#158 — JPM Week for founders

Serious founders start JPM prep 6–8 weeks in advance so they can secure key meetings, refine their story, and align internal priorities before calendars fill up. In practice, that means identifying priority targets by early November, circulating a tight one-pager and deck to warm contacts, and locking anchor meetings 3–4 weeks before the conference. A seed-stage TechBio startup that did this in 2024 used pre-JPM outreach to book 15 BD and 10 investor meetings, converting three of those into pilots and one into a lead investor within six months.

A successful JPM Week is defined by qualified follow-on conversations, not just a packed calendar or party invites. For early-stage teams, that typically looks like 3–5 serious BD leads, 2–3 investors who explicitly ask to dig in after the conference, and at least one new thesis insight that changes your roadmap or narrative. One AI-first drug discovery company measured success by tracking post-JPM pipeline: it left the week with four BD follow-ups, and six months later had signed one platform collaboration and closed a Series A led by a fund first met at JPM.

Smart founders design their JPM calendars around a few high-signal anchor events and then cluster meetings nearby to reduce context switching and transit time. A typical structure is 6–8 meetings per day, with 30–45 minute slots and 15-minute buffers for notes and overruns, plus 1–2 evening events where many targets gather. For example, one diagnostics startup scheduled mornings for BD, afternoons for investors, and reserved early evenings for curated mixers, which helped the team maintain energy while still generating more than 20 meaningful conversations across four days.

Pharma BD teams see dozens of founders at JPM, so you stand out by clearly articulating the specific problem you solve for them and what you want from the relationship. Lead with 2–3 hard proof points—such as hit rates, cycle-time reductions, or validated biomarkers—and then propose a concrete experiment-shaped collaboration rather than vague 'partnership' language. A real-world example: a platform company used its 30-minute slots to pitch a tightly scoped pilot on a neglected target class with clear go/no-go criteria, which led to a time-bound pilot and later an expanded multi-program deal.

If you are not actively raising, position JPM investor conversations as relationship-building and signal that you are playing a long game. Share your current metrics, near-term milestones, and when you expect to formally raise, then ask what they would need to see between now and then to lead or participate. A computational biology startup did exactly this at JPM: it met three funds while not raising, shared a 9–12 month roadmap, and when it kicked off its next round, two of those funds moved quickly because they had watched the team hit the milestones it had outlined at JPM.

Use JPM as a live A/B test environment for your narrative by trying slightly different versions of your opening and seeing what resonates with different audiences. Track which parts of your story generate follow-up questions, skepticism, or obvious excitement, and update your deck and one-liner nightly based on that feedback. One precision medicine company iterated its positioning from 'AI for drug discovery' to a much tighter 'adaptive trial design engine' over the course of JPM, which later helped it run a more focused and successful Series A process.

Common mistakes include overscheduling back-to-back meetings, treating every interaction as a pitch instead of a conversation, and leaving follow-ups vague or delayed. To avoid this, build buffers into your schedule, go into each meeting with one primary objective and one secondary objective, and send tailored follow-up notes within 24–72 hours with specific next steps. A cell therapy startup learned this the hard way in its first year—missing timely follow-ups meant a pharma conversation went cold—but by the next JPM it implemented a strict notes and follow-up protocol and converted two similar conversations into formal diligence.

For JPM, founders should maintain at least two variants of their deck: a BD-focused version that highlights assets, data, and deal structures, and an investor version that emphasizes team, market, and financial trajectory. Both should be short (5–10 core slides) with optional deep-dive appendices, allowing you to share a 'conference cut' quickly after meetings. For instance, an AI-enabled lab platform created a 7-slide overview PDF it could send from a phone between meetings, which dramatically increased response rates to follow-ups compared to sending full 30+ slide investor decks.

Early-stage TechBio founders can prove platform value by showcasing repeatable generation of assets or insights, even if they don’t yet have large human datasets. Emphasize velocity (how quickly you can move from idea to in vitro or in vivo data), diversity of successful programs, and any external validation such as pilots, collaborations, or published results. A seed-stage protein design startup, for example, came to JPM with a portfolio of internal case studies showing multiple designed proteins reaching predefined performance thresholds, which gave BD and investors confidence in the platform’s repeatability.

When platform versus asset debates come up, clearly articulate which side you emphasize near term for revenue and risk reduction and how that supports long-term platform compounding. Explain what you will monetize (e.g., selected assets, co-developed programs, tools) versus what you will protect as your durable advantage. As an example, a genomic screening platform framed its strategy as using a few in-house assets to showcase the platform’s power while primarily pursuing co-discovery deals, which reassured investors about upside and gave pharma BD teams a clear way to engage.

