The GDPR re-categorised biometric data as special category data and recent months have seen the ICO bringing its first enforcement action for (mis)use of such data, writes Brett Butcher, solicitor with Birketts LLP. 

The action was brought against HMRC and concerned its failure to obtain proper consent for the use of voice identification technology. 

A more detailed report on the case can be found on our website https://www.birketts.co.uk/insights/legal-updates/ico-biometric-data

The ICO has since reviewed the use of live facial recognition (LFR) technology by the Metropolitan Police Service and the South Wales Police Service. 

Whilst the ICO concluded that fair processing obligations were broadly met in these cases, it did observe that the current lack of a statutory code of practice and national guidelines on the use of biometric data contributes to inconsistent practice and increases the risk of compliance failures.

With the conversation on biometric data looking set to continue well into 2020 and beyond, any organisation considering using biometric data would be well advised to take specific advice.

• You can call Brett Butcher at Birketts on 01603 542715 or send him an email at: brett-butcher [at] birketts.co.uk

A century ago we saw the start of the Roaring Twenties, driven by rapid technological and social change that gave us the discovery of the enzyme Lysozyme, the first antibiotic and sliced bread.

Many breakthroughs have made claim to being the best thing since, writes Tony Jones, CEO of One Nucleus. 

Moreover, a number of those have originated in this region such as monoclonal antibodies, the structure of DNA and fibre optics.

Our innovators, entrepreneurs and corporates have been pushing back the boundaries for decades so it is with confidence I feel we can look to the next decade to be transformational.

Converging areas such as data science, advanced manufacturing, imaging, advanced therapeutics, digital therapeutics, regenerative medicine and genomics continue to enable precision in medicine of which our predecessors could only dream.

The growth and progress to date has been enabled by continued investment in research by successive governments, private investors and entrepreneurs being prepared to take risk followed by large investment from global institutional and corporate investors.

Entering this new decade the biomedical sector, like many others in deep tech, faces some major challenges and competition. One Nucleus will be continuing to focus on supporting members and the region in addressing these challenges where possible as is our remit and drive.

Investing in Innovation

The phrase ‘cash is king’ is a cliché for very good reason. Whilst we have some of the brightest minds and bravest entrepreneurs, it requires investment to continue translating great science into great products to benefit patients, the economy and those taking such risks.

Private investment into the region’s life sciences sector reached record levels in 2018. Of course, not every year can be a record year and one can point to stand out deals made by companies such as Artios Pharma, CMR Surgical and Microbiotica as reasons for such a year.

Make no mistake, 2019 may not have been a record year but it was by no means a poor year and early indications are that whilst investment may have dropped a little, it was still impressive. I am sure data coming out soon will reflect this.

That said, anecdotal feedback and some early data points may be indicating that early stage investment is coming under pressure, a trend we must be wary to mitigate if the pipeline to larger deals is to be maintained.

It is also election year in the US, which could see the opportunities to IPO lessen as we enter the latter part of 2020. Nasdaq has been the IPO route of choice for most biotechs of late, such as Bicycle Tx and Autolus, so losing momentum there could be impactful.

It is not just private sector capital. Successive governments have supported both R & D and enterprise. At a time when the political agenda is changing rapidly, we must ensure this Johnson-led Government doesn’t overlook its brand leader region when investing in our infrastructure and science, nor can it be allowed to underestimate the value of schemes such as SEIS and EIS in stimulating growth creation.

I am sure our political lobby groups at a national level will not allow such damage without resistance and we look forward to supporting those calls. 

One Nucleus is excited to be developing a new investment conference with global partners EBD Group (part of Informa) to be held in Cambridge.

Combining both the One Nucleus and EBD brands, networks and experience, a leading edge conference to attract international investors to the region will take place in July with elements showcasing our translational research and technologies complementing a focused investor showcase. Watch this space for details in the coming weeks!

