I just arrived at The Longevity Show, and it’s huge. Almost 4,000 people are braving the heatwave in London to explore healthspan from every angle, Peloton, Lululemon and TechnoGym sessions, deep dives into health systems, on-site longevity clinics, and - my focus today - a startup pitch contest.
Twice as many people signed up than the exhibitors, the same group publishing Longevity.Technology, originally estimated. That tells you something: Responsibility for health is expanding beyond the medical establishment to individuals themselves. Medicine’s role isn’t diminished, but people now have more knowledge and tools than ever to choose healthier lives. That shift is what this show is really about.
At the pitch contest, the top five finalists — selected from roughly 100 applicants — will battle it out live in front of a judge panel of eight international longevity investors. The question: which startup is best placed to scale longevity and make a meaningful impact on healthspan?
The five could not be more different, yet each tackles a real piece of healthspan. Loosely, they split into two camps: Startups pursuing breakthroughs in serious chronic diseases tied to aging and longevity, and startups making incremental contributions that could reach many people at scale.
On the breakthrough side: OvartiX is tackling ovarian health and female reproductive aging and Anyo Labs is going after inflammaging through AI-driven drug discovery. On the incremental side: Enbiosis is applying AI-designed microbiome nutrition to chronic conditions like dry eye disease; The Protein Brewery has built a new, sustainable protein source with particular relevance to aging and Zuri Health is expanding digital healthcare access across Africa.
I have no idea how we’ll pick a winner from this group. But I couldn’t ask for a more qualified, more international panel to take on the challenge. From London: Max Gottschalk, Partner at the Longevity Fund by Clinique La Prairie; Paolo Pio, Co-Founder and General Partner of Exceptional Ventures and Pooja Sikka of Meridian Health Ventures. Two Canadian funds are represented: Brenda Irwin of Relentless Ventures, and Lyne Landry of AgeTech Capital. Abby Levy, Founder of Primetime Partners, flew in from New York. Alexandra Bause joins from Berlin-based Apollo Health Ventures. And I’m rounding out the panel myself, from GMPVC.
A few years ago, an event like The Longevity Show wouldn’t have been possible. Longevity was a niche topic, the medical underpinnings were often missing, and there was little entrepreneurial or startup interest. Today’s show proves that has changed.