January 22, 2026 - Join us at Career Connect Day tomorrow!

This week:

• Wendy speaks on the future of Vancouver's tech economy
• Aspect Biosystems expands partnership with Novo Nordisk
• Strategy sessions for pre-seed and seed companies | Apply by February 2

Wendy Hurlburt Joins Panel on the Future of Vancouver’s Tech Economy
LSBC President & CEO Wendy Hurlburt joined Peter Cowan (Innovate BC) Bijan Vaez (Founder of MerchKit), and Katie Fitzmaurice (Invest Vancouver) to talk about the opportunity of Vancouver’s high-tech sectors. Moderated by Khalil Jessa (BC Securities Commission), the panel presented by the Vancouver Tech Journal expressed optimism about where we are headed, touching on growth, talent, immigration, investment, and more. 

Photo: DARRYL DYCK / The Globe and Mail

Aspect Biosystems and Novo Nordisk Expand Partnership to Develop Curative Medicines for Diabetes

Since 2023, Aspect and Novo Nordisk have partnered to develop cellular medicines that replace, repair, or supplement biological functions. An expanded collaboration was announced to deepen their shared mission to accelerate potentially curative therapies for diseases, such as diabetes. Now, under its expanded partnership, Aspect has acquired rights to incorporate key biological components from Novo into its novel treatments. Novo will also make an additional, undisclosed equity investment in Aspect and pay for research to advance the therapies. Read more.

Apply by February 2: Strategy Sessions for Pre-seed and Seed Companies

In collaboration with Innovate BC, we are hosting two Road to Web Summit sessions. This cohort-style program will include two strategic virtual sessions to build capacity and visibility by connecting early-stage companies with expert mentors, investors, and peers. Companies will receive tools and feedback related to fundraising and market expansion, and an invitation to an exclusive networking event during Web Summit.

 Session 1: Investment Readiness | March 4, 2026 10:00 am – 12:00 pm PT

 Session 2: Market Expansion | April 9, 2026 10:00 am – 12:00 pm PT

Apply here by February 2, 2026 (5:00 pm Pacific Time). Applying companies must be available for both virtual sessions and plan to attend Web Summit in May.

Member Highlights 

Kardium announces publication of PULSAR pivotal trial results. The multicenter pivotal trial demonstrated that the Globe System achieved durable pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) in 95% of veins with only one pulsed field application, while maintaining a 0% device-related primary safety event rate. At 12 months, 78% of patients remained free from atrial arrhythmias, further underscoring the effectiveness of the system. Read more.

Eyam Health and iiDiagnostics launch pioneering UK-Canada collaboration to advance next-generation vaccine development. The international initiative will combine Eyam’s advanced vaccine design and delivery platforms with world-leading automated organoid technology from iiCON’s lead partner, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine to accelerate the R&D and testing of vaccines against infectious diseases. Read more.

Ecosystem Highlights 

Health Canada announced funding to improve access to health services in French to Francophone minority communities in British Columbia. This initiative will strengthen digital health systems to better capture language preferences and support more equitable access to care across the province. Read more

Kudos

Congratulations to Labcorp on being named one of FORTUNE Magazine’s World's Most Admired Companies. This recognition reflects the organization's strong leadership, innovation, and continued commitment to advancing health and science globally. Read more

Congratulations to StemCell Network on turning 25, continuing to advance regenerative medicine in Canada by supporting leading research, clinical progress, and talent development that help transform lives. Read more

People on the Move

Congratulations to Dr. Henry Kilgore on joining the UBC Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences as Assistant Professor in Nanomedicines and Chemical Biology. His expertise will strengthen research and training in innovative drug delivery and therapeutic development. Read more

Shrinal Inamdar has been appointed to a new position as the Vice President of Investor Relations at Zymeworks Inc. Read more

Graham Craig has been appointed as VoxCell’s Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). His leadership will support global business development and strategy to support the growing use of VoxCell’s human-relevant, 3D vascularized tissue models for drug testing and development. Read more 

Suzanne Gill was recently appointed to the Board of Michael Smith Health Research BC, her leadership supports the organization's role as a key ecosystem partner in advancing meaningful patient impact and fostering a vibrant life sciences and health care sector across BC and Canada. Read more

Applications Open

The AbbVie Biotech Innovators Award, delivered in collaboration with adMare BioInnovations, supports early-stage Canadian biotech startups by offering one year of lab and office space at the adMare Innovation Centre in Montreal, along with access to mentorship and shared resources. The application deadline is February 20, 2026. Read more

The Science Horizons Youth Internship Program supports employers in hiring and mentoring recent post-secondary graduates for environment-related STEM roles, designed to help organizations build talent capacity and gain hands-on experience in Canada’s green, growing economy. Read more.

