Parexel kicks off new biotech incubator in Raleigh
Key Takeaways
- Launched in North Hills: Global CRO Parexel and Cape Fear BioCapital partner to help emerging companies
- Connections for new biotechs: Incubator to connect young companies to strategic, clinical, regulatory, business and venture capital expertise
- Collaboration is key: More support early on may help companies reach next milestones more quickly and get therapies to patients faster
Budding biotechnology entrepreneurs now have a new way to connect with the strategic and financial resources and expertise needed to turn promising ideas into novel therapeutics: the Parexel Biotech Incubator. The initiative kicked off Oct. 16 at a special event in Raleigh.
Parexel is a global clinical development organization providing insights-driven clinical and consulting solutions to the world’s life sciences industry. It has been in North Carolina since 2014 and moved its global headquarters to Raleigh in 2025.
The Parexel Biotech Incubator brings emerging companies into Parexel’s North Hills facilities and connects them with experts across regulatory strategy, trial design, early-phase development and technology. Durham-based Cape Fear BioCapital, the incubator’s first venture partner, brings extensive experience developing young life sciences companies.
Biotech innovators, founders and academic leaders joined executives from Parexel and Cape Fear BioCapital for the event, which included remarks and a ribbon-cutting. Parexel Chief Executive Officer Peyton Howell wielded the giant scissors.
“We know it's hard, especially when you're just getting started... We know as a large global clinical research organization, we can do more,” Howell said. “Tonight is all about kicking that off, leveraging our expertise, leveraging our assets to be able to connect with biotech early.”
The company’s LinkedIn post about the launch noted, “Breakthrough therapies don't happen in isolation. They are built through strong science, strategic partnerships and shared purpose.”
The incubator kickoff “marked another important milestone in our long-term commitment to help emerging biotech companies access … the expertise they need earlier in their development journey.
We know it's hard, especially when you're just getting started... We know as a large global clinical research organization, we can do more,” Howell said. “Tonight is all about kicking that off, leveraging our expertise, leveraging our assets to be able to connect with biotech early.
—Parexel CEO Payton Howell
’Incubator/2-2-2
“The evening highlighted the strength of North Carolina's scientific community and the opportunity that exists when entrepreneurs, investors and development experts come together around a common goal: helping promising therapies reach patients sooner,” the post continued.
The new incubator also fits well with North Carolina’s life sciences growth, the company said, noting North Carolina, ranks seventh in the U.S. for life sciences employment, with more than 103,000 workers. “This is our home. This is our headquarters … so we are committed to seeing it grow,” Howell added.
“As we launch the Parexel Biotech Incubator, we have this vision and this idea that if we can bring people together into an ecosystem here in North Carolina, that we can really create the next real hub of activity,” said Jim Anthony, Parexel Biotech’s chief commercial officer and president.
The incubator builds on Parexel’s broader commitment to invest in and foster early-stage innovation alongside leading venture capital firms, the company said in a news release. Parexel has established collaborative relationships with leading venture firms as part of its strategy to advance and accelerate the next generation of therapeutics companies.
Cape Fear BioCapital is described on its website as “early-stage VC [venture capital], backing the next generation of therapeutics companies emerging from North Carolina's world-class research ecosystem.” Ed Field, general manager, and Jimmy Melton and Dave Ousterout, Ph.D., general partners, have decades of experience building and running life sciences companies.
The alliance between Cape Fear BioCapital and Parexel creates a direct connection between the venture firm’s portfolio companies and Parexel’s clinical and regulatory expertise at the stage when development decisions carry the most weight, according to the news release.
Speaking at the event, Ousterout said, “We have this incredible innovation pool, but it’s largely preclinical, that needs to get its way to the clinic.
“In today’s biotech market, investors expect companies even at the earliest stages to understand the time, capital and experience required to reach their next development milestone,” he added.
The incubator’s next phase will include thought leadership offerings and educational programming exclusively available to Parexel Biotech Incubator companies.
Read more about Parexel
- Parexel opens new global headquarters in Raleigh’s North Hills Innovation District | North Carolina Biotechnology Center
- Collaborative approach is key to successful CGT clinical trials | North Carolina Biotechnology Center