How 14 EIC and 7 Health Holland scaleups used JP Morgan Healthcare Week 2025 to pursue fundraising

Brussels, February 5th 2025

Summary

›During JP Morgan Healthcare Conference Week 13 to 17 January 2025, EIC Business Acceleration Services and Health Holland coordinated support for 21 European medtech and life science scaleups.
›EIC organised a flexible group of 14 EIC Accelerator companies and Health Holland prepared seven Dutch life science companies with pre‑tour workshops and in‑market guidance.
›Anchor events were run with local partners Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and Fraser to help companies navigate investor meetings and US market contacts.
›Participant case studies include Hy2Care seeking US trials for its CartRevive cartilage hydrogel and UPyTher pitching an intraperitoneal hydrogel for peritoneal cancers.
›Organisers and participants highlight networking value but also stress the need for early planning, clear goals and sustained follow up to convert contacts into funding or partnerships.

European scaleups at JP Morgan Healthcare Week 2025

From 13 to 17 January 2025, the annual JP Morgan Healthcare Conference Week in San Francisco again attracted thousands of startups, corporates and investors. The European Innovation Council Business Acceleration Services and the Health Holland Global Scale-up Program teamed up to help European medtech and life science companies make the most of the fundraising and partnership opportunities that cluster around the JP Morgan event.

Who took part and how they were supported

Two coordinated cohorts attended with tailored support. The EIC Business Acceleration Services organised a visiting group of 14 EIC Accelerator backed medtech and life science companies and arranged anchor events in partnership with US law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and with advisory firm Fraser. Separately, the Health Holland Global Scale-up Program prepared seven Dutch life science companies through its established US workshop and personalized guidance both before and during the tour.

EIC Business Acceleration Services role:EIC-BAS curated a programme of anchor events, shared a list of side events and investor opportunities, and allowed the 14 EIC companies flexibility to arrange meetings that matched their fundraising and business development priorities. The EIC BAS provides these market access and investor readiness formats to complement Horizon Europe funding and broader go to market activity for awardees.

Health Holland Global Scale-up Program role:Since 2012 Health Holland runs an intensive three day US workshop to prepare Dutch life science startups for investor engagement in the United States. For JP Morgan Week 2025 the programme founder Marianne Van der Steen and US director Nanneke Dinklo guided seven companies with pre visit coaching and hands on support during the tour. Applications for the 2026 edition open in March 2025 at info@globalscale-up.com.

Anchor partners: why Wilson Sonsini and Fraser were involved

To create credible in market touchpoints, organisers partnered with Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and with Fraser. Wilson Sonsini is a long established Silicon Valley law firm with practice strength across life sciences, corporate, regulatory and US expansion. Fraser provides strategic advisory, capital raising and placement services in digital health and life sciences. Their roles were practical. They hosted workshops, provided introductions and helped visiting teams understand legal and transactional norms in the US, and how to present to local investors and corporate development teams.

Two company snapshots and what they sought

Hy2Care B.V. — EIC Accelerator, Netherlands

Hy2Care attended JP Morgan Week to advance its fundraising and partner pipeline around CartRevive, a hydrogel implant for cartilage repair. The product is based on natural polymers and is designed to form a scaffold that supports the patient’s own cells while protecting the injury site. CartRevive was undergoing clinical examination in the Netherlands at the time and Hy2Care anticipated US trials to follow.

Events targeted by Hy2Care:The company prioritized the RESI JPM Conference, which attracts hundreds of investors and in licensing teams, and the Freemind Non Dilutive Summit focused on grants and other non equity funding options. CEO Leo Smit reported broad contact building across service providers, investors and strategic partners and highlighted early planning as critical to reaching useful conversations during the busy week.

UPyTher B.V. — Health Holland Global Scale-up Program, Netherlands

UPyTher is developing an intraperitoneal hydrogel platform intended to deliver sustained local concentrations of cancer drugs inside the peritoneal cavity. The company targets peritoneal carcinomatosis, a serious and often under recognized pattern of metastatic disease arising from colorectal, gastric and ovarian cancers. UPyTher’s hydrogel is engineered to be instilled as a liquid that gels in situ, thereby increasing dwell time and drug exposure at tumor sites.