The people factor

Access to the best people is always a pre-requisite for success. The competition for talent among the companies in the region is fierce. Whilst a slight dampening of vacancy rates was observed in Cambridge post the 2016 vote, falling below the 2015 peaks, a steady recovery has been observed since. With 44 per cent of the region’s life science companies active in R & D and over 90 per cent being SMEs, it is unsurprising that it is scientific vacancies that dominate the recruitment landscape.

A sign of a maturing cluster, however, is that roles much deeper in R & D such as regulatory and clinical have started to narrow the gap. For example, in 2015 scientific vacancies outnumbered regulatory by four to one. 
2017 saw that differential narrow to 60 per cent. Over that time, we also saw a shift in geographic rates, with the balance in UK vacancies across the UK showing a drift away from Cambridge.

This has been quoted as a sign the UK Life Science Industrial Strategy is working for the whole of the UK. If overall numbers rise I would agree; I would urge caution however, against simple displacement of activity over growth. Brand leaders are vital in attracting top talent. 

It is not only the magnetic effect of attracting talent from elsewhere that matters. Much work to address the region’s skills gaps is ongoing. One Nucleus is delighted to be one of the sponsors of the Cambridge Ahead project to evaluate careers advice in schools. 

Engaging the brightest minds in order to create a diverse technical and enterprising labour pool must start early. One Nucleus itself, having established a Skills Special Interest Group is embarking on the launch of a new careers focused conference in March, hosted by Anglia Ruskin University. Not a traditional jobs fair approach, this will be a conference to share learning: A forum to openly discuss what makes employees attractive to employers and vice versa. 

Increasingly, work-based experience is seen as the right way forward yet knowledge gaps in what funding mechanisms, project designs and ethos can be leveraged to attract the best people. These aspects and more will be brought to the table at the event on March  19 entitled ‘Building Life Science Adventures’ where focusing on creating careers not just jobs is key.  

Technology

I’m not sure I have ever heard the phrase ‘there aren’t enough exciting ideas or technology’ applied to the region. Great research is a given and the proximity of these complementary disciplines in biology, medicine, technology and Artificial Intelligence means the potential for innovation is immense. 

I believe it was Medicxi that highlighted that innovation arises at the intersection of technology areas. The region goes from strength to strength in identifying innovation and increasingly deploying that to real world solutions. 

The growing success story that is Cell & Gene Therapy manufacturing at Stevenage Bioscience Catalyst and R & D into the microbiome at the Quadram Institute are just two examples in the region that are centres of excellence attracting global attention and investment. 

Mirrors of the emergence of monoclonal antibodies perhaps, where such strength in continuing to develop the area sees the likes of F-star, IONTAS and Kymab continue to thrive. 

Innovation continues at pace in the R & D Services sector too. Rising stars such as Domainex, Arecor, PhoreMost, Mogrify and Bit Bio are all demonstrating strong deal pipelines and growth as Pharma and large biotech corporates seek to access their unique platforms and technological insights to solve their industrial challenges. 

One must not overlook also the continuing growth and innovation in the more established service companies such as Charles River Labs, Lonza, Abcam, Horizon and Abzena who create such value and momentum through their in-house R & D in support of clients, but also through M & A activity bringing access to new platforms into the ecosystem. 

I have highlighted some biotech-centric players here, but equally those large and small businesses in neighbouring sectors are also impacting on this sector’s ability to change people’s lives for the better. 

They are just too numerous to include everyone, but the One Nucleus Innovation Seminars and conferences planned this year will be sure to bring this breadth to the fore given the benefits of collaboration, inter-disciplinary approaches and as yet unmet medical needs that require such thinking to be addressed. 

I have used the above text to outline why I think the region remains the brand leader region in Europe due to its concentration of excellence in science, technology and business. 

I would truly urge anyone making or influencing policy to ensure they focus on the long-term right things to do as opposed to the short-term easy. Improving patient outcomes and economic growth are not well suited to a quick fix. 

