Polymodels hub - accelerating drug development with modelling, simulation, data and the accounting support of Beany

Drawing on past experience, Polymodels Hub is capitalising on an opportunity to accelerate the development of new drugs and deliver them to patients faster.​

“We are a venture-backed business that supports pharmaceutical companies with digital tools in the development of new molecules and products.” Antonio explains, “We work on the development side of things. How to bring a drug from the lab to the manufacturing facilities and how to do that in a digital manner.”​

With three co-founders developing expertise in differing scientific domains, Antonio believes their business provides a unique mix of product and service for the industry.​

“Two of us worked together at a large pharmaceutical organisation, so we explored firsthand the actual pain and benefit of trying to implement some of these solutions, and where there was a bit of a gap, particularly from the product standpoint, but also positioning in terms of types of services offered. We’ve seen the big opportunity and return on investment that this type of tool brings to the actual pharmaceutical organisations and that gave us the confidence that we could scale across the industry in a similar manner. Our third co-founder has expertise in the product side of things, so in order to build our product it was a good move to add an additional person that could bring that.”​

In a journey that’s spanned less than nine months of full-time operation, they are already making exceptional leaps beyond their initial starting plans and vision.​

Antonio expresses his excitement: “I’m happy about the type of partnerships we’ve already established. Getting to work with three of the top 10 is priceless for a start-up and it’s very exciting. Being able to grow the team from day one and create a team of fantastic individuals has been another key success. Every time a new team member starts with the right attitude and skill set it feels like a win.”​

Amongst their wins so far is also getting a seed round of investment.​

As a small start-up, Polymodels Hub’s biggest challenge is trying to get into large pharmaceutical companies.​

“You need to have the right type of conversations with the right people to convince these businesses you can effectively provide more value than other companies out there.” Antonio admits.​

Although being a challenge, it’s one that they also consider a win when they can celebrate the success of obtaining a new client.​

“I would say it’s really about showcasing what kind of value we can bring to the table to this large organisation, and showing we are solid enough to give them the confidence to partner with us for the years to come. It’s a nice challenge to have and we’re up for it, and I think so far it’s materialising well.”​

Antonio shares the role Beany has played in helping with the start-up journey so far.​

“I’ll be fully honest, it has been a fantastic experience so far.” he says. “Finding a good lawyer and accountant was the first tip I got when digging deeper into how to set up a company.”​

Speaking of the partnership that’s developed, he shares “I’ve been lucky that with Beany we’ve found a perfect partner from an accountant standpoint to really satisfy the type of needs that we have as a small business. In my case, it was also coming from abroad even though I’ve lived here for a few years. I wasn’t really familiar with the accounting rules and good practices in this country and Beany was the perfect partner to navigate me through that and provide the support I needed.”​

Having professional support has helped Antonio and his co-founders be able to focus on the business and what they’re trying to achieve.​

Reflecting on his journey so far, Antonio emphasises the value of patience, knowing your vision and the people. ​

“One key thing is you need to be patient for things to materialise. The second is that you need to keep strong on the vision and the strategy that you put together. I think another thing I’ve learned is to invest as much as possible in people. This is something I had the chance to explore when I was in previous roles, but with a start-up, it’s even more important. At the end of the day we are a group of people working towards a vision and a goal, so it’s crucial to find the right people to start the journey. So far it’s been great.”​

When asked for advice for other business owners, Antonio gave us the following two gems:​

For Antonio and the team the next step is to expand as much as possible. “We want to expand the type and number of customers we have, and also try to push a lot on the product. I think the objective for next year is to start to deploy the product at scale, reach a wide number of companies and try to really shape it in the best way possible.”​

With a strong belief in the importance of team, Antonio shares with us the potential to also grow in that space and create an impact that’s more than just business.​

“We’re expanding the team and looking forward to seeing what else we could build on top of what has already been achieved to really create value for the companies first, but most importantly the patients.” he shares. “The ultimate goal is to reduce the timelines for the development of drugs and bring medicine to patients faster, so that’s really what creates impact. And not just a business impact, but an impact for society.”​

We can’t wait to see the difference Polymodels Hubs will continue to make with their technology and the lasting impact on the acceleration of drug development and the overall healthcare industry.​

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