Karolina Zapadka, PhD MBA

Karolina Zapadka is a Senior Investment Manager at Parkwalk Advisors, specializing in life sciences and healthcare investments.1 She has nearly a decade of experience in building and investing in life sciences and healthcare companies, particularly within the Cambridge Cluster.1

Professional Background

Karolina's career highlights include:

• Co-founding a life sciences startup accelerator: In 2018, she established and successfully delivered Cambridge's first life sciences startup accelerator, which developed a portfolio of 20 early-stage ventures.1

• Scientific expertise: She began her career as a scientist at a leading biopharmaceutical company, where she worked on delivering products to clinics.1

• Academic achievements: Karolina holds a PhD in biophysics from the University of Cambridge, focusing on diabetes and neurosciences. She also completed postdoctoral work in drug development at AstraZeneca.1

Investment Experience

At Parkwalk Advisors, Karolina leverages her scientific background and industry experience to:

• Identify promising investment opportunities in the life sciences and healthcare sectors
• Support early-stage ventures in securing pre-seed and seed investments
• Contribute to building and scaling innovative companies in these fields1

Recent Activities

Karolina has been actively involved in various industry events and initiatives:

• In January 2024, she joined a team of advisors, bringing over a decade of experience in investing and building life sciences companies.2
• She has participated in discussions about early-stage funding and entrepreneurship in the life sciences sector.3

Karolina Zapadka's unique combination of scientific expertise, entrepreneurial experience, and investment acumen makes her a valuable asset in the life sciences and healthcare investment landscape.