Above all, I hope the above reasons provide confidence that the region is the best place to develop technologies, healthcare solutions and career opportunities that will change lives.

Face masks made by a Cambridge company and based on military-standard technology have triggered a massive ramp-up in production worldwide as customers cumulatively try to order millions of them to counter the threat of the coronavirus.

Christopher Dobbing, founder and CEO of Cambridge Mask Co. tells Business Weekly that the company has been deluged by “an unprecedented and overwhelming flood of demand.”

He says the company is ramping production in China and Indonesia to try to meet some of the demand but says it will be impossible to fulfil some orders which scale as high as 10 million in one case.

Dobbing says: “Our masks use a special technology developed by the British military for chemical, nuclear and biological warfare protection and are tested to filter an average 99.6 per cent of viruses. That makes them perfect for coronavirus protection.

“Our small team is coping with 1,100 messages per day from customers wanting masks and we have 20,000 daily website visitors and 200+ calls to our office.

“Everything is 20-30x what would be normal for us. We are ramping up production at our factories in China and Indonesia to try and meet some of the demand. 

“I have had requests for 500,000, three million and even 10 million masks – which we could never dream of filling. That’s over 100 x 40 ft containers worth! 

“We are taking pre-orders on our website for delivery mid-March and have nearly 4,500 orders received and in production.”

Cambridge companies are heavily embroiled in coronavirus initiatives. The epidemic has prompted organisers of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona near the end of February to reassure prospective Cambridge and other UK and global attendees that they will be protected by additional medical staff on the spot and enhanced sanitisation controls to protect them from contracting the potentially fatal coronavirus.

MWC organiser GSMA is working to World Health Organisation guidelines and has announced increased cleaning and disinfection programme across all high-volume touchpoints, e.g. catering areas, surfaces, handrails, WCs, entrances/exits, public touch-screens, etc. along with the use of correct cleaning/sanitising materials and products. They are also liaising with local hotels, shops and eateries to ensure high cleanliness and disinfectant standards are maintained throughout the city.

MWC is the premier showcase for many UK technology companies and Cambridge is traditionally represented in high numbers.

Cambridge BioMedtech businesses are already in the front line of the battle against the virus. As Business Weekly flagged up on January 30, Novacyt has already launched a novel research-only coronavirus test developed by its molecular diagnostics division, Primerdesign as a direct response to the recent outbreak of the respiratory virus in China.

The Primerdesign coronavirus test has the ability to detect only the 2019 strain of the virus, which the company believes differentiates it from other current tests which are less specific and may also react to other related species giving rise to a false diagnosis. 

The Primerdesign test is also said to be stable at ambient temperatures, which eliminates the need for cold chain shipping in tropical climates and therefore improves the efficiency of the test and reduces transport costs.

Graham Mullis, CEO of Novacyt said. “Over the last few days, we have seen significant early demand for our genesig® 2019-nCoV test from over 10 countries.”

Cambridge startup ET-traps Ltd believes its technology could also prove valuable in fighting the outbreak. 

Founder and CEO Dr Arjun Jain tells Business Weekly: “The US NIH has suggested that a vaccine might be available for testing in humans in about three months, which represents an unprecedented speed of development. This has been enabled by technology for rapid genetic analysis of the virus, and prompt action by governments to begin a vaccine development programme.

“The therapeutic tool we are working on may be used as a treatment for the virus. We have produced two papers to support our view: The first discusses how interferon levels are increased in people infected with the virus.The second discusses how interferon is an inducer of endothelin(ET)-1. Hence, the ET-traps which have been shown to potently sequester ET-1 levels would serve as a potential therapeutic.

“This and the potential use of ET-traps for HIV-AIDS has been discussed in a recent paper we are writing. The race is on to make a therapeutic for this virus and we think our the ET-traps may be used.”

The technology focuses on sequestering pathologically elevated levels of Endothelin-1 in different diseases.

