Impact and ESG Report for the year ended 31 March 2021
CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CAPITAL
WELCOME TO
WE ENABLE VISIONARIES TO BUILD GLOBAL, CATEGORY-LEADING COMPANIES Cambridge Innovation Capital (CIC) is a leading venture capital investor backing and building category-leading deep tech and life sciences companies in the Cambridge ecosystem. Our unique relationship with the University of Cambridge, and focus on the Cambridge ecosystem, provides us with unparalleled access to investment opportunities. With our knowledge, experience and connections we work hard to build those opportunities into global businesses to create sustainable value for our stakeholders.
CIC is a central part of the Cambridge ecosystem. It provides expert support and investment to rapidly growing businesses in strategically important technology and life sciences fields. The University is delighted with the scale of impact achieved by CIC to date. PROFESSOR ANDY NEELY PRO-VICE-CHANCELLOR FOR ENTERPRISE AND BUSINESS RELATIONS
IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
CONTENTS Welcome to Cambridge Innovation Capital
IFC
Introduction
02
Our core values
04
Our theory of change
06
Our impact strategy
08
How we measure success
10
Our approach to responsible investment
12
Our environmental, social and governance policies
14
Annual survey of our portfolio companies
16
Impact case studies
32 £192.5M £1.5b 1,872 PORTFOLIO COMPANIES^
CMR Surgical
20
Exvastat
22
Origami Energy
24
PragmatIC Semiconductor
26
Sense Biodetection
28
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
30
Impact Management Project
IBC
CAPITAL INVESTED^
RAISED BY PORTFOLIO COMPANIES^
PORTFOLIO COMPANY EMPLOYEES* ^ cumulative * current
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CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CAPITAL
INTRODUCTION
By bringing together world-class research, innovation, entrepreneurship and access to capital, we help the extraordinarily diverse and talented community in Cambridge to build a safer, healthier, better connected world. CIC helps to build globally significant businesses based on deep technology innovation. These businesses expect to improve the health and prosperity of millions. Central to our mission is the belief that benefit to society is positively correlated to the financial return we deliver to our investors. Incorporating the consideration of impact and ESG (environmental, social and governance) factors into our investment practice aligns the investment activities with our core values and broader societal objectives. As an anchor institution in the Cambridge ecosystem, we seek to demonstrate leadership by working with our partners and co-investors in Cambridge, and the broader innovation ecosystem, to accelerate the consideration of impact and ESG factors in our portfolio companies.
operational good practice. In particular, we explain how we support entrepreneurs to develop robust governance, diverse and inclusive employment practices and awareness of any environmental issues relevant to their operations. We are delighted to issue our inaugural Impact and ESG Report to highlight how we are performing against our objectives to support innovative businesses and impact society in parallel with our commercial imperatives.
ANDREW WILLIAMSON MANAGING PARTNER MICHELLE LAMPRECHT ESG PROJECT LEAD
We acknowledge that there is some overlap between impact and ESG reporting, but also a significant distinction. Impact reporting provides information on the ways that our investments create positive impact, particularly through the products and services that they may create and offer. Impact reporting highlights who benefits from these investments and to what extent. ESG reporting provides information on the ways that we identify, mitigate, manage, monitor and report on the environmental, social and governance issues arising from the operation of our portfolio companies and how we identify opportunities to drive
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IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
Other
PORTFOLIO COMPANIES UNDER MANAGEMENT HAVE A CARRYING VALUE OF
£399M WWW.CIC.VC
Graphic represents carrying value at 31 March 2021
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CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CAPITAL
OUR CORE VALUES
How we conduct ourselves and how we do business is extremely important to everyone at CIC. We strive to be good citizens and successful business partners whilst achieving the best results.
WE WANT TO ACHIEVE THE EXTRAORDINARY
BUT NOT AT ANY COST
WE HAVE A PASSION FOR LEARNING AND KNOWLEDGE
We think big and believe anything is possible
We are committed to doing the right thing, even when no one else is looking
We are a people business and our success is built on enabling the growth and development of our team
We seek to be the best at what we do We are pioneers, we are bold
We speak with honesty, think with sincerity, act with integrity
04
We seek to ensure all members of our team are effective and fulfilled in their work
IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
We believe our values will help us build a prosperous and sustainable future, enhance financial returns and have a positive impact on our stakeholders. These values were developed by our amazing team and truly characterise what it means to be part of CIC.
AND KNOW WE ARE STRONGER TOGETHER
WE WANT A CULTURE AND TAKE PRIDE WHERE EVERYONE IN GIVING CAN BE THEMSELVES SOMETHING BACK
We use our combined resources, internally and in the Cambridge ecosystem, to get the best results
We celebrate different views and seek to avoid hierarchies
We pride ourselves on our ability to collaborate across sectors and markets
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Each person on our team matters and plays an important role in our organisation’s success
As individuals and an organisation, we can make a real difference to the future, our community and the environment We contribute positively to the Cambridge ecosystem, making it a great place to work, live and thrive
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CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CAPITAL
OUR THEORY OF CHANGE
Our theory of change shows how we seek to: support the development of innovation and entrepreneurship in the Cambridge ecosystem; invest in entrepreneurial founders building category-leading, global businesses; and achieve enhanced financial returns for our investors by investing in best-in-class companies and supporting the growth of those companies with the resources available. Beyond that, it shows how we seek to have a positive impact on society. We have selected the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (see page 30 for more information) as a framework to consider the potential impact of our investment and also to encourage certain behaviours in our portfolio companies.
