VC firm RA Capital starts a new synthetic biology incubator

By Allison DeAngelis July 27, 2023

Venture capital firm RA Capital is starting a new incubator, setting the stage for the firm to create new startups over the next several years that hone in on synthetic biology, a long-gestating field that insiders say is getting renewed interest.

The Boston-based VC’s incubator is called RASyn, and will be led by Robert Nicol, according to people familiar with the firm’s plans. Nicol spent more than 20 years at the Broad Institute, where he co-founded the MIT-Broad Foundry for Synthetic Biology, as well as HiFiBio Therapeutics and Design Pharmaceuticals.

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RA Capital confirmed RASyn’s existence. Senior Managing Director Josh Resnick told STAT it’s part of the firm’s work to rethink how it develops platforms — core technologies or scientific approaches that underpin all of the drugs a biotech develops — but declined to comment further.

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Biotech Startups and Venture Capital Reporter

Allison DeAngelis is a biotech reporter at STAT, covering biopharma startups and venture capital.

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