life cycle is really valuable. You can talk with other founders and find out if the challenges that you face are unique, and if not, how other founders solved them. It allows you to move faster and avoid the pitfalls that perhaps other people have stumbled on, which is very valuable for an ambitious tech company.

SETsquared also enables you to tap into commercial and business expertise – its Entrepreneurs in Residence are a really valuable resources to any company starting up. I recommend every founder engages with them for the wisdom that they can provide.

“Life sciences is not an easy market to sell into. Product development and life cycles can be quite long, with a lot of technical, regulatory and commercial risk, so it’s good to try to access non-dilutive sources of funding early on.”

What are your funding top tips for other life sciences founders?

I’d be very selective about the advice that you take as a founder, because nobody’s built your startup before and your funding journey will be unique. Follow your own path, don’t try to copy someone else’s.

Life sciences is not an easy market to sell into. Product development and life cycles can be quite long, with a lot of technical, regulatory and commercial risk, so it’s good to try to access non-dilutive sources of funding early on. I know it’s tempting to go for that big ticket VC, but they’ll see the risks. There are a lot of other funding sources that can help you get moving and won’t dilute you too early on. So, you can save the equity back for when you’re going to need it later to get your product to market.

What’s next for GenomeKey?

2025 should be a very exciting year for GenomeKey. A lot is changing. Historically, we’ve been doing a lot of research and product development. We’re now moving out of that phase and moving into commercialisation. We’re engaging with clinical sites and learning a huge amount about what problems they face and how we can make the maximum impact of that product and our technology to solve their problems going forward. It’s going to be a learning journey, it’s going to be exciting. There’s going to be some harsh truths in there and some exciting revelations, I’m sure. And of course, we’re going to be raising funding off the success we’ve made previously, and moving faster than ever!

Find out about SETsquared Bristol’s incubation programmes.

GenomeKey is one of 370 life sciences companies in the South West. The ecosystem is the 3^rd fastest growing UK life sciences sector for employment (West), with a value of £8.1bn (West), inward investment of £212m (West), and with 20k people employed in the South West. (Source: South West Life Sciences.)