THE SDGS THAT WE ASPIRE TO FULFIL THROUGH OUR CORE INVESTMENT ACTIVITIES ARE
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WE ALSO AIM TO ENCOURAGE CERTAIN BEHAVIOURS WITHIN OUR PORTFOLIO COMPANIES BY FOCUSING ON
to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being
to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote learning opportunities
to promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work
to achieve gender equality
to build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation
to reduce inequality
to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
to ensure responsible consumption and production
IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
CHALLENGES
ACTIVITIES
Insufficient support for entrepreneurial innovation Insufficient funding for early stage companies Low success rate for early stage companies
Development and commercialisation of impactful innovations
Enable visionaries to build global, category-leading companies
Early stage assessment of potential reach and depth of impact
Maintain a balanced and diversified portfolio
Deliver enhanced financial return for our investors
Strategic support to help build sustainable businesses
Lack of diversity in entrepreneurs and employees may result in missed opportunities
OUTCOMES
Deep engagement with the Cambridge ecosystem
Investment and other support for entrepreneurs and their businesses
Innovations that can deliver value to society may not find a way to scale
OUTPUTS
Encourage wider diversity in entrepreneurs and employees of portfolio companies
Opportunities identified for impact enhancement aligned with commercial goals
Share and promote best practice within the portfolio
Identify best practices within the portfolio
Crea tion of em pl oy m
uced environmenta impact
Re d
SDGs
Impact
l
B he en al e t
Cross-fertilise ideas and people within the portfolio to enhance outcomes
t en
ugh thro logy y t o cie chn so d te s o n n t s re a utio t fi ca ol s h
Attract more investment into our portfolio companies
Facilitate access to capital through building investment syndicates
Im
pr o ov ved er d tim iver sit y e
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io at c u e d ng e d ar n i v o r Imp nd le a
n
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CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CAPITAL
OUR IMPACT STRATEGY
CIC was founded to support the development of innovation and entrepreneurship in the Cambridge ecosystem. We invest in entrepreneurial founders building category-leading, global businesses based on intellectual property developed in, or connected with, Cambridge. By enabling the transition of innovation and entrepreneurship into global businesses, our portfolio companies are expected to deliver a positive impact, both in terms of their product and service offerings and by the businesses themselves. Our focus on life science and technology solutions delivers real benefits for our stakeholders. We seek to understand and capture these benefits and, where possible, explore opportunities to enhance the impact of each business in line with our commercial imperatives. Our businesses are active in a wide range of technologies, bringing benefits to health and prosperity, and helping in the transition to a more sustainable, better connected world. Examples of these can be found in the case studies on pages 20 to 29. Our investment process includes a review of the potential reach and depth of impact of the innovation, including the anticipated number of customers and the likely effect of the innovation on people and, where relevant, on the environment and low-carbon economy. We also estimate the expected impact on employment including, where relevant, the quality and diversity of employment. Given the early stage nature of our investments, these can only be broad estimates based on assumptions relating to the likely success of an innovation, the market opportunity and competing technologies/solutions, but the analysis provides an indication of the potential for positive impact.
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In some cases, our review identifies no specific impact interventions and concludes that the portfolio company will achieve the greatest impact simply by continuing its existing trajectory. In other cases, our review identifies specific opportunities for enhancing impact, perhaps by focusing on particular markets, targeting an unmet market, improving the diversity of the company’s board and/or employees or managing risks in the supply chain. In most cases, these are areas to be addressed at a specific time in the company’s development or over time as a company scales, employs more people and broadens its markets. We collect data from our portfolio companies on a periodic basis to help monitor progress in relation to the impact analysis referred to above. We use this, and other information, to produce our annual review of how our activities are contributing to the achievement of the SDGs.
IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
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CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CAPITAL
HOW WE MEASURE SUCCESS
We use a range of key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure our progress in delivering our impact and ESG priorities.
COMMENTARY
PERFORMANCE
DESCRIPTION
We acknowledge that, as an investor, we are at least one step removed from the ultimate consumer and, therefore, our KPIs may be considered as proxies for real impact.