The company is developing a therapeutic targeting elevated endothelin-1 levels that may be used in different cancers, neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and pregnancy disorders.

How worried should we be by the coronavirus epidemic? Very, according to Dr Nigel Whittle, head of Medical & Healthcare at Cambridge tech consultancy Plextek.

He said: “Scientists at Imperial College recently estimated that about 100,000 people around the world may already be infected with the new coronavirus and that each infected patient can infect on average 2.6 others – about the same rate as in annual influenza outbreaks. 

“Worryingly there is concern that the coronavirus can be passed on during the disease’s incubation period, which means that someone who is ill but not yet displaying any symptoms could transmit the infection. 

“A current count of more than 100 deaths out of 6,000 reported cases implies a 1.7 per cent mortality rate, compared with seasonal influenza (which causes about 400,000 deaths each year globally) with a mortality rate well below 1 per cent.  

“One of the first lines of defence is monitoring airline passengers flying in from areas where the virus is active, often using thermal imaging cameras to detect fever, in an attempt to identify people who have symptoms. 

“The problem is that only those who are already ill will be picked up, although it is thought that the incubation period is days, rather than weeks. 

“More draconian measures such as those instigated by China to effectively quarantine tens of millions of people may help to slow the progress of the disease but may not be enough to stop the virus spreading.

“Will surgical masks slow the spread? One of the defining images of large respiratory disease outbreaks is people wearing surgical masks in the street, and this one is no different, most notably in China where they are also worn to protect against pollution. 

“Many other cities in Asia are already reporting masks flying from the shelves leading to shortages in the shops. But do these masks offer any protection for the wearer? 

“The coronavirus is spread by droplets in the air produced when an infected individual coughs or sneezes, but it is also spread by touching a contaminated surface and then touching your mouth, nose, or eyes.

“This means that it is more likely for a person to become infected if they in close continuous contact with someone who is infected rather than a casual interaction on the street. 

“In reality, the thin material in masks does little to stop respiratory viruses spreading, and masks have to be worn correctly, changed frequently and disposed of safely in order to work properly. There is however some limited evidence that suggests masks can help prevent hand-to-mouth transmissions.

“As this is a viral disease, antibiotics are not an effective treatment and standard anti-viral drugs used against influenza will not work. So far, recovery has been very dependent on the strength of patients’ immune system, and many of those who died are known to have suffered from poor health. 

“Unlike influenza, there is no currently available vaccine, which means it is more difficult to protect vulnerable members of the population. Much like SARS in 2003, the current coronavirus outbreak has caught local and global health systems by surprise, but it remains to be seen what the final impact of the epidemic will be on the world’s population.”

• Photographs courtesy of Plextek

Former Brexit Secretary David Davis has made an impassioned plea to the Home Secretary to ensure Cambridge entrepreneur and former Autonomy boss Dr Mike Lynch is not extradited to the US to face trial on wire fraud allegations by Hewlett Packard and risk an appalling ordeal.

In a bitter attack in Parliament on America’s interpretation of justice, Davis urged Priti Patel not to allow the extradition the US is seeking until the UK courts have made a decision in the action between the parties in Britain that has been conducted in the last year.

HP is alleging that Autonomy chiefs effectively cooked the books ahead of an $11.7 billion sale to the American giant in 21011. Dr Lynch and senior management colleagues say HP knew what they had bought and cocked up the integration of the Cambridge software business into its hardware dominated empire.

Davis said Britain risked being suckered into a serious miscarriage of justice if it allowed America to get its hands on Dr Lynch. He said: “Since we agreed the UK-US Extradition Treaty in 2003, it has been abundantly clear that the British government of the day struck a truly dreadful deal. Asymmetric, sometimes ineffective, and sometimes unfair on British citizens.

“Countless examples down the years have shown this. From the NatWest Three to Christopher Tappin, from Gary McKinnon to Anne Sacoolas, the person charged with causing death by dangerous driving for the death of Harry Dunn.