To use AI discussions to your advantage, be specific about your models, data, and workflows rather than speaking in broad AI hype. Clarify whether AI primarily accelerates existing processes, enables new classes of biology, or creates closed-loop systems, and then link that to measurable outcomes like cost reductions, success rates, or new targets. One AI-native antibody discovery company, for instance, highlighted its reduction in experimental cycles and increased hit quality relative to traditional methods, which helped it secure both a platform collaboration and a lead investor who understood the practical impact of its models.

Longevity-focused founders should frame their work in terms of concrete indications, regulatory paths, and economic benefits rather than abstract life extension. Come prepared to discuss endpoints, biomarkers of aging, trial designs, and how your work can plug into existing reimbursement and clinical workflows. A startup working on senolytics, for example, shifted its messaging at JPM from 'extending lifespan' to targeting a specific age-related disease with known endpoints, which made it easier for investors and pharma to evaluate and ultimately led to a structured collaboration.

Women’s health startups can use JPM to highlight how large and under-served their markets are and to show they have better data and product designs than legacy solutions. Focus on specific cohorts, clinical outcomes, and economic arguments, such as reduced complications, improved adherence, or fewer unnecessary procedures. A real-world-style example: a digital therapeutics company focused on menopause symptoms built a narrative around reducing costly downstream events and absenteeism, which resonated strongly with both payers and employers they met during JPM-related side events.

Effective post-JPM follow-up means prioritizing high-signal conversations, sending tailored recaps, and proposing concrete next steps with dates. Group your contacts into tiers—immediate high-potential, medium-potential, and long-term network—and create separate follow-up cadences for each. One oncology startup created a simple three-column spreadsheet right after JPM, scheduled all tier-one follow-ups within a week, and ultimately traced two major partnerships back to that disciplined post-conference process.

JPM can be valuable for pre-seed founders if approached as a research and relationship-building trip rather than a fundraising sprint. The benefits include exposure to how big players think, early feedback on your thesis, and a chance to start multi-year relationships with investors and BD leads who rarely attend smaller events. For example, a pre-seed computational pathology startup used its first JPM primarily to listen and learn; by the time it returned the following year with data, several investors already knew the team and were willing to move quickly on a seed round.

Founders traveling in for JPM should book accommodations and core meetings early and cluster as much as possible around the main conference area to avoid losing hours in transit. Many experienced teams choose a single hotel or café as their 'home base' for the week and stack meetings there, rather than constantly moving between venues. A European biotech founder who did this at a single hotel near Union Square was able to run over 25 meetings in four days with minimal travel time, preserving energy and focus for high-stakes conversations.

Founders should start planning for JPM Week 6–8 weeks in advance to secure priority meetings and build a realistic schedule around anchor events. This planning window gives you time to clarify your goals, refine your JPM story, and coordinate internal materials so you are not scrambling the week before you fly to San Francisco. For example, an AI-first drug discovery startup that began planning in early November locked key pharma and VC meetings by mid-December, then used January almost entirely for high-value conversations instead of last-minute logistics.

First-time founders should set goals around learning and relationship-building rather than closing deals on the spot. Typical high-value goals include: 3–5 serious BD leads, 2–3 investors who explicitly want follow-up, 1–2 potential design partners, and a sharper understanding of how the market views your category. A seed-stage TechBio startup used these goals at its first JPM, then tracked outcomes; over the following six months, it converted one BD lead into a paid pilot and one investor contact into a lead check for its next round.

A JPM-optimized schedule balances density with recovery and uses geography and event clusters to your advantage. Aim for 6–8 meetings per day, grouped near the main hotels and venues, with 15-minute buffers between meetings and reserved time for debriefing and serendipitous introductions. One diagnostics founder chose a single hotel lobby as their base and asked most contacts to meet there; this simple tactic reduced transit time, preserved focus, and still resulted in more than 20 meaningful meetings across four days.

Founders should prioritize side events that align with their goals: invite-only BD mixers, focused AI-in-bio or longevity meetups, and gatherings where their ideal partners and investors reliably show up. Use public event lists, curated Google Sheets, and community Slacks to identify options, then rank events by who attends, not by hype or venue. A women’s health startup, for instance, skipped several generic receptions to attend a smaller invite-only women’s health salon; that single event produced two strategic relationships and a warm introduction to a major payer.

An effective JPM pitch uses the first 3–5 minutes to clearly define who you serve, what painful problem you solve, your wedge (product, asset, or platform), and why this moment is the right time to bet on you. The rest of the meeting should be split between 2–3 hard proof points and a discussion of possible collaboration or investment structures, ending with a concrete next step. For example, a platform company that came prepared with a simple 3-part narrative and a specific pilot structure walked out of multiple JPM meetings with agreed follow-up technical deep dives.