NUMBER OF COMPANIES
CAPITAL INVESTED
AMOUNT RAISED
Cumulative number of portfolio companies in which we have invested
Cumulative amount we have invested in our portfolio companies
Cumulative amount Number of employees raised by our portfolio in our existing companies (from our portfolio companies first investment until the earlier of exit or IPO)
26
30
32
NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES
£1.5b
£192.5m £163.0m £1.0b
£127.3m
1,726
REALISATIONS Cumulative cash received from our interests in portfolio companies
£0.3m £0.3m
1,872
1,194*
£0.6b £0.0m 2019
2020
2021
During the year we invested in two new companies, two companies were acquired by a third party in return for equity in the third party and one company was liquidated, such that at 31 March 2021 we had 30 portfolio companies
2019
2020
2021
Funds were deployed into two new and 13 existing portfolio companies
2019
2020
2021
Significant funds raised by Centessa Pharmaceuticals, Congenica, Gyroscope Therapeutics and Inivata contributed to the £0.5b increase in the year
2019
2020
2021
The growth in the number of employees is due to the increase in the number of portfolio companies and increased employment, on average, across the portfolio
2019
2020
2021
We did not realise any cash from portfolio companies during the year
* Full-time equivalent employees
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IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
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CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CAPITAL
OUR APPROACH TO RESPONSIBLE INVESTMENT
Incorporating ESG principles into our investment practice aligns these activities with our core values and broader societal objectives. STRATEGY AND GOVERNANCE
POLICIES AND PROCESSES
We believe that evaluating ESG risks and opportunities in our investment activities and internal operations will enhance financial returns for our investors over the long term.
As part of our due diligence process, we seek to identify any ESG risks associated with a company’s activities. This includes risks relating to the company’s own operations, as well as potential risks in its supply chain. Where we consider that the ESG risks could be material (either currently or when the business is scaled up), we work with the portfolio company on an action plan to manage the risks.
As an anchor institution in the Cambridge ecosystem, we seek to demonstrate leadership in our investment practice, including the consideration of ESG issues in our investments. We work with partners and coinvestors in Cambridge, and the broader innovation ecosystem, to accelerate the incorporation of ESG issues into portfolio company operations. We are a signatory of the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment. These principles advocate for a transparent and evidence-based investment and stewardship process that incorporates ESG issues.
This process also recognises that many portfolio companies are at an early stage. We require portfolio companies to put action plans in place to ensure mitigation, management and reporting on any immediate ESG risks, and we provide guidance to put processes in place to manage ESG risks that may emerge as they scale up. Our investment process incorporates consideration by the Investment Committee of these ESG issues in each investment decision, including new investments, follow-on investments and exits. Our ESG policies are included on pages 14 to 15 of this report.
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IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
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CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CAPITAL
OUR ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL AND GOVERNANCE POLICIES
As a Series A investor, we are often the first institutional investor to invest in a company. This provides us with an ideal opportunity to instil best practices at an early stage.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY
SOCIAL POLICY
Within our internal operations, we adopt best practices to reduce our carbon footprint and protect natural resources. These include managing energy use within our office, supporting sustainable commuting for employees and minimising the carbon footprint of our corporate travel.
We recognise that the human capital within the CIC team and our portfolio companies is our most valuable asset. Our social policy is focused on growing and strengthening this human capital base. Advancing diversity, equality and inclusion in its recruitment and people management policies is central to our core values and culture. Furthermore, it is essential that our investment team reflects the demographics and cultural mix of the entrepreneurs leading our portfolio companies and the customers and partners of those companies.
Within our investment practice, we do not invest in companies whose principal activity requires the extraction of fossil fuels. Instead, we proactively seek investment opportunities in companies that accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy. We encourage all our portfolio companies to incorporate an assessment of carbon impact and natural resource security into business decisions, including product design, manufacturing, distribution, consumption and end-of-life product disposal. Where material ESG risks are identified, we work with the portfolio company to implement an action plan to address the risks over an appropriate timeframe. We facilitate the sharing of best sustainability practices between our portfolio companies and the broader Cambridge innovation ecosystem. This includes developing lists of recommended vendors and partners who uphold environment best practices and providing workshops for our portfolio companies on identifying and reducing environmental risks.
We require gender and ethnic diversity on all shortlists for recruitment to new CIC positions. We encourage all portfolio companies to undertake an assessment of labour standards within their supply chains to identify any areas of potential concern in terms of workers’ rights, either with the current sources of raw materials or component parts, or with potential future sources as the business scales up. We require all portfolio companies to annually report on the diversity profile of their workforce and we engage with portfolio companies on strategies for improvement. We track how compensation is distributed in each portfolio company. We provide benchmarks for appropriate cash and equity compensation required to recruit and retain world-class talent within our portfolio. We require all portfolio companies to have in place clear strategies and processes for consumer protection.
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IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
GOVERNANCE POLICY We require all our employees, and those of its portfolio companies, to comply with all relevant laws and regulations and uphold the highest standards of business integrity. Our employees, and those of our portfolio companies, must not accept any bribes and must declare any conflicts of interest. Our portfolio companies must comply with all appropriate regulations for employee health and safety, GDPR, consumer data protection and cybersecurity. We regularly review the board composition of each portfolio company to ensure it is appropriate for the needs of the company. We encourage portfolio companies to set diversity targets for board composition and report annually on these targets.
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CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CAPITAL
ANNUAL SURVEY OF OUR PORTFOLIO COMPANIES
We ask our portfolio companies to answer various ESGrelated questions to consider the aggregate performance of our portfolio and identify areas for improvement. The results from this year’s survey are presented below.
