Dr Kam Pooni

Dr Kam Pooni is a distinguished executive with over 27 years of experience in the life sciences, pharmaceutical, healthcare, and MedTech sectors. Renowned for bridging academia and industry, particularly in diagnostics and commercialisation, he has driven strategic growth, scaled life science products globally, and mentored emerging founders while fostering innovation ecosystems.
As CEO of Glyconics, Dr Pooni leads an innovative diagnostic university spin. He also serves as a Non-Executive Director at the University of Southampton Science Park, an Executive Board member of the British In-Vitro Diagnostics Association (BIVDA), and the Royal Society Entrepreneur-in-Residence(Life Sciences) at the University of Southampton.

Dr Pooni’s expertise spans start-up growth, SME scaling, and advancing life science innovations globally. He has held senior commercial roles at Astellas Pharma Europe, Thomson Reuters, and Eli Lilly and actively mentors entrepreneurs at numerous universities and is an Honorary Associate Professor at the University of Birmingham.

A passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion, Dr Pooni was recognised in the 2019 EMPower Top 100 Ethnic Minority Role Models list. Globally connected, he collaborates with organisations such as the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR), Innovate UK, the NHS, and MHRA, shaping healthcare and diagnostics innovation.

With a proven history of scaling life science products, securing funding for start-ups, and driving systemic growth, Dr Pooni continues to influence the future of healthcare and MedTech innovation.