What UPyTher valued about the trip:Health Holland helped the company select the right side events and clarified logistics in advance. At the fundraising stage, UPyTher prioritized meetings with early stage investors and follow up with existing backers. CEO Geert C. van Almen recommended that first time attendees use a guided programme, set clear goals and arrange meetings months in advance to ensure productive interactions.

Technical note on hydrogels and intraperitoneal delivery

Hydrogels are three dimensional polymer networks that can retain large amounts of water and be engineered to release drugs in a controlled way. For intraperitoneal oncology the physiological challenge is achieving sustained, broad distribution inside the abdominal cavity and prolonged local exposure at tumor sites while avoiding systemic toxicity. UPyTher references supramolecular UPy chemistry which relies on reversible, non covalent interactions to tune gelation, mechanical properties and drug release kinetics. Hy2Care’s cartilage hydrogel uses biomimetic polymers to create a scaffold for tissue repair and to extend local drug exposure in joints. Both approaches aim to transform administration routes from systemic intravenous dosing to locoregional therapy that improves efficacy and reduces off target effects.

What participants reported and what to watch for

Participants praised the volume of contacts and the curated events. They described the week as a dense opportunity to reach investors, strategic partners and service providers. However converting meetings into financings or deals requires a longer runway. Early outreach to contacts, persistent follow up and on the ground expertise were repeatedly highlighted as decisive factors for turning introductions into term sheets.

Practical constraints and realistic expectations:Large investor weeks generate noise as well as signal. Many meetings are exploratory and lead generation is useful but not sufficient. Costs to attend and the time investment to prepare, travel and follow up can be substantial for small companies. Legal and regulatory preparation matters, especially for US trials or partnerships. Working with local counsel and advisors like Wilson Sonsini and Fraser helps, but does not guarantee funding or commercial deals.

Quick comparative summary

Element	EIC cohort	Health Holland cohort	Partners and events
Number of companies	14 EIC Accelerator companies	7 Health Holland Global Scale-up Program companies	Anchor events with WSGR and Fraser plus curated side events
Primary support offered	Anchor events, investor lists, flexible scheduling	Three day pre US workshop, personalised guidance before and during the tour	Workshops, legal and transaction guidance, introductions to investors and corporates
Example company goals	Fundraising, US trials, licensing conversations	Fundraising, investor meetings, market entry	Access to investor networks, help navigating US legal and commercial norms

Implications for European innovation policy and scaleups

The coordinated presence of EIC BAS and Health Holland underlines a persistent gap that European scaleups face. Public funding can underwrite development but accessing international capital and commercial partnerships depends on specialist networks, regulatory readiness and professional advice. EIC BAS and national programmes provide valuable scaffolding to bridge that gap. Still, policymakers and programme operators should avoid treating short term event attendance as a proxy for successful scale up. Measuring outcomes requires tracking follow up meetings, funding closed, licensing deals signed and regulatory milestones achieved months after the week ends.

Practical advice for founders considering JP Morgan Week

Plan months ahead. Prioritise which investors and corporate development teams you want to meet. Use local partners to reduce avoidable legal or compliance missteps. Build a follow up framework before you fly out. Consider programme support such as EIC BAS or Health Holland which can expand your access and help manage logistics. Expect that most conversations will be first steps not closings and budget accordingly.

About the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference and sources

The J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference is one of the largest healthcare investor gatherings globally. Each January it draws industry leaders, fast growth companies, technology vendors and investment professionals. This article is based on the European Innovation Council press story dated 5 February 2025 and additional publicly available programme information from Health Holland, Wilson Sonsini and partners.

Disclaimer: Information in this piece is provided for knowledge sharing and analysis and should not be taken as the official view of the European Commission or any other organisation.