In this inaugural episode of The Connect Current, host James R. Zanewicz interviews Denise Bevers, founder and CEO of VetMab Bio, a San Diego‑based veterinary biopharma developing monoclonal‑antibody (mAb) therapeutics for companion animals. Denise explains that mAbs, which have transformed human medicine, can offer more targeted and safer treatments for cats and dogs, whose owners cannot communicate symptoms. She describes the company’s pipeline of five clinical‑stage candidates, including an inflammatory bowel disease drug for dogs, and outlines the economics of animal‑health drug development (≈ $15 million and five years per product) and the attractive ROI. Denise recounts her two‑decade career in biotech, from early work at Scripps and Elan (where she helped create Tysabri) to founding Kindred Bio, taking it public, and its acquisition by Elanco. She credits San Diego’s dense research and biotech ecosystem—UCSD, IDEA Week, local investors, and a culture that blends science, art, and community—as critical to VetMab’s success. The conversation also covers VetMab’s current Series A raise (seed + SAFE conversion), hiring talent, and the importance of timing, capital, and execution. Finally, Denise discusses her leadership role with Connect, the organization’s “Cool Companies” program, and how her involvement with the La Jolla Playhouse and Scripps Oceanography council fuels cross‑disciplinary inspiration. The episode underscores the growing opportunity in animal‑health innovation and the supportive San Diego ecosystem that enables it.
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Who did we choose for our first Connect Current guest? She's into creativity, companion animals, and Connect. Listen to learn more. Welcome to the Connect Current, the flow of innovation in San Diego. We bring you the founders, investors, and leaders building the future across life science, tech, climate, defense, AI, and more. This is where San Diego's next chapter takes shape. Welcome to The Connect Current, the flow of innovation in San Diego. I'm your host, James Zanewicz, and this episode is being recorded at the UC San Diego Park and Market building. We want to thank them for that support. Today, I'm joined by Denise Bevers, founder and CEO of VetMam Bio. Denise is a highly experienced life sciences entrepreneur and drug development leader, and she's now helping build a San Diego company focused on advancing innovation in animal health. This is exactly the kind of conversation we like to have on the Connect Current, because it sits at the intersection of company building, translational science, and the broader question of how San Diego continues to create new categories of impact. Denise, welcome to the show.
Thank you for having me, James.
And you're our first guest ever.
Oh my gosh, the pressure.
It's so incredible. You're launching the Connect Current. It's fabulous to have you here, but there may be listeners who are meeting you and VetMedBio for the first time. So what are you building? What problem are you solving? And why did this feel like a company creating now? 'Cause it's not your first one.
Thank you, James. I'm so excited to introduce VetMab Bio to your listeners. We are a veterinary biopharmaceutical company, and we are developing really innovative and sophisticated drugs for cats and dogs, for our beloved pets. And this is such an interesting area because there's so much room for innovation in this space. The mAb in Vetmab Bio stands for monoclonal antibody. And as you may know, monoclonals are huge on the human side. They really revolutionized medical care for human beings, and now we're doing the same for pets. Because as you know, a pet really can't tell you if something's wrong. So oftentimes when they take a pill, a small molecule, they may have side effects that they can't describe, whereas monoclonal antibodies are a bit more targeted therapy. A little bit more targeted. a little bit safer for our pets. And I think pets have been part of the family for such a long time, but post-COVID, it's a really different beast, if you will. And people love their pets and they want the best healthcare. And we're so excited to be at the forefront of bringing that type of healthcare to pets. Yeah.
And I love that you talked about pets not being able to tell you when something's wrong. And I think it's interesting 'cause I live with 2 cats. My friend Mike Rondelli, who's housed me in my transition, but his cats, G and Louie, and they will tell you all the things and usually not when anything important is wrong, but when, you know, So unimportant things are wrong. So it, it's incredible that what you're developing will be able to work around that in many ways.
Oh, thank you for that. Yeah, the love is real and the care for our pets is really important in our daily lives.
And you're focused on companion animals, and often there are dog camps and cat camps. How do you bridge those? This is my funny part.
Yes, I love that. Yes, there are definitely dog camps and cat camps and even dog veterinarians and cat veterinarians. But yeah, the love is there certainly, and the willingness, I think, to take care of pets is most definitely there across both of those species.
Yes.
And yeah, and it's a funny question because, you know, I mean, a cat is not a small dog.