“We now risk yet another serious miscarriage of justice with the US extradition request for Dr Mike Lynch – a successful and entrepreneurial British businessman.
“After a lengthy and costly civil UK trial, Dr Lynch is now awaiting judgement. I am prevented from commenting further on that case due to subjudice rules – although this is a trial by judge alone, not by jury, so the possibility of undue influence is near zero.

“But Dr Lynch is now facing almost identical criminal charges in the US in yet another aggressive attempt by American authorities to exercise extraterritorial jurisdiction. 

“Despite the Serious Fraud Office deciding there was no basis for a prosecution in the UK, US authorities are now doggedly pursuing his extradition.

“Civil cases are decided on the balance of probabilities, a much lower hurdle than criminal cases, which have to be decided beyond reasonable doubt. 

“So if Hewlett Packard fail to win their civil trial against Dr Lynch here in the UK – based on a much lower standard of proof than the criminal test – then it is inconceivable that the US authorities would win a near identical criminal case if it was fairly tried. Accordingly, the case for extradition would evaporate.

“So the only sensible course of action available to the Home Secretary is to delay the extradition until the UK Judge has made his decision. This case is important because it is characteristic of the way the American judicial system operates to favour American businesses.

“The US has a history of using its broad extradition treaties to cast a wide legal net around the world. As with Mike Lynch, many of these cases are only tenuously linked to the United States.

“They all have common themes. They are all British citizens; the alleged crimes all took place on British soil; the UK system failed to protect them; and the US authorities ultimately got their way.

“Since 2003, 80 per cent of UK extraditions to the US were for non-violent crimes. This seems like strange behaviour for a country that convicted no CEOs for crimes during the financial crisis.

“Dr Lynch is being charged with several counts of wire fraud – an offence originally designed to make a state crime into a federal crime so they could be prosecuted by Federal authorities.

“Its application quickly expanded, prompting one Federal Judge to say they have ‘been invoked to impose criminal penalties upon a staggeringly broad swathe of behaviour‘.

“Now, that staggeringly broad swathe is being applied across national borders. In essence, a legal playbook designed to catch and convict mobsters and racketeers has first been repurposed to catch white collar offenders, and now that repurposing has been extended outside American borders into what should be other countries’ jurisdictions.”

Davis added: “If Dr Lynch is unfortunate enough to be extradited and either denied bail or found guilty, he will face appalling conditions – conditions that are much worse than anything found in the UK. He will likely find himself in a high-security prison in a cramped cell with gang members, drug dealers or murderers.

“The US imprisons a higher percentage of its citizens than any other country in the world. There are many reasons for this, but no doubt the ferocious use of plea bargains is a major factor.

“Once charges have been brought and after Dr Lynch has spent months in appalling conditions, prosecutors will almost certainly try to convince him to admit guilt to a lesser charge. 

“They will promise a shorter sentence, some of which could be served in the UK, and they will remind him of the huge financial cost of a protracted and complex trial.

“If he refuses, he will face the prospect of a lengthy sentence and the costs of the trial could run into the millions. The rules are set up for him to fail. He will be told he must run his defence from his own prison cell where he can only have one ream of paper at a time.

“To put this in perspective, Dr Lynch’s civil trial in the UK has so far cost £40 million, involved over 11 million documents. The opening arguments were 1,067 pages long and the closing arguments were 4,494 pages.

“One can easily see how someone in Dr Lynch’s position would be coerced into giving in and admitting guilt. I would not call that a plea bargain. I would call it blackmail. This is nothing like normal British justice. It effectively turns the presumption of innocence into a presumption of guilt.

“Mike Lynch could be arrested any day now and sent to the United States to go through this appalling ordeal. But I hope not. I hope the Home Secretary will use every legal mechanism available to delay this extradition until the judge has made his decision in the civil trial.

