From Start-Up Stadium to Global Demand: BIO 2025 Recap

By Inga Rose, Founder & CEO, Reference Medicine

Attending the BIO International Convention this year wasn’t new for me—it was my third time. But somehow, it still felt like the first time I truly took it all in. The scale, the pace, the potential. It’s hard to describe BIO to someone who hasn’t experienced it, but if I had to try, I’d say: it’s like biosciences speed dating—thousands of innovators and decision-makers in one space, all racing to find the right match in back-to-back 25-minute meetings, usually over lukewarm coffee and zero cell service.

Just two years ago, Reference Medicine was barely off the ground. I had the incredible opportunity to pitch in the Start-Up Stadium at BIO, standing on stage with nothing but a slide deck, a mission, and a very optimistic five-minute timer. Five minutes is barely enough time to explain HER2 scoring, let alone an entire vision for modernizing biospecimens. But I did my best, hoping someone in the crowd would see what we saw: that better samples could lead to better science.

Back then, no one knew who we were. I received a lot of polite nods... and a few skeptical side-eyes. Yet another specimen vendor, right?

Fast forward to 2025, and I found myself getting stopped in a crowd of over 10,000 attendees—people reaching out to say hi, to ask for help, or (in some cases) to share very urgent specimen needs with a look that said please tell me you can save my experiment. These were the kinds of requests that used to take months—and now, they know we can fill them in days. From NGS-screened tissue blocks and matched sets to blood products focused on advancing oncology research, our inventory is expanding and helping more researchers every day. That shift in recognition, and the trust behind it, wasn’t lost on me. It’s one of those quiet founder moments that hits you mid-chaos, between escalator rides and espresso shots: We’ve come a long way, and we’ve earned our seat at the table.

Representing Phoenix as a 2025 Biosciences Delegate

One of the most meaningful honors this year was being invited to serve as a 2025 Biosciences Delegate for the City of Phoenix. It was a full-circle moment—not just as a founder, but as someone who chose to build a company in Arizona on purpose.

Our biosciences community is booming. TGen is doubling down on its genomics capabilities. Arizona State is bringing in top-tier translational research. Dozens of life sciences startups are thriving. The Phoenix Bioscience Core is attracting serious talent and serious investment. And Reference Medicine is proud to be part of that momentum, creating specialized cancer biospecimen cohorts that fuel real-world research worldwide.

Being a delegate meant more than shaking hands and taking photos. It meant telling the real story of what’s happening in our city—and why it matters to the global community. I had the chance to meet other founders, academic leaders, and public officials who are just as invested in our ecosystem as we are at Reference Medicine. That sense of collective purpose is rare. And it’s part of what makes Phoenix such a powerful place to call home.

Phoenix isn’t just a place to build—it’s a place to grow with purpose…and with better parking than Boston! 😜

Standout Technologies in the Oncology Arena

Among the whirlwind of meetings, there were a few new-to-me, non-Phoenix companies that made a lasting impression—where the alignment was immediate, the science was sharp, and the conversation just clicked.

🧠 Owkin

Owkin continues to be one of the clearest examples of how AI and life sciences can (and should) work together. Their work in federated learning, predictive modeling, and real-time clinical trial support isn’t just visionary—it’s grounded. They’re solving the right problems, in the right way, with the right people.

🇩🇪 Alithea Biotechnology GmbH

Alithea brought the kind of tech I wish we had 10 years ago. Their IHC quantification platform is elegant, reproducible, and genuinely useful—especially for those of us who live in the world of tissue, biomarkers, and pathology nuance. Their approach respects the reality of lab work, which makes them easy to root for.

🧪 ProCan Technologies

ProCan’s proteomics platform is built for scale and precision—a rare combo. What impressed me most was how well they understood the needs of researchers and clinicians. They’re not just generating data; they’re building pipelines that can actually accelerate therapeutic development. Their team was thoughtful, driven, and deeply informed.

Back with a Stronger Sense of Mission than Ever

If I had to distill what this year’s BIO gave me in one word, it’d be perspective. It’s easy as a founder to get lost in the day-to-day—approvals, shipments, customer needs, hiring. But stepping into a space like BIO reminds you that we’re part of something bigger. Something global.

At Reference Medicine, we’re still a small and agile team, but the impact we’re making is growing fast. Researchers count on us for quality-controlled, clinically verified, hard-to-source specimens—because they know we don’t cut corners. We move fast, without compromising our attention to the details (and our customers). And that reputation matters.

BIO 2025 reminded me that there’s a lot of noise in this industry—but substance still matters. Integrity still matters. And if you keep showing up with the right values and doing the right thing—even when no one’s looking—people notice.

This year didn’t feel like a debut. It felt like a checkpoint. A chance to pause, look around, and say: Okay. We’re here. We’re trusted. Let’s go further.

To everyone who stopped to chat, asked hard questions, or shared where they’re stuck—thank you. You’re the reason we keep pushing.

Let’s keep building!
Inga