29 /30
companies of our existing portfolio were surveyed and every one provided a response
ZERO ONLY f0ur
companies were subjected to ESGrelated litigation in the last year
companies declared a material ESG risk, with COVID-19 being the predominant theme
AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 11 companies (38%) had an ESG policy, tracked ESG matters internally or had appointed someone to be responsible for ESG matters
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IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
ENVIRONMENTAL
14/19
companies offered or supported sustainable commuting options
AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT Five companies either had an environmental policy or could provide an estimate of CO2 footprint
INITIATIVES ARISING FROM THE ANNUAL SURVEY Further to the annual survey of our portfolio companies we have embarked upon several initiatives, as set out below, to help address the areas for improvement. 1. We have hosted an ESG Workshop for our portfolio companies to: − raise awareness of ESG and explain why it is important; − showcase what some of our portfolio companies are doing to incorporate the consideration of ESG in their operations; and − outline our expectations in relation to ESG and offer practical support for implementing certain ESG policies. 2. We are developing a manual to guide our early-stage businesses in the identification, management and monitoring of the ESG risks in their operations and also in the articulation, measurement and reporting of the positive impacts that are generated by their activities. 3. We have become a signatory of the Investing in Women Code, a commitment by financial services firms to improve female entrepreneurs’ access to tools, resources and finance.
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CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CAPITAL
ANNUAL SURVEY OF OUR PORTFOLIO COMPANIES
SOCIAL
1,872
employees across the portfolio
65%
of employees participate in a company option or profit share scheme
37%
of employees had training in the last year
ONLY f0ur
companies reported health and safety incidents, all of which were minor and/or now resolved
AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT 33% of full-time equivalent employees and 21% of the senior leadership team identify as female Four companies (out of 22 responses) required gender and ethnic diversity on all recruitment shortlists
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IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
GOVERNANCE
1/3
board members are independent and each company has, on average, eight board meetings each year
45%
of companies have a code of ethics or code of conduct
52%
of companies have mechanisms in place to measure customer or other stakeholder satisfaction
ONLY three
companies (of 25 responses) reported a data/cybersecurity incident in the last year, all of which resulted from minor phishing attempts or employee errors
AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT More companies need to have a diversity target for board composition
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CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CAPITAL
CMR SURGICAL IMPACT CASE STUDIES
TRANSFORMING SURGERY. FOR GOOD.
IMP RATING: B – BENEFIT STAKEHOLDERS CMR Surgical has grown rapidly over the past few years with Versius, our next-generation surgical robotic system, now being used in hospitals across the world to transform the way keyhole surgery is performed. Our success is in no small part thanks to CIC, who has always had the long-term vision to support CMR. Since its initial investment, CIC has continued to support our growth and has always shared in our mission to transform surgery, for good. PER VERGARD NERSETH CEO We have applied the Impact Management Project (IMP) framework (see IBC for further details) in summarising the impact of a selection of our investments.
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IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
COMPANY DESCRIPTION CMR Surgical (CMR) is on a mission to transform surgery for patients around the world, with innovative technology and extensive data collection that can improve surgical results. From the time of CIC’s first investment in 2016, CMR has gone from prototype to a fully functioning robotic system, Versius®, a next-generation surgical robotic system which has been used to perform over 1,000 procedures in seven countries. Versius® brings all the benefits of keyhole surgery to the patient while providing surgeons with greater dexterity, precision, and better visualisation than manual keyhole surgery, allowing them to perform more complex procedures. Fitting into virtually any operating room set-up and integrating seamlessly into existing workflows, Versius® enables hospitals to offer higher-quality keyhole surgery that is cost-effective across the entire patient episode.
IMPACT THESIS There are significant benefits to minimal access surgery (MAS) including reduced complications, lower blood loss and faster recovery time. However, manual MAS requires a high level of skill and training, such that of the 12 million surgeries per year that could be performed by MAS, only approximately half the patients have access to it due to insufficient surgeons having the specialist training required. Robotic surgery reduces the time required to attain the necessary skills to perform MAS and reduces the strain on surgeons, Robotic assisted MAS plays an important role in making minimal access surgery available to a wider group of patients who would otherwise require open surgery. By providing a cost-effective, versatile, flexible system that can be used in virtually all operating theatre settings, CMR’s Versius® system will contribute to the uptake of minimal access surgery across the globe.
IMPACT SUMMARY The Versius® system is improving access to minimal access surgery (also known as laparoscopic surgery). For example, most healthcare systems do not currently have enough surgeons trained in MAS to adequately address the number of patients with need of surgery that could be
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performed laparoscopically. The shortage is exacerbated by the long training time required to build the skills required for manual MAS. In addition, the cost of currently available robotic systems is prohibitive to many healthcare systems, thereby reducing accessibility. CMR offers an affordable robotic solution by providing a cost-effective and versatile robotic system. Ultimately, this will reduce the training cost and time for laparoscopic surgery and increase the number of surgeons who have the required skills to perform MAS. The impact will be most noticeable in healthcare systems that are less able to cope with the increased costs associated with existing robotic solutions. In these markets, the cost and length of time it takes to train surgeons also reduces the number of surgeons able to perform MAS. By providing a cost-effective solution, it will be possible to offer MAS to a wider patient population who would otherwise have to undergo open surgery. Within the healthcare system, all stakeholders benefit from greater access to MAS. The patient benefits from a quicker recovery, fewer side effects and a shorter hospital stay. Healthcare providers benefit from the cost savings arising from shorter hospital admissions, fewer side effects and higher utility of their resources. The Versius® system will provide a long-term benefit as each system has an expected service life of not less than seven years. In the absence of innovation, the future uptake of MAS will be slow. The development of cost-effective robotic systems will accelerate adoption. Versius® is a hugely complex robotic system that combines hardware and software and substantial investment has been required to achieve the progress made to date. Although Versius® will continually undergo a process of improvement and the system will evolve, the technical risk associated with Versius® is relatively low. The system works and has been demonstrated in more than 1,000 surgeries to date. Versius® can be delivered to healthcare providers at a cost point that is attractive to hospitals. Although heavy investment in R&D means that the company is not yet profitable, with economies of scale, it is anticipated that in the next few years CMR will become financially sustainable and have no further requirement for additional equity financing.
