April in review
Something shifted in April. Not dramatically, there was no single announcement that changed everything. But across deals, data, and in the conversations we’re having with developers, clinicians, and investors, the same message kept surfacing: CGT isn't asking whether it works anymore. It's asking how do we deliver it at scale.
This is what excited us this month:
- Big pharma is buying capabilities, not just asset: UCB's $1.15bn acquisition of Neurona Therapeutics and Eli Lilly's potential $7bn deal for Kelonia Therapeutics both point in the same direction: large pharma wants platform technologies, not one-off programmes. In vivo CAR-T and CNS applications are attracting serious, structural investment. Scalability is now a dealmaking criterion, not an afterthought.
- The shift toward scalable cell therapy is accelerating: Allogene Therapeutics’ emerging momentum is adding further validation to the off-the-shelf model. With the broader move toward allogeneic, industrialised manufacturing is increasingly looking like the direction of travel for the field. In vivo CAR-T presents a more complex picture, early results are exciting, but key questions remain around safety, control, and reproducibility.
- Capital is back, but it's picky: A $125m oversubscribed Series B for Ray Therapeutics and Blackstone's $6.3bn life sciences fund both tell the same story: investor appetite is returning, but concentration is increasing. Money is moving toward platform plays and later-stage assets with credible paths to commercial scale. Incremental science with no clear route to market is finding it harder.
- Regulation and manufacturing are quietly catching up: The FDA is actively exploring faster clinical pathways. Partnerships like RoosterBio and MineBio Life Sciences reflect an industry that's started treating manufacturing as a core strategic problem, not a downstream concern. Infrastructure is being built in real time.
Looking ahead: Advanced Therapies Europe
We're deep in preparations for Advanced Therapies Europe, and we're genuinely excited about how it is taking shape. Here's a sneak peek at what's coming:
We're releasing the full agenda next week, and it reflects exactly where the industry's head is right now. The 2026 programme is built around one challenge: how do you move advanced therapies from lab to patient, faster, cheaper, and at scale across a fragmented European system?
The four threads running through it are aligned with what we have seen in the market: regulatory alignment and European competitiveness; patient access and real-world outcomes; scaling clinical and manufacturing execution; and commercialisation under capital discipline.
One voice shaping the agenda is Dr Esteve Trias, Technical Director of the Advanced Therapies Unit at Hospital Clinic de Barcelona. His perspective from within the Barcelona BioRegion is direct: Europe has the science. The gap is in translating it and closing that gap will require tighter cross-border collaboration and a more integrated development model than currently exists. You can read the full interview with Dr Trias [here]
Advanced Therapies Europe will take place in Barcelona 7-9 September 2026. Full agenda and speakers landing next week. Watch this space.
More from us
If you want to stay close to what's moving in the field week to week, we publish a roundup of the most important CGT news every Friday on LinkedIn. Give us a follow so you don't miss it.
We also recently partnered with Catalent for a webinar exploring one of the field's most pressing manufacturing challenges. What's Next for AAV? Strategies for Global Scale-Up and Commercial Success is available to watch no. If AAV is on your radar, it's worth your time.
Have your say-next month?
Next month we're launching a new section featuring an expert opinion on the most important themes in CGT. Think this could be you?
Contact Ingerid Sorgaard Ingerid.sorgaard@phacilitate.com to secure your spot.
Until then…
Sources
https://www.fiercebiotech.com/biotech/lilly-picks-another-vivo-car-t-company-7b-deal-kelonia
https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/news/ucb-to-buy-neurona-nrtx1001/
https://pe-insights.com/blackstone-raises-record-life-sciences-fund-at-6-3bn-hard-cap/
https://www.fiercebiotech.com/biotech/ray-therapeutics-shines-light-125m-round-targeting-genetic-eye-therapy
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/roosterbio-and-minebio-life-sciences-partner-to-expand-access-to-scalable-high-quality-msc-and-exosome-bioprocessing-solutions-in-china-302736060.html
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