“We need to give British citizens, businessmen and entrepreneurs the protection, certainty and the justice that they deserve.”

A spokesman for Dr Lynch said he had no comment to make on either David Davis’s intervention or attempts to extradite him.

Mogrify, a transformative cell therapy company based in Cambridge, has clinched $1.1 million additional funding to accelerate assessment of regenerative cartilage therapy.

Cartilage defects, osteoarthritis and other musculoskeletal conditions are among the first medical areas being addressed by Mogrify’s revolutionary technology.

SBRI Healthcare, the NHS England-funded initiative championed by the Academic Health Science Network, ploughed Phase 1 cash into Mogrify in April 2019 to start the ball rolling and has now followed through with the Phase II $1.1m. If the therapy is validated, Mogrify plans to enter clinical trials.

The Mogrify platform takes a systematic big-data approach to identify, from next-generation sequencing and gene-regulatory networks, the conversion factors needed to produce cells that exhibit safety, efficacy and scalable manufacturing profiles suitable for development as regenerative cell therapies. 

The funding from SBRI will be used to progress key cell conversions through pre-clinical safety and efficacy studies in vivo.

Dr Karin Schmitt, Mogrify’s chief business officer, said: “We select projects strategically based on both commercial and scientific considerations and are delighted with the progress of this collaboration with Dr Wael Kafienah’s laboratory at the University of Bristol. 

“The continued support for our lead musculoskeletal asset from SBRI Healthcare has not only allowed us to reach this phase but will enable us to carry the chondrocyte conversions through to the next stage.”

Pierre-Louis Joffrin, corporate development executive at Mogrify, added: “Osteoarthritis is the most common joint disorder and with current treatments focused only on addressing the symptoms there is a huge unmet medical need. 

“Through this additional funding from the NHS England initiative we will be able to take the project through the efficacy and safety studies necessary to see it make a difference to patients as we now start planning for the clinical stages of the development.”

The co-founder and co-director of a world-class University of Essex lab is pioneering Brain-Computer Interfaces for the UK and US governments in two large projects worth $16.5 million. 

The projects spearheaded by Professor Riccardo Poli are co-funded by the US Department of Defense and have far-reaching potential in several key areas.

Prof. Poli tells Business Weekly that applications of the technologies could range from improved medical diagnosis to better crisis management – for example by increasing the situation awareness of teams – to superior financial decision making, the evaluation of threats “and any form of decision making where there is no simple answer.”

Prof. Poli has been highly successful at developing BCIs to improve decision making and has received major funding from the Ministry of Defence since 2013.

He says: “The work we are doing on assisting group decision making with or without the assistance of AIs – something we call cognitive augmentation – are essentially clever ways of making meaningful decisions when a situation is too complex for any single person or machine to be able to evaluate it fully. 

“It is the good old ‘wisdom of crowds’ made better. Essentially, it is better because we don’t just make use of the votes/decisions of each individual decision maker but also we tap into an extra source of information – their confidence (which is finer grain than the decision itself) and it is the mechanism invented by nature with which we evaluate the quality of our behaviours. A key step to integrate AIs in this form of decision making was to derive an equivalent ‘confidence’ for the AIs.”

The Brain-Computer Interfaces and Neural Engineering (BCI-NE) laboratory has moved to a new, bigger home in the School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering. It is acknowledged as the largest and best equipped of its type in the country and one of the largest in Europe.

The new lab has state-of-the-art equipment and a wide range of facilities including three soundproofed Faraday cages (which reduce electromagnetic and ambient noise during experimentation), top-of-the-range brain activity recording devices including electroencephalography (EEG) and functional near-infrared spectroscopy, brain stimulation devices, a sophisticated robotic positioning system and virtual reality systems.

The facilities provide a valuable new resource for UoE academics who are working in this growing area of research in neural engineering technologies for both disabled and able-bodied people. 