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EXVASTAT IMPACT CASE STUDIES
SAVING LIVES BY IMPROVING THE TREATMENT OF ARDS FROM ANY CAUSE
IMP RATING: B – BENEFIT STAKEHOLDERS Exvastat is developing a pioneering new treatment for Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome. We are immensely grateful to CIC for their belief in the underlying science, their support in building the corporate infrastructure to allow the company to grow, their input to the development programme and for their continued financial support to the company through its journey. DAVID CAVALLA CEO
We have applied the Impact Management Project (IMP) framework (see IBC for further details) in summarising the impact of a selection of our investments.
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IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
COMPANY DESCRIPTION Exvastat is a clinical-stage drug development company, developing Impentri®, an intravenous formulation of Imatinib, as a treatment for all-cause Acute Respiratory Distress syndrome (ARDS) including ARDS related to COVID-19 infection.
IMPACT THESIS ARDS is a severe, life-threatening medical condition characterised by widespread inflammation, damage to the pulmonary endothelium and consequent fluid accumulation in the lungs. Every year, moderate-severe variants of this condition affects more than 200,000 people in Europe alone. With a case fatality rate of 40–55% and no approved pharmacotherapy, there is a huge unmet medical need. Based on original work by Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, a novel mechanism of action was discovered for imatinib, the tyrosine kinase inhibutor which causes an increase in the cell-cell adhesion of pulmonary endothelial cells. When administered to patients with ARDS, it has been shown that imatinib may improve the integrity of the pulmonary endothelium and decrease the impact of pulmonary oedema. Patients with moderate-severe ARDS are typically anaesthetised in order to facilitate the enhancement of ventilation mechanically. Exvastat has created the first stable formulation of imatinib, Impentri®, that can be delivered intravenously to anaesthetised patients receiving mechanical ventilation.
IMPACT SUMMARY In a recently published randomised, placebo-controlled study (CounterCOVID) in patients with acute respiratory distress associated with COVID-19 infection, the use of oral imatinib was associated with a 47% reduction in mortality rate at Day 28. This benefit was on the background of standard of care including the use of dexamethasone in 70% of patients. If these findings are confirmed in further studies in patients with all cause moderate-severe ARDS, the intravenous formulation of imatinib (Impentri®) that Exvastat is developing would have a significant impact on the morbidity and mortality of this devastating condition. Pricing has not yet been determined but it is noted that the patent covering the
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use of imatinib in ARDS only covers US and Europe; it is expected that pricing in less developed parts of the world which are not covered by patent protection will be affordable. In addition to the reduction in mortality, the CounterCOVID study demonstrated that imatinib was associated with a reduction in stay on the Intensive Care Unit and a reduction in the duration of mechanical ventilation. If these findings are confirmed in larger studies, the healthcare costs of managing patients with ARDS would be substantially reduced. Furthermore, there are considerable long-term morbidities in survivors of ARDS. Should Impentri® be shown to reduce the intensity of the condition, it is anticipated that survivors would benefit from improved long-term functionality. This thesis will be investigated in the proposed Phase 3 studies. Should the hoped-for reduction in mortality and morbidity associated with the use of Impentri® be confirmed in larger studies, the impact of reduced morbidity and mortality on stakeholders whether they are patients, their families or wider society in which the patients live, would be substantial. CIC has been the sole institutional investor in Exvastat and has provided considerable help on the corporate governance of the company and input on the preclinical and clinical development of Impentri®. Although another investor may have been found to support the company in this important field, there would have been a risk that the company would not have received the same level of support through its journey as CIC has provided. The initial results from the CounterCOVID study are very promising but need to be confirmed both in patients with COVID-19 infection, but also in the wider population with all-cause ARDS. The history of clinical development is littered with programmes where early results have not been replicated in later studies and although the extensive work on the mechanism of action and the highly promising results in a robust and reasonably large (n=385) CounterCOVID study are highly promising, the development risks remain significant.
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ORIGAMI ENERGY IMPACT CASE STUDIES
A GREEN ENERGY WORLD, POWERED BY SMART TECHNOLOGY IMP RATING: C – CONTRIBUTES TO SOLUTIONS CIC has extensive experience of investing in the digital transformation of global energy systems and saw the potential for Origami’s technology platform to lead this transformation in the UK and beyond. PETER BANCE CEO
We have applied the Impact Management Project (IMP) framework (see IBC for further details) in summarising the impact of a selection of our investments.