You can measure JPM success by tracking the pipeline created and the momentum of follow-on conversations over the next 90 days. Useful KPIs include: number of high-intent follow-up meetings booked, number of BD or pilot discussions entering structured diligence, investor conversion into second or partner-level meetings, and changes in your narrative based on feedback. One precision oncology startup defined success as turning at least five JPM meetings into second calls; it ended up with seven follow-ups, two serious BD opportunities, and a lead investor term sheet within the next two quarters.

The best way to network at JPM is to approach conversations with curiosity and specificity rather than a hard sell. Ask targeted questions about how the other person’s organization evaluates new technologies, where they see gaps in their pipeline, and what ‘good’ looks like to them, then share how your work might fit those needs. A computational biology founder used this approach with a pharma BD executive at a side event, leading to an unexpected follow-up meeting the next morning and, months later, a structured pilot project.

Founders should describe AI in terms of concrete workflows, data assets, and measurable outcomes instead of abstract capabilities. Specify what models you use, what data you train on, and what has actually improved—hit rates, time-to-insight, cost per experiment, or success rates—because of your AI stack. An antibody discovery company at JPM emphasized that its AI-driven pipeline reduced experimental cycles by a quantifiable percentage and improved candidate quality, which helped both pharma and investors quickly understand the real-world impact.

Longevity startups should frame their work around specific indications, regulatory paths, and economic value rather than generic life extension. Highlight clear endpoints, biomarkers, trial strategies, and cost-saving or productivity benefits that payers and providers can understand. A company working on senolytics, for example, shifted its JPM messaging from ‘extending lifespan’ to targeting a defined age-related condition with established endpoints, which made its story more legible to mainstream investors and helped initiate a co-development discussion with a pharma partner.

Women’s health founders should lead with the size of the market, the depth of unmet need, and the strength of their clinical and product data. They should demonstrate how their solution improves outcomes, reduces costs, or addresses long-ignored pain points, and show that they are building with women’s real-world experiences at the center rather than retrofitting existing tools. A menopause-focused startup used outcome data on symptom reduction, reduced downstream complications, and improved employer retention to persuade both payers and strategic investors they met during JPM-related events.

When asked about platform versus assets, explain how your strategy balances near-term value creation with long-term compounding. Outline what you intend to monetize—single assets, partnered programs, or tool access—and what remains as your defensible platform advantage, then show how each deal structure affects your future options. A genomic screening startup used this framing at JPM to show that a few internal assets were proof points designed to make its platform more valuable, while most of the upside would come from a portfolio of co-discovery and co-development deals.

Founders can use JPM to run a ‘preview round’ with investors: share where you are now, where you plan to be in 9–18 months, and ask what they would need to see to lead or join a future round. This turns casual chats into a structured feedback loop and creates accountability; if you hit the milestones you discussed, investors can move faster when you formally raise. A computational pathology startup did this at JPM by presenting a clear milestone roadmap, then checking back with the same funds the following year after hitting key technical and commercial goals, which led to a competitive seed round.

After JPM, founders should quickly triage their conversations into tiers (high-potential, medium-potential, long-term) and assign a simple, time-bound next step to each. Send personalized recap emails within 24–72 hours summarizing what you discussed, attaching relevant materials, and proposing a specific next meeting or workstream with dates. An oncology startup that did this in a structured spreadsheet after JPM tracked more than 30 conversations, prioritized the top 10, and ultimately traced two major partnerships and one investment back to disciplined post-conference follow-up.

JPM can be worthwhile for very early founders if they see it as reconnaissance and relationship-building rather than a make-or-break fundraising event. You can learn how pharma, payers, and investors think about your space, test your thesis with experienced operators, and build a contact base that will matter when your data is ready. A pre-clinical platform company used its first JPM to gather targeted feedback and map which BD and VC stakeholders cared most about its category; when it returned with initial data the following year, those early relationships converted into serious conversations much faster.

International founders should treat JPM as both a strategic entry point into the U.S. ecosystem and a place to understand regulatory, reimbursement, and partnership expectations in their target markets. Focus meetings on potential commercialization partners, regionally relevant investors, and advisors who can help you adapt your go-to-market and trial strategies for the U.S. context. For example, a European diagnostics startup used JPM to meet U.S. payers, KOLs, and investors to pressure-test its pricing and reimbursement assumptions before launching in North America, saving months of misaligned planning.

Founders can increase visibility by publishing or sharing concise, insight-driven content ahead of or during JPM, such as short essays, LinkedIn posts, or threads that articulate a sharp thesis about their domain. Focus on practical insights drawn from your work—like lessons from building an AI-bio loop, designing women’s health trials, or structuring platform collaborations—rather than generic commentary. Some founders schedule investor and BD meetings around a thesis piece they’ve recently shared; by the time they sit down at JPM, many counterparts have already engaged with their thinking and come in more prepared to go deep.