The BIST Catalysers training programme officially started today. Backed by the Banc Sabadell Foundation, the initiative is designed to foster entrepreneurship and innovation among researchers in the BIST Community.
Building on a strong track record of more than 50 spin-offs and 270 active patent families, the BIST Innovation Commission and the Talent managers created this new programme to further strengthen the community’s innovation capacity. A selected cohort of 17 researchers – the BIST Catalysers – will receive 92 hours of training and immersion in innovation and business, bringing fresh perspectives back to their research groups.
The Directors of BIST, Eduard Vallory, and Banc Sabadell Foundation, Sonia Mulero, on the opening of the event.
Following a call for applications and a rigorous selection process, the BIST Catalysers officially began their journey today. The 17 fellows, together with representatives from the BIST foundation, KTT and Innovation offices, the Banc Sabadell Foundation, and other programme collaborators, gathered at the Banc Sabadell headquarters auditorium in Sant Cugat del Vallès to mark the occasion.
“There is something you scientists have — resilience and a constant drive to understand beyond what the rest of us can see. This programme seeks to harness that momentum, that creative thinking, that desire to change the world, in order to create something truly valuable for society”, said Sonia Mulero, Director General of the Banc Sabadell Foundation, addressing the Catalysers fellows.
The event also featured an inspirational talk by Dr Meritxell Teixidó, CEO and co-founder of Gate2Brain, a spin-off from IRB Barcelona, Sant Joan de Déu Hospital, and the University of Barcelona, created in 2020 with investment from Banc Sabadell’s BStartup. Teixidó shared the journey from the discovery and development of peptides able to ‘shuttle’ drugs across the blood-brain barrier — “the result of 15 years of work by 10 PhD students at IRB Barcelona” — to the company’s creation and growth. In 2024, Gate2Brain received the EMA’s Orphan Drug Designation for a groundbreaking paediatric cancer treatment. Dr. Teixidó later engaged in a Q&A with the Catalysers, drawing from her own experience, which was warmly received by the audience.
Dr. Meritxell Teixidó (left). Some of the BIST Catalysers fellows (right)
The final part of the event, led by BIST collaborator Dr Iolanda Marchueta, introduced the 17 Catalysers from both a professional and personal perspective. The group, composed mainly of postdoctoral researchers (8), alongside PhD students (5), research managers (2) and group leaders (2), is diverse both scientifically and geographically, with members coming from Brazil, Ukraine, Uruguay, Poland, Iran, Portugal, Ireland, Russia, India, and more.
The morning closed with networking over coffee and pastries. Next week, the Catalysers will meet again at ESADE Business School to begin the From Science to Business course. The BIST Catalysers programme will also include sessions open to the wider BIST Community, which will be announced shortly.
Dr. Iolanda Marchueta facilitated the fellows introductions (left). Networking coffee (right)