Today there are not only a wide range of neuro technologies being trialled that improve communication, decision-making, motor control, memory, attention, learning and problem solving but also large-scale initiatives seeking practical exploitation of such technologies.

The lab will also act as a hub for the new BEng Neural Engineering with Psychology, which will have its first intake of students this October.

Prof. Poli said: “We are extremely grateful for the support the School and the University have given the BCI-NE group over the years since its inception 15 years ago. The group has been able to grow and attract talent very successfully over this period.”

Professor Reinhold Scherer, fellow co-director of the laboratory, is world leader in BCI research with extensive experience in developing applications to improve the quality of life for individuals with cognitive and motor disabilities, including those affected by stroke, cerebral palsy and other neurological disorders. 

He added: “With the new lab up and running we can now start a new era in BCI-NE research at Essex.

“We are fortunate to have many talented lab members, committed and inquiring students, and an engaging interdisciplinary university environment. This enables us to think ‘outside the box’ and ask the right research questions. Coupled with the ability to provide researchers access to state-of-the-art facilities, we aim to take on a leading position in the research community.”

Cambridge serial entrepreneur Goncalo de Vasconcelos is poised to raise crowdfunding cash for a new UK business venture – an InsurTech startup that is being incubated in stealth.

But he won’t be using SyndicateRoom, the equity crowdfund that he started in Cambridge. 

He left SR to launch and cradle his new baby’ – Rnwl – but remains on the SyndicateRoom board so says there is a clear and insurmountable conflict of interest. So it would appear to be a straight choice between Crowdcube or Seedrs. de Vasconcelos declines to say how much he is looking to raise to roll out Rnwl.

He is still nailing down the future roadmap for the venture but has no doubts about the need for such a technology play in the insurance renewal sector.

Rnwl’s mission is to remove the hassle of managing insurances and forever change how people interact with their insurers and product offerings. 

Initially it will start by taking the hassle of the auto-renewal by analysing the market for deals on an ongoing basis.

Goncalo says: “For too long loyal customers have been overpaying on their insurances. The systems are designed in such a way that it’s cumbersome and a real hassle to shop around. Rnwl will make this process insanely simple.”

He said the choice to crowd-fund was “a no brainer” because “Rnwl’s potential customers are people like you and me. The amount of value from having 1,000 or more small investors that become Rnwl’s biggest fans and advocates cannot be overstated. 

“They will gain early access to Rnwl and we look forward to getting their feedback and input. We are building Rnwl for them. As such, crowdfunding is the perfect route for funding.”

The company is now facing a tough choice – which crowdfunding platform to use – Crowdcube or Seedrs? 

Goncalo says: “We honestly haven’t made a decision yet. We spoke to both and we’ll be making a decision soon but it’s not as simple as it may seem. 

“Both platforms are excellent for marketing exposure. In the past I’ve been very vocal about the need for investor protections, which is why all investors in Rnwl, large or small, will get the same class of shares with the same rights.

A new £440 million UK-China venture capital fund started and steered from Cambridge by entrepreneur Dr Simon Haworth is ready to start investing.

Dr Haworth emphasised the key role The Sino-UK fund could play in promoting two-way BioMedTech ventures when he met Chinese Premier Li Keqiang at a symposium in Beijing. The Sino-UK Fund is a small, closed-ended VC fund being set up by Dr Haworth with Chinese capital. The RMB 400m venture (approx. £440m) has support from government funds in Wuhan, Hubei Province, providing 30 per cent of capital, and from strategic investors in Wuhan, Chengdu, Shanghai and other Chinese centres. 

To date the fund has secured support for just over 80 per cent of the total capital required so can start investing. The fund is regulated in Shanghai and focuses on UK and China biotech and medtech technologies to optimise their access to the fast-growing Chinese market. Dr Haworth wants to engage with UK companies in these sectors keen to take advantage of the massive opportunity that China presents.