CASTL is offering industry led-training programs focused on building practical job-ready skills for Canada’s biomanufacturing workforce. For more information, please contact: program@castlcanada.ca

See our expanded list of current life sciences opportunities on our website.

Member Spotlight

Bold Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company based in Vancouver, British Columbia, founded in 2018 to develop and commercialize BOLD-100, a first-in-class small molecule therapeutics for oncology applications. Currently, Bold Therapeutics is advancing BOLD-100 as a novel anti-cancer therapy. The company successfully completed a Phase 1/2a clinical study in advanced gastrointestinal cancers (including late-line gastric, pancreatic, colorectal, and bile duct cancers) in combination with FOLFOX in Canada, Europe, South Korea and the US. Learn more

LicenseSpring provides a robust software licensing and entitlement management platform designed specifically for the complexities of the medical device and laboratory equipment industries. We help manufacturers simplify how they deploy, manage, and monetize their software-driven hardware. We are embedded in many types of products, such as MRI machines, radiology suites as well as benchtop lab instruments. Learn more

Until next week!

LSBC Team

January 23 - The Life Sciences BC’s 7th Annual Career Connect Day brings together life-sciences employers, students, and job-seekers for a full day of career talks, company training program previews, and networking. It includes presentations about jobs and leadership in the sector plus a job fair and exhibitor hall.

February 25 - The 11th Annual Access to Innovation conference brings together leaders from industry, research, government and health care to discuss how BC’s life-sciences innovations move from discovery to real-world impact. This year focuses on trends shaping the sector, including the growing role of AI, and offers talks, panels and networking opportunities.

BD to Highlight Advanced Biologics and Large-Volume Delivery Solutions at Pharmapack 2026

BD will showcase its latest biologics and large-volume drug-delivery solutions at Pharmapack 2026, highlighting innovations designed to support high-dose and complex therapies with a focus on patient-centric delivery... Read more

New Clinical Data highlights CAPLYTA® (lumateperone) as a Promising Option for Achieving Remission in Adults with Major Depressive Disorder

New clinical data suggests CAPLYTA® (lumateperone) may help adults with major depressive disorder achieve and maintain remission when used alongside antidepressants... Read more

Aspect Biosystems and Novo Nordisk enter New Phase of Partnership to Develop Curative Medicines for Diabetes

Aspect Biosystems and Novo Nordisk are advancing their partnership to develop potentially curative cell-based medicines for diabetes, building on their existing collaboration and combining expertise to accelerate new treatment approaches... Read more

Eyam Health and iiDiagnostics Launch Pioneering UK-Canada Collaboration to Advance Next-Generation Vaccine Development

Eyam Health and iiDiagnostics have launched a UK–Canada collaboration to advance next-generation vaccine development, combining expertise to accelerate research and innovation in infectious disease prevention... Read more

Kardium Announces Publication of PULSAR Pivotal Trial Results in JACC

Kardium announced the publication of its PULSAR pivotal trial results in JACC, highlighting strong safety and effective, durable outcomes for its Globe® Pulsed Field System in treating atrial fibrillation... Read more

Labcorp Named One of the World’s Most Admired Companies™ by Fortune

Labcorp was named one of FORTUNE Magazine’s World’s Most Admired Companies, recognizing its strong reputation, leadership, and impact across the global life sciences and healthcare sector... Read more

BD and Ypsomed Expand Partnership to Address Rapidly Growing Biologics Market

BD and Ypsomed are expanding their partnership to support the growing biologics market by developing new injection technology designed to make high-dose medicines easier for patients to use... Read more

LifeLabs Opens New Uptown New Westminster Patient Service Centre, Enhancing Access to Community-Based Diagnostic Care

LifeLabs has opened a new patient service centre in Uptown New Westminster, improving access to local diagnostic testing for the community... Read more

SCN Celebrates 25 Years of Transforming Lives Through Regenerative Medicine

The Stem Cell Network is marking 25 years of advancing regenerative medicine in Canada by supporting research, talent development, and progress toward patient care... Read more

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The Product Manager’s role includes collaboration with cross-functional teams to define and prioritize product features, enhancements, and integrations that align with the needs of our commercial and R&D partners... Learn more

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