St. Louis continues to establish itself as a national hub for bioscience entrepreneurship—and a key part of that growth is the Venture Fellows program, a unique initiative from BioSTL, and it’s start-up arm BioGenerator, designed to cultivate the next generation of startup leaders at the intersection of science and business.
Launched in 2013, the program provides hands-on commercialization experience to highly trained scientists who show a deep interest in translating research into real-world impact. Venture Fellows receive intensive mentorship and exposure to startup operations, venture capital, and entrepreneurial thinking—all while embedded in the region’s fast-growing life sciences ecosystem.
Empowering Scientists Through Entrepreneurial Experience
“What we’re trying to achieve with the Fellowship program is to take extraordinary individuals with technical knowledge,” said Jim McCarter, MD PhD, Senior Managing Director, BioGenerator and Senior Vice President, BioSTL “and then provide them with the education and experience they need to understand how to be an entrepreneur.”
Two of the newest fellows, Grant Downes PhD, and Guillermo Gonzales PhD, are excellent examples. Both bring strong scientific backgrounds and a demonstrated commitment to innovation beyond the lab. Guillermo, for example, co-founded the biotech company CapyBio while still a postdoc at WashU, and is now continuing to develop the venture through his fellowship. Grant, meanwhile, has combined doctoral research in bioengineering with entrepreneurship training under the mentorship of University of Kansas and WashU Professor Cory Berkland PhD, a prolific inventor and entrepreneur, signaling his readiness to help launch or lead a biotech startup.
“They’ve done things as graduate students and postdocs that show they care about impact—how to turn innovation into something that helps people,” says Jim.
Fueling Regional Growth Through Talent and Funding
The program itself varies in size year to year based on funding. Thanks to a recent grant from the James S. McDonnell Foundation, BioGenerator will support five full-time fellows over the next three years.
BioGenerator and the Office of Technology Management (OTM) at WashU also run a joint Venture Fellows Program under the guidance of BioGenertor EIR David Smoller PhD and OTM New Ventures Head Karen Mullis PhD allowing WashU post-docs and medical residents to devote a portion of their time over an academic year to learning entrepreneurship, rounding out what’s becoming a robust pipeline of talent ready to support the region’s startups.
Keeping Bioscience Talent in St. Louis
While the program benefits its fellows, it’s also a strategic investment in St. Louis’ future.
“We’re focused on retaining talent that may otherwise leave,” Jim noted. “Every year, around 2,000 people complete technical degrees in St. Louis—and most of them go to cities on the coasts like Boston or San Francisco. If we could keep 10% of them here, building companies and careers locally, it would be transformative for our economy.”
A Launchpad for the Next Generation of Biotech Leaders
As St. Louis aims to launch more homegrown biotech companies, the Venture Fellows program offers both a training ground for future leaders and a retention strategy for top talent. By bridging the gap between technical expertise and business know-how, it’s helping to power the region’s next wave of science-based startups—and making sure those startups have the leadership they need to succeed.
