With Austria and Galicia as this year’s partner regions, BioM welcomed two partner regions at its BayOConnect 2026 event that demonstrated why European collaboration is more important than ever.
Their strong presence throughout the conference sent a clear message: innovation does not happen in isolation - it thrives through the exchange of ideas, expertise, and networks across regions and national borders.
Strategic Networking at the Munich Biotech Campus
The visit of the Austrian and Galician delegations began even before the official start of the conference with a diverse programme at the Munich Biotech Campus. Together with representatives from the Bavarian life sciences ecosystem, participants gained first-hand insights into current innovation developments in the Munich region, particularly through the M1 Munich Medicine Alliance. The programme also provided numerous opportunities for direct exchange, including a company presentation by Ethris GmbH as well as site visits to Eisbach Bio GmbH and the BioMstart-up incubator MAxL (Munich Accelerator Life Sciences & Medicine).
The day concluded with informal networking in a traditional Bavarian beer garden, where Austrian, Galician, and Bavarian stakeholders deepened discussions and explored future opportunities for collaboration.
Visibility and Exchange Throughout BayOConnect 2026
During the conference, both partner regions used BioM's conference BayOConnect as a platform to showcase their innovation capabilities, research landscapes, and strategic priorities to an international audience. Representatives from academia, industry, and cluster organisations actively participated in networking sessions, partnering meetings, and discussions with stakeholders from across Europe.
Key success factors of this year’s partner regions included:
- A clear positioning of their regional strengths and concrete insights into research and investment landscapes with strong collaboration potential
- Openness to new partnerships and cross-border cooperation across Europe
- Active engagement in networking and partnering formats throughout the entire conference
Evening Impulses: Insights into Two Dynamic Innovation Ecosystems
One of the highlights of BayOConnect 2026 was the Evening Impulse session, during which both partner regions provided valuable insights into their life sciences and innovation ecosystems.
- Austria, represented by (LISA - Life Science Austria), Roland Fuchs (Standortagentur Tirol), and Michael Gruber (Innovation Salzburg)), demonstrated that behind the country’s international reputation as a tourist destination lies a highly competitive life sciences sector. The industry now generates a higher annual turnover than Austria’s tourism sector and, with an R&D intensity of 3.35%, ranks Austria as the third-strongest research location in the European Union.
The speakers highlighted the strengths of both Salzburg and Tyrol. Salzburg presented itself as a compact yet powerful life sciences hub with approximately 3,000 employees, a biotech and pharmaceutical core sector generating EUR 950 million in annual revenue, and a talent pool of around 6,000 students. Tyrol showcased its outstanding research landscape, centred around institutions such as the Medical University of Innsbruck and MedLifeLab. The region is also home to Europe’s only antibiotic production facility and offers a highly qualified talent pool for the life sciences sector.
- Galicia, represented by Daniel Álvarez of BIOGA (Clúster Tecnolóxico Empresarial das Ciencias da Vida), positioned itself as a rapidly growing innovation hub at the intersection of biotechnology, healthcare, and artificial intelligence.
The region has achieved double-digit investment growth and is investing EUR 82 million in advanced AI infrastructure, including 1HealthAI, one of only three European One-Health AI Factory sites. This initiative combines dedicated AI capabilities for biotechnology and health applications and strengthens Europe’s competitiveness in a strategically important field.
Galicia’s innovation strengths are further supported by an exceptional clinical research environment with more than 3,000 clinical trials and a 4-star reference status, making the region an attractive destination for innovation, translation, and international collaboration.
These examples represented only a small selection of the many insights, opportunities, and success stories shared by our partner regions during BayOConnect 2026.
BayOConnect as a Platform for International Partner Regions
The participation of Austria and Galicia further underlines BayOConnect’s role as a platform that connects leading international life sciences regions with Bavaria’s innovation ecosystem and fosters new European collaborations.
Both regions demonstrated how targeted visibility, strong stakeholder engagement, and a clear innovation profile can create tangible opportunities for international cooperation - perfectly reflecting the spirit of BayOConnect: driving innovation through connections across regions and borders.
Interested in becoming a partner country or partner region for BayOConnect 2027? We look forward to hearing your ideas and exploring future collaborations.