KQ Labs announces Cancer Research UK as new strategic partner for its accelerator programme

Published date:
June 17 2021

KQ Labs, an accelerator programme for high growth potential companies in the area of data-driven health, announces a new strategic partnership with Cancer Research UK.

 

KQ Labs, an accelerator programme for high growth potential companies in the area of data-driven health, is delighted to announce a new strategic partnership with Cancer Research UK.

Run by the Francis Crick Institute and funded by LifeArc, KQ Labs is a five-month accelerator programme designed for innovative early stage data driven health entrepreneurs looking for support to validate their ideas and develop their business goals in a supportive and enriching environment. Up to ten selected companies will each be offered funding (£40k) in the form of a convertible loan, weekly workshops from experts tailored to digital health, introductions to investors and corporates, and mentoring by a hand-picked network of experts.

This year, KQ Labs will have a dedicated place for one start-up focused on cancer, funded by Cancer Research UK as a part of their Entrepreneurial Programmes Initiative, which promotes a culture of entrepreneurship amongst academics. This start-up will also benefit from the networks and knowledge that Cancer Research UK can bring. The remaining nine places on the programme, funded by LifeArc, are open as usual to for start-ups across the whole spectrum of data driven health.

KQ Labs is now accepting applications for its fourth cohort. The programme will kick off in late October and culminate in a Demo Day in March 2022.

The deadline for applications is mid-day on 20 July 2021. For further information and to apply, please visit www.kqlabs.com

Notes to editors

About KQ Labs  www.kqlabs.com

KQ Labs is an accelerator dedicated entirely to data driven health with a global focus and providing longer term support, as we aim to catalyse the building of an ecosystem. Run by the Francis Crick Institute, funded by LifeArc, and with the support of many partners, KQ Labs offers a customised framework, providing critical expertise and support to ten carefully selected companies, all solving significant healthcare challenges. The programme includes a convertible loan (£40k), workshops with experts tailored to digital health, mentoring by a hand-picked network of experts, and introductions to investors and corporates.

The intersection between the biomedical and data sciences promises to play a transformational role in solving some of the most difficult challenges facing global health systems. The KQ Labs accelerator represents a unique opportunity to catalyse the creation of a world class sustainable digital health ecosystem based in London’s Knowledge Quarter. By harnessing the world-class data science and biomedical resources available in the area, we can reinforce the UK's position as a major force in artificial intelligence in health and life sciences and build a world class cluster of successful data-driven health start-ups.

About LifeArc www.lifearc.org

LifeArc is a self-funded medical research charity. Our mission is to advance translation of early science into health care treatments or diagnostics that can be taken through to full development and made available to patients. We have been doing this for more than 25 years and our work has resulted in a diagnostic for antibiotic resistance and four licensed medicines.

Our success allows us to explore new approaches to stimulate and fund translation. We have our own drug discovery and diagnostics development facilities, supported by experts in technology transfer and intellectual property who also provide services to other organisations. Our model is built on collaboration, and we partner with a broad range of groups including medical research charities, research organisations, industry and academic scientists. We are motivated by patient need and scientific opportunity.

LifeArc has a number of different funding mechanisms to invest in promising innovation for the benefit of patients. Our Philanthropic Fund provides grants to support medical research projects focused on the translation of rare diseases research.  Our Early Ventures investment strategy builds on our Seed Fund portfolio of start-up companies; investing in innovative new modalities, technologies and translational research that have the potential to generate impact for patients and income that will enable us to drive further innovation.

About Cancer Research UK

  • Cancer Research UK is the world’s leading cancer charity dedicated to saving lives through research.
  • Cancer Research UK’s pioneering work into the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer has helped save millions of lives.
  • Cancer Research UK has been at the heart of the progress that has already seen survival in the UK double in the last 40 years.
  • Today, 2 in 4 people survive their cancer for at least 10 years. Cancer Research UK’s ambition is to accelerate progress so that by 2034, 3 in 4 people will survive their cancer for at least 10 years.
  • Cancer Research UK supports research into all aspects of cancer through the work of over 4,000 scientists, doctors and nurses.
  • Together with its partners and supporters, Cancer Research UK's vision is to bring forward the day when all cancers are cured.

For further information about Cancer Research UK's work or to find out how to support the charity, please call 0300 123 1022 or visit www.cancerresearchuk.org.uk. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.