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IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
COMPANY DESCRIPTION As the amount of renewable energy grows, it becomes increasingly critical to balance supply and demand in real-time, both physically and financially. As power markets become more volatile, Origami is providing energy companies with powerful technology solutions to support high-speed, informed decision-making. Origami’s software platform uses AI to ingest a variety of different data streams and provide dynamic decision support to manage renewables more predictably and profitably. Origami’s AI-driven software platform is an end-to-end solution that integrates seamlessly with customer’s existing system and third-party providers.
IMPACT THESIS
Experts currently estimate that it will cost up to $100 trillion to achieve net zero globally. Real-time digital technologies are an increasingly critical component of connecting physical energy assets together and to financial markets. Today’s addressable market for realtime energy optimisation software is estimated to be >£4bn/year and growing rapidly. Origami is a pioneer in this part of the market. The contribution of smart software technology to manage renewables-based energy generation and battery storage is critical to tipping the balance to clean energy adoption and a large-scale phase out of fossil fuel-based alternatives. Without technology like Origami’s, power systems and grid infrastructure struggle with increased volatility when renewable generation, for example wind and solar, surpasses a certain threshold of the overall energy mix (usually around 30%) due to the distributed and intermittent nature of renewables generation.
The transition to net zero globally will cost up to $100 trillion. Investment in and deployment of AI-driven software technologies that connect physical and financial energy markets will accelerate the energy transition and reduce the associated costs – by replacing physical infrastructure with digital infrastructure. Without The ability to visualise and dynamically manage, in realtext to be advanced software solutions, the current Revised/replacement energy system time, distributed, multi-asset portfolios (for example, provided week is ill-equipped to manage the explosion of data and later this wind, solar, thermal and battery storage) reduces increased volatility that arises when renewables-based uncertainty and volatility, and reduces the amount of generation, for example wind and solar, becomes a thermal back-up generation capacity needed to ensure dominant share of the overall energy mix. grid stability and prevent service interruption. Estimates show that fully harnessing flexible capacity in the UK Energy companies that adopt Origami’s software alone – by using real-time automation and optimisation solutions can grow their renewables portfolios more technologies like Origami’s – could save >5Mt of CO2 per confidently and profitably, harness flexibility and reduce annum by 2030. Origami expects to capture at least 20% (and eventually fully phase out) fossil fuel-based of the UK market and scale globally throughout Europe, generation assets. North America and parts of Asia.
IMPACT SUMMARY Origami provides smart software technology that improves the economics of green energy, enabling energy companies to manage their renewables portfolios more predictably and profitably – which is critical to deploying more renewables and accelerating the transition to net zero.
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All participants will benefit from the success and greater roll-out of Origami’s software. For energy companies, the benefits include less financial risk from investing in clean energy portfolios and greater returns. For the grid, it means more predictable and flexible volumes and greater resiliency. For end customers, it means lower cost, clean energy powering businesses and homes.
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PRAGMATIC SEMICONDUCTOR IMPACT CASE STUDIES
CREATE MORE IMP RATING: B – BENEFIT STAKEHOLDERS CIC has been a vital partner for our business during the development, installation and commissioning of our first FlexLogIC system and launch of our first commercial products. Their understanding of deep tech companies has allowed them to support us effectively on this journey. Now our technology is creating electronic solutions that would never have been considered using traditional silicon paradigms, enabling innovators around the world to rapidly take creative ideas from concept to reality. SCOTT WHITE CEO
We have applied the Impact Management Project (IMP) framework (see IBC for further details) in summarising the impact of a selection of our investments.
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IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
COMPANY DESCRIPTION PragmatIC Semiconductor is a world leader in ultra-lowcost flexible electronics. Its flexible integrated circuits (FlexICs) are thinner than a human hair and can be invisibly embedded in objects, enabling innovators to create novel solutions to everyday problems that are not practical with conventional electronics. Designers can create their own application-specific flexible devices using FlexIC Foundry® service at a fraction of the cost and time required for traditional silicon circuits, opening up multiple new markets. FlexICs are manufactured on a revolutionary FlexLogIC® production system, a highly scalable manufacturing model for cost-effective high-volume production, achieved with orders of magnitude lower capital investment, operating cost and environmental footprint compared to a traditional silicon IC fab.
IMPACT THESIS PragmatIC’s technology creates impact along two key dimensions: the fabrication process to make semiconductor devices; and the range of beneficial use cases for embedding electronics in everyday items. The unique FlexLogIC® system eliminates the most energy-intensive steps in conventional semiconductor manufacturing. Lower temperature processing mitigates the power draw while dramatically shorter production cycle times further reduce the overall energy requirement. Water consumption and wastewater generation is also reduced, while a novel material stack minimises the carbon footprint of upstream inputs. These effects combine to result in around 1,000x lower CO2e per circuit. Use cases for FlexICs are increasingly focused on key themes of circular economy and ubiquitous healthcare. For mass-market items such as fast-moving consumer goods, PragmatIC’s technology enables cost-effective item-level traceability to support automated end-toend management of product lifecycles, both reducing waste within the supply chain and optimising end-of-life outcomes for recycling and reuse. Item-level traceability also benefits healthcare systems, for example improving efficiency in pathology testing, while the recent addition of proven sensing and computation capabilities to FlexICs also diagnosis and monitoring a range of conditions using patient-friendly wearable patches that are thin, flexible, and conformal, at a cost point orders of magnitude lower than conventional medical devices.
