Driven by Expertise

Rocky has a background in the therapeutic applications of microbial molecular biology and has invented several patented genetic technologies and vaccine candidates. He founded Bitrobius Genetics in 2020 to develop his invention of Gentrafix, secured venture capital investment and began laboratory operations in 2021.
Prior to that he was the co-founder and CSO of immuno-oncology company Prokarium, which was spun out of Cobra Biologics (now part of Charles River Laboratories) where he was Head of Molecular Biology following a post-doctoral placement at the University of Oxford. His PhD was on the molecular genetics of cyanobacteria at the Universities of Durham and Newcastle upon Tyne.

Rocky enjoys travelling to exotic destinations to observe interesting wildlife, above and below the water.

Steven has held senior roles with both public and private companies in the UK and internationally. He has specialised in the translation of research into product development in both therapeutic, medtech and technology fields. His clinical development experience includes oncology, neuroscience and inflammatory disease. Steven’s recent appointments include CEO of mRNA company, eTheRNA, in Belgium from 2018 to 2022, CEO of French drug discovery company Ribonexus and most recently Co-Founder of Glen Clova Scientific Limited. He is Chair of Cambridge Cognition plc, an AIM-listed digital biomarker business.

As well as R&D, Steven has international marketing and corporate development experience. He has raised over $200m in equity and debt finance and led exits via trade sales and IPOs.  He was a partner with Gilde Healthcare, a Dutch domiciled venture capital fund, for over 13 years.

When not working, Steven enjoys hillwalking, field sports and long lunches with family and friends.

Laura joined SCVC, the official VC arm of Science Creates, in 2021 where she invests in early-stage deep tech companies. She serves as the SCVC Investor Director on the board of Bitrobius Genetics. Laura has broad experience across the life sciences. She is a Biochemist with seven years research experience across industry and university settings, holding Masters and Doctoral degrees in Biochemistry from the University of Oxford. Her research experience includes three years at TCR T-cell therapy biotech Adaptimmune.

Prior to joining SCVC, Laura worked at BBSRC-UKRI developing funding programmes to support the commercialisation of academic research.

Outside of work, Laura enjoys staying active through swimming, cycling and countryside walks, as well as spending quality time with friends and family.