A ‘wait-and-see’ vibe dominates biotech’s biggest event of the year

Cartography Biosciences CEO Kevin Parker doesn’t see 2025 being much better than 2024 when it comes to financing opportunities for biotechnology companies like his. But like other executives who descended on San Francisco the week of Jan. 13 for the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference, he still took the opportunity to connect with investors, potential partners, and others to figure out creative solutions amid a yearslong downturn for the industry . There’s a lot up in the air this year. A new administration has just taken office in the US, with new heads of the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission to follow in short order. Many large pharmaceutical companies will soon lose exclusivity on major drugs, leaving their business development teams to figure out which compounds they could acquire to plug the inevitable revenue gaps. And as executives like Parker know, it can still be difficult for