Setting up a lab is a major milestone for any biotech startup and one that demands careful planning. At Streamline BioOps, we provide laboratory consulting services and quality consulting to help life science startups build audit-ready, scalable labs that accelerate science, strengthen compliance, and inspire investor confidence.

Drawing on over 15 years of experience building, leading, and scaling laboratories and quality systems, I’ve developed a set of easy, practical steps to help founders get it right the first time.

Venture capital investment in biotech dropped 65% in Q2 2025, forcing founders to rethink how they run their companies. Gone are the days of big labs, large headcounts, and “grow fast at all costs.” Today’s biotechs must operate lean, prove value earlier, and extend runway longer than ever before.

After years in operations and hands-on experience designing, building, and scaling labs for a biotech startup, I’ve learned where the hidden costs are — and more importantly, how to save money without cutting corners. From negotiating vendor contracts to right-sizing digital systems, I know how to stretch every dollar while still creating audit-ready, investor-trusted operations.

From my experience, I want to share tips on how startups can save on costs — without sacrificing quality. Here are practical strategies to help your company thrive in this new environment:

Launching a startup is thrilling, but it can also feel like you’re making up the rules as you go. The good news? Chicago has built an impressive support network for founders, scientists, and innovators ready to turn breakthrough ideas into thriving companies.

If you’ve chosen Chicago to launch your startup, you’ve come to the right place. Over the past five years, Chicago’s life science startup ecosystem has pulled in nearly $2 billion in venture capital, with about $350 million invested in 2024 — a 55% year-over-year increase.

Launching a biotech or life science startup is exhilarating—your focus is on breakthrough science, product development, funding milestones, customer acquisition, and building a team that shares your vision. But in this industry, letting operations “catch up later” can put your innovation, your people, and your future at risk.