Right.
So we actually are developing, even if we go after the same target in the body, it's a very different drug for a cat or a dog, even if it's technically the same drug. So it's, it's really important that we treat our companion animals as individuals.
I like that. Just like people, it's personalized medicine.
There you go.
But for our pets.
That's right.
All right. But you've had a long run in drug development and company building, as we talked about, both as a COO and CEO. What did you see in animal health that told you there was still real room for innovation that led to VetMab?
Absolutely. So I've been in San Diego a really long time, and I was, I started out in the late '80s working at Scripps Clinic and Research Foundation, and then I jumped over into biotech and pharma, and I was working at a local company in the very early 2000s, Elan Pharmaceuticals, and we were working on a monoclonal antibody for humans for multiple sclerosis, which ended up being Tysabri. And I went to one of my colleagues and I said, you know, Why don't we have these types of drugs for pets or consider it? And at the time, back in early 2002, I think it was, the cost of manufacturing these drugs would've made it impossible for a pet owner to afford them.
Mm-hmm.
So it took about 10 years before we started our first company in 2012, which was named Kindred Bio. And the same thing at Kindred Bio, our goal was to develop large molecules, again, these really sophisticated medications. And we, believe it or not, we founded the company in 2012 and we were publicly Publicly traded in 2013. So we were building the plane while flying it under the public spotlight.
And successfully.
Well, thank you for that. Yeah, we, we had a great— we had a couple of FDA approvals and we were then acquired by Elanco, which is a very prominent animal health company.
Yeah. And San Diego, it was often known for human biotech more so than animal, even though we have a lot of animal biotech here. But how has being in this ecosystem in San Diego helped shape your journey, and where do you think this region can do more in animal health and adjacent innovation?
I love this region. I mean, we were formerly called Biotech Beat in the heyday, and we're getting back to that. I think between UCSD and the innovation coming out of UCSD, and then all of the biotech and pharma companies, it's such a rich environment for innovation. We have For example, you know, we have our IDEA Week, innovation— no, you tell me, James.
Innovation, Discovery, Expression, and Art. You put me on the spot, but I got it.
I love it.
Kylie Hovey, our former marketing manager, trained me on it. Yeah.
And it's a beautiful thing because we have, I mean, we have science, we have art, we have this unbelievable discovery and innovation ecosystem.
And in the ecosystem, The challenge is never just the science, even in a science-driven company. It's about timing, capital, focus, execution. What have been the most important judgment calls for you so far that you've had to make?
Oh, that's a really good question. I think part of—
You can thank ChatGPT for that.
Oh, yeah.
Sometimes it's a good thought partner.
I mean, capital is always the challenge, right? I mean, I think, you know, I could put so much money to work right now because we have this rich pipeline. We have 5 different product candidates in active development. We're actually a clinical stage company right now. We have our first drug for inflammatory bowel disease in dogs in the clinic treating pets, which is incredible. And so, you know, the markets obviously drive what we're able to do. The beautiful thing about animal health is we can be pretty granular about our spend. It costs about $15 million to develop one of these drugs all the way from concept through FDA approval, and it takes about 5 years, which is very different, of course, than what it costs to develop a human drug. But the interesting thing is that these drugs will sell hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars potentially, so the ROI is unbelievable. So getting access to capital, given the macro environment, of course, hiring the right people and being in San Diego is—
100%.
I mean, we are, Boy, are we in a wonderful place for hiring talent. And so that's always a challenge, but also such a reward, as you well know.
Yeah, I mean, and people just— people want to be here. And as a recent transplant to San Diego, I can tell you it is an incredible ecosystem. And it's one I had spent time in, but not nearly enough, I don't feel like, because it's better than San Francisco. It's better than Boston. And it's something we don't tell people about enough. So we're doing it right now.
Exactly. Exactly.
As we always like to ask our company guests, our CEOs, Are you in a raise right now? Do you have one coming up? And if so, what do you want to tell us about it?
Well, thanks for asking about that. We actually are launching an equity raise as we speak. I've got a number of investors in diligence to potentially lead the round, which is exciting. And with that, we can bring a number of our pipeline candidates into clinical development. We could start manufacturing our drugs, which is really exciting. And as I mentioned earlier, the timeline for these drugs is, it's so incredible that we can create solutions for cats and dogs within 5 years for around $15 million.
