The sender of the email almost exactly 10 years ago: Tubulis co-founder Jonas Helma-Smets. After his time at Chromotek, he stays at LMU to complete his PhD while working in parallel on a new technology: a method for targeted modification of proteins with application in antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs).
But in 2016, it’s still just an idea. There’s no money, no equipment, no partners.
So Helma-Smets writes directly to Philipp Baaske, co-founder of NanoTemper and current vice president of entrepreneurship at LMU. No formal pitch, no network in the background – just a personal request for exchange and possible collaboration.
Looking back, for Baaske it’s less the idea that’s decisive than the person behind it: someone who doesn’t stop believing in their idea. Or as Baaske describes it in his LinkedIn post:
“Over the years, I’ve seen how Jonas and Dominik built Tubulis from the inside out.
The sleepless nights. The sacrifices. The moments when almost no one but themselves believed in the technology. That’s the part that no press release will ever capture. That’s what 5 billion dollars actually looks like.”
In parallel at LMU: The journey from research project to startup
Independently, the Tubulis story already gains momentum at LMU in 2015. Helma-Smets and co-founder Dominik Schumacher approach the LMU Spin-off Service to further develop their idea and apply for funding, as startup manager Michael Blind tells us in the interview.
“They told me about their idea, that they had technologies to produce improved ADCs, and that they were thinking about spinning out and raising funding.”
The path leads through classic funding programs like the EXIST research transfer and later the M4 Award. This phase is demanding – not only scientifically but also administratively. Funding applications must be developed, business plans created, and the potential of the technology convincingly demonstrated.
At the center is a well-known problem in the ADC field: the connection between antibody and drug is often unstable and difficult to control.
Blind describes it this way:
“The problem is that the connection between antibodies and toxins using traditional methods is rather random. You can’t control how many toxins are bound, the connections are unstable – and that leads to severe side effects.”
This is exactly where Tubulis comes in.
“The core of the idea was a new technology that enables the stable and very targeted production of these conjugates.”
For him, it’s clear early on: this innovation has potential – especially because there are already major deals on the market showing how high the pharmaceutical industry’s interest in such technologies is.
From LMU spin-off to billion-dollar deal with Gilead
In 2020, Tubulis leaves the university and takes the next step as an independent company. The first major financing round of around ten million euros marks the transition from research project to scalable biotech startup.
Blind describes the founders as extraordinarily focused:
“I always experienced them as very goal-oriented. They pursued this with great dedication and passion. They focused on solving a core problem in the manufacturing process of these ADCs – and that was a real breakthrough in this field. Today you would also call that a disruptive innovation.”
An innovation that captures the interest of major pharmaceutical companies.
With the acquisition by Gilead, Tubulis finally reaches a scale that is rare in Germany. For Blind, the deal is a “true milestone,” not just for Munich but for all of Europe. He also sees it as having a signaling effect:
“This shows that such big stories aren’t just possible in the US but also here in Germany and Europe.”
More than an exit: What the Tubulis story reveals
And yet it all begins with a single email. Not as part of a program. Not as a strategically planned step. But as a direct attempt to reach someone who could help further. Alongside that: years of structured build-up work at the university – funding applications, validation, financing. The Tubulis story shows both: excellent science and the initiative to take the first step yourself.