IMPACT SUMMARY The semiconductor industry has become a major contributor to industrial carbon footprint, and the ongoing trend towards greater use of electronics
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across every aspect of our lives will only exacerbate the situation. The 1000x lower CO2e achieved by PragmatIC’s technology (alongside its dramatically lower cost and thin flexible form factor) is a critical enabler for the Internet of Everything to become a viable reality, and PragmatIC has ongoing R&D to achieve net-zero semiconductor fabrication. This will directly benefit major electronics manufacturers for whom PragmatIC offers an on-site Fab-as-a-Service (FaaS) model, thereby reducing electricity and water consumption, as well as carbon footprint. The FaaS approach has further indirect benefits in minimising unnecessary transport of material within the electronics supply chain, by supporting just-intime local production of FlexICs. End users of PragmatIC’s technology benefit from a wide range of use cases for improving daily life by embedding intelligence in everyday objects. This is particularly apparent in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry, where FlexIC-based smart packaging could enable a circular economy for trillions of items. Examples include projects with major food producers and retailers to minimise waste in the farm-to-fork ecosystem, and with leading global beverage producers (supported by the UK Government) to ensure optimal recycling of single use plastics, as well as support packaging reuse and refill models. There is currently no other technology that can deliver these benefits with the same combination of functionality, form factor and ultra-low cost. Similarly, while healthcare providers have invested a significant amount in connectivity and traceability of major items like medical equipment, hospital infrastructure and so on, they do not currently have an effective way to track the huge number of transient items within the ecosystem, such as patient samples, pharmaceuticals and vaccines. PragmatIC’s technology uniquely allows this to be possible, as demonstrated with the NHS where automated tracking of pathology samples has been predicted to generate up to £400 million per annum in operational savings. As the sensing and computational capabilities of FlexICs improve, PragmatIC also has projects focused on directly improving patient outcomes through wearable smart plaster/patches for automated wound monitoring and detection of atrial fibrillation. To ensure that these potential benefits translate into reality, PragmatIC needs to be able to significantly scale production, since all target applications require at least billions if not trillions of FlexICs. The company is currently closing a major Series C round to support its second FlexLogIC® fab and anticipates further significant investment in 2022/23 to deliver its first FaaS contracts on route to deploying around 100 FlexLogIC® systems over the next decade.
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CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CAPITAL
SENSE BIODETECTION IMPACT CASE STUDIES
TRANSFORMING HEALTHCARE BY REDEFINING DIAGNOSTICS
IMP RATING: C – CONTRIBUTES TO SOLUTIONS Our COVID-19 test product can allow infected patients to be isolated sooner whilst providing reassurance to uninfected individuals, including healthcare workers, that they can return to work without infecting others. Due to its flexibility, speed and accuracy, the test can be deployed for rapid patient triage within hospitals, as well as primary care practices, pharmacies and community centres and even distributed for use by individuals in isolation who suspect they may have COVID-19. HARRY LAMBLE CEO
We have applied the Impact Management Project (IMP) framework (see IBC for further details) in summarising the impact of a selection of our investments.
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IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
COMPANY DESCRIPTION Sense Biodetection is a global molecular diagnostics company focused on empowering patients and transforming healthcare access and affordability by bringing lab-quality results though easy-to-use, rapid, disposable molecular tests without the constraints of an instrument. The company’s Veros™ product platform will enable widespread testing to enhance patient access, improve population health and lower systemic costs. Sense Biodetection is growing rapidly as it prepares to launch Veros™ COVID-19 and build a portfolio of tests for other diseases.
IMPACT THESIS In an ever changing world, realising the full potential of molecular point-of-care diagnostics requires a new approach – one that meets the actual needs of front-line caregivers. Sense Biodetection is creating unconstrained, instrument-free molecular diagnostic tests that allow caregivers to open the care pathway to everyone – in a way that is nothing short of revolutionary.
