Biotech, TechBio, and what this means for hiring in 2026
One of the most common conversations I’ve had with founders and investors over the past year starts with a simple question, but one that carries significant implications:
Are you a biotech company using AI? Or are you building a true TechBio company?
At first glance, the difference may seem semantic. In practice, it defines how companies are built, how science is done, and, critically, how teams must be hired.
At Aspire Life Sciences, we define TechBio as technology-led biotechnology. These are organisations where computational platforms, AI models, software engineering, and data infrastructure are not supporting functions layered onto biology. They are core scientific drivers of discovery and development. Biology and computation evolve together, not in parallel.
That distinction is becoming increasingly important as we head into 2026.
Why positioning matters for early-stage companies
For early-stage startups seeking seed or Series A funding, talent strategy is now inseparable from scientific credibility. Investors are no longer asking only what a company’s technology does. They are asking who is capable of building, maintaining, and scaling it.
We are seeing heightened scrutiny around whether teams can build AI capability internally, rather than relying solely on vendors, consultants, or off-the-shelf tools. The ability to develop proprietary models, curate high-quality datasets, and integrate computation directly into R&D is now a key signal of long-term value.
This shift has direct implications for hiring.
The new hiring reality in TechBio
Across our work with early and growth-stage companies, several clear patterns have emerged:
- Hybrid leadership roles are becoming essential. Leaders combine deep biological understanding with computational and data fluency
- Machine learning, data science, and software engineering hires are being embedded directly within R&D teams, rather than sitting in isolated tech functions
- Principal scientists and technical leaders are expected to shape platforms, not just run experiments
- Competition is intensifying for niche talent that can operate at the intersection of biology, algorithms, and scale
The companies that get this right early tend to accelerate rapidly. Those that delay often struggle to retrofit these capabilities later.
Bioptimus: Technology as the scientific engine
Bioptimus offers a clear example of what technology-led biotech looks like in practice.
Founded to build a universal AI foundation model for biology, Bioptimus has positioned computation at the heart of its scientific strategy. The launch of models such as H-optimus-1, described as the world’s largest foundation model for pathology, demonstrates how software and AI are not enabling biology, they are the biology.
This positioning shapes hiring decisions. Building and training such models requires world-class expertise in machine learning, large-scale data infrastructure, and software engineering, tightly integrated with biological and medical insight. It’s no surprise that Bioptimus has invested early in technical leadership, scientific advisory capacity, and strategic compute partnerships to support this ambition.
For investors, the depth and quality of this talent bench is as important as the models themselves.
AITHYRA: Building research around AI from day one
AITHYRA, the Research Institute for Biomedical Artificial Intelligence under the Austrian Academy of Sciences, provides another compelling example.
Backed by a landmark €150 million grant, AITHYRA was designed from inception to place AI-driven research at the centre of life sciences discovery. Its founding research groups span machine learning, robotics, and computational biology alongside traditional life sciences disciplines.
This model demands a fundamentally different approach to recruitment. Scientific leadership at AITHYRA requires individuals who can operate fluently across biology and computation, set research agendas that integrate both, and attract multidisciplinary teams capable of advancing them. Building this capability from day one has allowed the institute to scale rapidly and establish itself as a global hub for AI-driven biomedical research.
Building the right team starts early
As the line between biotech and TechBio continues to sharpen, one thing is clear: talent decisions made early are often the hardest to unwind later.
For founders preparing for seed or Series A rounds, hiring is no longer just about filling gaps. It’s about signalling capability, credibility, and ambition to investors, partners, and future hires. The right executive leaders, principal scientists, and technical architects don’t just execute a roadmap; they help define it.
At Aspire Life Sciences, we partner with early-stage and scaling companies to design and deliver talent strategies aligned to how modern life sciences are actually built. Where biology, AI, data, and software are inseparable.
If you’re:
- Hiring your first computational or AI leaders
- Building R&D teams where machine learning sits at the core
- Preparing for fundraising and want to strengthen your technical narrative
- Competing for niche talent at the intersection of biology and technology
We would welcome a conversation.
Whether you’re actively recruiting or simply sense that your team structure needs to evolve, let’s talk about your hiring plans for 2026.
Because in TechBio, who you hire early often determines how far you can go.
About the author
James Trott co-founded Aspire in 2013 but has been working in the Finance & Life Sciences space since his arrival to the UAE in 2009. He brings with him a wealth of experience and has grown the business based on relationships he has cultivated over the decade he has spent in the Middle East. His focus areas include Finance/Accounting, Medical & Technical Pharmaceutical’s including, Regulatory Affairs, Compliance, Market Access, Medical, Compliance and Finance.
James’ strength lies in building strong relationships with senior-level executives as well as retaining business and ensuring best practice methods are always at the forefront of the companies’ service.
Leave a Reply