Dr Haworth was invited by the Chinese Ministry of Science & Technology to join 12 fellow foreign experts at the Beijing symposium, held at the Great Hall of the People in Tian ‘an men Square. 

Dr Haworth presented the Premier with a copy of Cambridge Notes – a book describing his family’s long engagement with China over six continuous generations and spanning 145 years from 1875 to date.

He took the opportunity to stress to the Premier the opportunities presented by the new fund Dr Haworth is establishing to bring UK technologies to the China market. The Symposium was followed by a dinner with Premier Li, celebrating the start of the Chinese New Year period. 
Dr Haworth said: “I updated Premier Li on progress with our fund – a topic we discussed at our first meeting in 2017 – and introduced Cambridge Notes and the details of our family history.

“I explained that Cambridge Notes shows firstly that engagement between China and the UK is nothing new and, more importantly, that cross-cultural engagement is driven more by human connections and relationships than by motives related to wealth, technology or government objectives. 

“If we want to increase engagement to and from China then we need first to tackle the emotional barriers that cloud our judgement.”

Dr Haworth believes it is time for China to take the global trade lead from the US. He explains: “I believe it is China’s turn to grasp the baton of international leadership, wrestling that title away from the United States. 

“Such a thought is uncomfortable to many but I believe that we should think constructively about how best to engage with a new, stronger China to best effect for Britain and that we should be proactive about achieving our own objectives. 

“We British were not timid when it came to growing the British Empire and we should not be surprised if China is aggressive now. What we must not do is hold back.”   

Dr Haworth realises the challenges of helping to promote a new order and the new fund is geared up to hand-hold UK businesses that join the effort.
He said: “China represents the greatest challenge of my career but it also provides the greatest stimulation and fun that I have every experienced. I can’t imagine a better combination for my job than that. 

“Lessons learned during my own period of investigation in China include the fact that who you know really matters in this market. We are taking four more delegations of UK companies to Wuhan this year, covering all costs once in China, and sharing our networks with attendees. 

“We will curate the visits and pre-arrange meetings with relevant Chinese parties to suit the needs of each company and the UK attendees will just have to pay the cost of their return flight from Heathrow direct to Wuhan. 
We do get rewarded for bringing delegations to China but our main purpose is driven by the fact that our capital is based in China, for China-based application. In other words, we can’t easily bring the investment capital to the UK but instead apply it to development of products and access to market in China. 

“We invite any Cambridge company interested in China development to join one of our upcoming visits.” 

Since coming to Cambridge in the late 1980s, Dr Haworth has founded a series of service and technology companies – including IPSO Ventures, listed on AIM in 2007. He left IPSO in 2010 in order to investigate international markets and sources of capital and in 2012 began engaging with China.

His first engagement with China has been a success: Artificial Intelligence company Intelligent OMICS is developing diagnostic devices in Wuhan as well as an AI platform for drug discovery in the UK – but it has not all been easy. 
He in-licensed pre-IND drug products from a Cambridge biotechnology company in 2012 and sought to develop the products in China with the help of a Chinese CRO. 

Whilst the UK company was able to establish a subsidiary in China and raise non-dilutive funding for the product development work, the CRO proved to be unable to undertake the necessary work.
“It soon became evident that remote management of a challenging drug development project was beyond my capabilities at that time,” reflects Dr Haworth. “I ended up losing the in-licensed products and shutting the company. 

“Many lessons were learned from this painful experience – particularly about what is required to manage remotely – as well as the basic knowledge required to set up a company in China, set up a bank account, raise grant funding and so on. It was a tough way to learn a lot, but the personal experience is invaluable now.

“The Chinese market is vast. China is at last investing in research not just products. IP is now protected. Capital and licensing returns can be brought back to the UK so what are you waiting for? Surely it is time for Cambridge companies to lead the way.”

• To get involved in this exciting trade push, email Dr Haworth as follows:  simon.haworth [at] dynastybio.com