That's incredible. Do you know what type of raise it'll be? It'll be a Series A?
It is. It's a Series A. We raised a seed round and we also had a SAFE.
Nice.
And that SAFE will convert in this Series A round.
Very nice. And so I want to transition a little bit from the company to your role with Connect. You're one of our co-vice chairs.
I am.
So you'll be coming in as chair in 3 years.
Yes.
And so looking down to that, But I want to ask you, why do you do that? Why? Because you put a lot of your personal time, your heart into Connect, and it's an opportunity to kind of tell the community why. What have you gotten back from Connect, and why do you give back to Connect?
Oh, I mean, I love Connect. Connect is the place to be in biotech and tech in San Diego, and even a bit beyond, I would say. So I was really honored to be asked to be put into succession for the chair role. James McKay, of course, is our chair right now, and he's— those are some big shoes to follow. But Ashley, who is my Ashley Van Zeeland and I will certainly do our best to fill those shoes. But VetMap Bio was a Cool Company. Oh yeah, that's right. Back in 2023, which again, super cool. I mean, hundreds of companies apply to be a Cool Company and Connect culls it down, which is so wonderful for investors because investors can look to Cool Companies and say, okay, there's been a really amazing group of judges in both biotech and tech, really seasoned individuals who review these companies and pick a curated list to be the Cool Companies. for that year. And with that, we had exposure, we met some great investors, and it was just such a wonderful experience. And Connect has so many great programs and also a lot of events where founders and entrepreneurs and executives and investors, and we all mix and mingle, and really something wonderful for the ecosystem.
And I love that you mentioned Cool Companies because we just did— we're recording obviously earlier than this will drop, but Cool Companies just dropped yesterday.
Wonderful.
The 2026, '24, of the cool companies of San Diego. And then this podcast will actually be released at the VC Roadshow, which is our public unveiling to investors where they mix and mingle with investors for an afternoon and evening. That's the day of the launch of the podcast.
Oh my goodness.
It's a perfect callback, call forward. And then we also have what is going to be our signature question on the Connect Current. So you are setting the standard for how people get to answer this, which I love. In a city that is built on science, curiosity, creativity, and reinvention, what drives your innovative flow?
Oh gosh. I mean, San Diego is built for innovation in the sense that, so I also am the very proud chair of the board of La Jolla Playhouse, and I also sit on the director's council for Scripps Institution of Oceanography. And so San Diego affords this rich environment as it applies to innovation, whether it be in art or science, For me, I mean, I love the marine sciences, so I get to be part of that through the Director's Council, and it motivates me every day. I mean, I will meet people through the theater that spark innovation for our biotech company. I mean, it goes hand in hand. I think innovation comes in so many ways. And honestly, I mean, I sound like I'm doing an ad for San Diego, but it's the truth. I mean, there's really nowhere better to sit to be someone who is working in innovation.
Yeah, and people work hard and play hard here, which I love. There's a work-life balance here. that you do not find in other places, which I think does spark innovation.
I think so too. I think nature, you know, we've got all these beautiful places, whether it be Torrey Pines or Sunset Cliffs. And I mean, you can go, I mean, there, I know there are tech groups that get together and go on hikes because we are afforded this incredible weather. So yeah, San Diego is pretty special.
Well, Denise, I want to thank you for this really thoughtful conversation, for coming and joining us, for launching the Connect Current and doing it so well. And being a great reminder that San Diego innovation is bigger than any one lane. It's about people building meaningful solutions wherever there's real need. And I'm so grateful for you taking the time to do this with us.
Thank you, James.
So everyone, I want to thank you for listening to The Connect Current. As always, we're going to have more information on Denise, on VetMap Bio, on the La Jolla Playhouse, on Scripps, and the UC San Diego Park and Market building. We want to thank them for their support today. We'll have those in our show notes with some links. If you want to learn more about CONNECT and explore resources across San Diego's innovation ecosystem, visit connect.org, and we will see you next time on The CONNECT Current, where San Diego's innovation story keeps moving forward. Thanks for listening to The CONNECT Current. If you want to learn more about CONNECT and explore resources across San Diego's innovation ecosystem, follow us on LinkedIn or visit connect.org. We'll see you next time on The Connect Current, where San Diego's innovation story keeps moving forward.
This podcast was edited and produced by Resonate Recordings.