IMPACT SUMMARY Sense Biodetection’s technology allows for fast, highly accurate, PCR-quality testing to be performed almost anywhere by anyone, within 15 minutes in a single-use device. Sense’s Veros™ disposable test format is easy for healthcare providers to master, and offers the flexibility to run one test or dozens at the same time, eliminating workflow bottlenecks at the point of care in comparison to other instrument-reliant testing systems. Medical professionals and patients benefit with accurate results available immediately (as opposed to waiting for PCR results for days via a central laboratory test, or inaccurate results from a fast antigen test) and patients are correctly triaged into the appropriate care pathway, avoiding escalating severity of illness and pathogen spread and associated systemic costs. Providers benefit both financially and operationally at the point of care. Providers secure a revenue benefit when higher-reimbursed molecular tests can be done at the point of care as opposed to a central laboratory. They also secure a cost benefit in comparison to other machinebased testing solutions by eliminating the acquisition and
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servicing costs of capital equipment. Sense’s approach also has zero switching costs for providers. Operationally, providers eliminate the constraints of sequentially testing patients with machine-based PCR systems that often take 30 minutes or more per test. Providers can treat more patients per hour and improve patient satisfaction and quality of care, influencing referrals and repeat business. Sense’s innovation also has the potential to enable telehealth’s promise of increased access, quality, and affordability of care by closing the diagnostic testing gap that currently exists. While telehealth has surged during the pandemic, ancillary services like diagnostic testing remain problematic for telehealth-enabled providers, as the patient or the patient’s sample must still travel to a diagnostic testing lab. With advanced telehealth platform technology and highquality molecular testing available to be distributed in a home use format, the systemic friction of the current testing paradigm can be eliminated, and may become important across many conditions including respiratory viruses and sexual health indications. Innovation in the diagnostics space is rapidly progressing. Up until now the focus has been on developing smaller machines and modular cartridges in the razor/razor blade format. Even with smaller, more cost-effective machines, the aforementioned limitations remain, and telehealth extension is likely an impossibility. To be successful, the emerging instrument-free solutions must deliver timely results to match the point of care workflow that typically runs on 15-minute appointment intervals. Technical risk on Sense’s first product (COVID-19) has been negligible, with clinical trials currently underway. As Sense expands the testing portfolio, minor technical risks remain for single-pathogen respiratory products and multiplex tests or pathogens beyond respiratory and sexual health. With economies of scale and a broader testing menu, Sense expects to be profitable while delivering Veros™ to multiple market channels at a cost that is attractive to healthcare customers and consumers worldwide.
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CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CAPITAL
UNITED NATIONS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
In 2015 the United Nations introduced 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. More and more investors are using the SDGs as a framework on measuring impact, helping shift the focus of market participants and academics towards purpose and positive impact. The SDGs1 call for a united effort to achieve a shared set of targets and indicators, within which businesses and investors can differentiate and communicate their roles based on their social/environmental goals and performance.
THE SDGS THAT WE ASPIRE TO FULFIL THROUGH OUR CORE INVESTMENT ACTIVITIES ARE
1.
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WE ALSO AIM TO ENCOURAGE CERTAIN BEHAVIOURS WITHIN OUR PORTFOLIO COMPANIES BY FOCUSING ON
to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being
to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote learning opportunities
to promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work
to achieve gender equality
to build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation
to reduce inequality
to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
to ensure responsible consumption and production
https://sdgs.un.org/
IMPACT AND ESG REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
IMPACT MANAGEMENT PROJECT
The Impact Management Project (IMP)2 provides a forum for building global consensus on measuring, assessing and reporting impacts on people and the natural environment. It is relevant for enterprises and investors who want to manage ESG risks, as well as those who also want to contribute positively to global goals. The IMP facilitates standard-setting organisations that, through their specific and complementary expertise, are coordinating efforts to provide comprehensive standards and guidance related to impact measurement, assessment and reporting. Managing the impact of an investment, or portfolio of investments, means taking into account the positive and negative impacts of the underlying enterprises/assets, as well as the investor’s own contribution. Investors have different intentions and constraints, which influence the impact goals they set and how they manage performance. The case studies in this report are based on the IMP’s framework. This framework classifies an investor’s intentions by one of three types of impact (A, B or C) and then considers the impact of the business across five dimensions (what, who, how much, contribution and risk).
HOW TO CLASSIFY AN ENTERPRISE’S TYPE OF IMPACT Is the enterprise acting to avoid harm to its stakeholders?
NO
Act to avoid harm. At a minimum, investors can choose enterprises
YES Are some of the enterprise’s effects generating positive effects for stakeholders?
NO
YES Are any of the enterprise’s effects contributing to solutions to social or environmental challenges?
Does/may cause harm
NO
that act to avoid harm to their stakeholders, for example decreasing their carbon footprint or paying an appropriate wage. Such “responsible” enterprises can also mitigate reputational or operational risk, as well as respect the personal values of their asset owners.
Benefit stakeholders. In addition to acting to avoid harm, investors can also favour enterprises that actively benefit stakeholders, for example proactively upskilling their employees, or selling products that support good health or educational outcomes. An increasing range of these “sustainable” enterprises are doing so in pursuit of financial outperformance over the long term.
Contributes to solutions. Many investors can go further by investing YES
in enterprises that are using their full capabilities to contribute to solutions to pressing social or environmental problems, such as enabling an otherwise underserved population to achieve good health or educational outcomes or hiring and upskilling individuals who were formerly long-term unemployed.
FIVE DIMENSIONS OF IMPACT
WHAT
is the nature of the portfolio company’s impact and how important is the outcome to stakeholders.
2.
WHO
benefits from the portfolio company’s activities, specifically in relation to products, services and operations.
HOW MUCH
do the outcomes impact stakeholders – how many, to what degree and for how long.
CONTRIBUTION RISK
that enterprises and investors make to the outcomes, relative to what would likely occur otherwise.
https://impactmanagementproject.com/impact-management/how-investors-manage-impact/
that impact will not emerge, will not endure or will be different than expected.
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