We've Made the Run Before
First Tracks BioWorks was founded by two professionals who have spent their careers at the intersection of science, medicine, and commerce. We built this organization because we believe innovators in the North Country and beyond have the scientific foundation to produce world-class Biotech & MedTech companies - and because we know how to build them.
Jessica Ballinger
Co-Founder & Biotech and MedTech Lead
- 30+ years across pharma, biotech and medtech
- 15+ therapies developed and commercialized
- Former CEO of Lyndra Therapeutics
- Experienced board member
Jessica has helped develop and commercialize therapies across metabolic, endocrine, oncology, immunology, infectious, eye, women's and men's health, substance-use, respiratory and rare diseases.
At Lyndra, she led the company through Phase 3 clinical development and a major financing round. At First Tracks, she leads drug-development strategy, company creation and investor access - connecting scientific founders with capital markets.
Katie Brennan
Co-Founder & Health Economics Lead
- UK, EU and US policy, care innovation and payer strategy
- Health economics, market access and reimbursement
- Early-stage and established pharma experience
- Experienced board member
Katie's career spans the UK National Health Service, insurance and life-science consulting. She works where clinical evidence, economic modeling and payer decisions meet.
She builds health-economics and outcomes-research frameworks across therapeutic areas. At First Tracks, she develops the value case, payer evidence and workflow plans that help founders prove adoption and reimbursement potential early. She also builds evidence‑based economic‑development narratives that help partner institutions engage investors and compete for support from government and charitable organizations.
A Bench of Senior Operators, Ready to Begin
Because the professional bench is already engaged, work begins immediately. No waiting to recruit a team. The expertise is in place and ready to roll up their sleeves. Each partner brings deep domain expertise and a track record of execution in highly regulated, capital-intensive environments.
Finance & Capital Formation
Life-Science CFO & Investor Relations
Former CFO experience at venture-backed biotechnology companies with more than $2 billion in life-science financings and IPOs. Brings the financial architecture, capital strategy, and investor relationships that early-stage companies require to reach the next milestone.
Life-Science Transactions
Global Life-Sciences Legal Practice
Partner-level experience in global life-sciences legal practice, advising on venture financing, licensing transactions, and M&A across the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors. Previously a corporate partner at a leading life-sciences law firm.
Intellectual Property Strategy
Biotech & MedTech Patent Counsel
Partner-level experience in patent strategy, prosecution, and freedom-to-operate analysis spanning biotech and medtech — the areas most interesting to the North Country's scientific & engineering base.
Regulatory & Quality
FDA, EMA & Health Canada Strategy
Former VP Regulatory and Quality with hands-on experience across FDA, EMA, and Health Canada submissions. Background spans large pharma, specialty, and emerging biotech. Attorney and RAC-certified.
Strategy & Program Execution
Regulated-Industry Operations
Specialist in program delivery and operational execution in highly regulated industries. Ensures that each company's operating plan translates into disciplined, milestone-driven execution from formation through clinical proof of concept.
MedTech R&D & Commercialization
Medical Device & Combination Products
20+ years as a MedTech R&D executive with deep experience in combination products, device engineering, product development, technical due diligence, and commercialization. Background spans large device and pharmaceutical organizations across multiple therapeutic categories.
Drug Delivery & Device Engineering
Devices, Delivery & Combination Products
VP-level experience in devices and drug delivery systems, including combination products. Former global head of medical devices at a major biologics company and R&D leadership at a leading device manufacturer. Deep expertise in delivery system design and regulatory pathway for combination products.
Technology & Product Development
Pharmaceutical Sciences & CMC
EVP-level experience in technology and product development across pharmaceutical sciences, CMC strategy, and manufacturing scale-up. Background includes CTO and VP Pharmaceutical Sciences roles at venture-backed and established biotechnology companies.
Translational & Nonclinical Sciences
Preclinical & Toxicology Strategy
SVP-level experience in translational and nonclinical development, including toxicology strategy, IND-enabling studies, and preclinical program design. Background spans multiple venture-backed biotechnology companies across oncology and rare disease.
Chief Medical Officer
Clinical Development & Medical Strategy
Physician executive with broad clinical development experience spanning Phase I through Phase III across multiple therapeutic areas. Brings medical strategy, clinical trial design, KOL relationships, and the physician perspective that bridges scientific discovery and patient-centered development.
Built-in neighbors. Built-in advantage.
Ecosystem Partners
Trudeau Institute
Saranac Lake · ~10 miNonprofit since 1884. Immunology and infectious-disease discovery.
Bionique Testing Laboratories
Saranac Lake · ~10 miTesting services that move biologics through quality and regulatory review.
Ampersand Biosciences
Saranac Lake area · ~15 miImmunology-focused assays, antibodies, and kits.
Clarkson University - Shipley Center
Potsdam · ~75 miInventor support, startup formation, and tech transfer.
Adjacent Research Centers
SUNY Upstate Medical University
SyracuseSUNY Plattsburgh
PlattsburghSUNY Albany
AlbanySyracuse University
SyracuseRochester Institute of Technology
RochesterRensselaer Polytechnic Institute
TroyAlbany, Rochester, Syracuse, and Buffalo extend the wider upstate talent and capital corridor.
Fortune 500 Experience. Adirondack Zip Codes.
The region draws accomplished executives who have left the corner office - not retired from ambition. Through our relationships with Point Positive, regional nonprofit boards, and community foundations, we connect biotech and medtech founders with C-suite mentors who have actually done it and are invested in seeing new businesses in the region succeed.
Where the network comes from
Point Positive
Limited PartnersOperators and investors with deep company growth-stage experience
Adirondack Community Foundation
Board & LeadershipRegional philanthropic leaders with broad institutional and civic networks
Cloudsplitter Foundation
Board & LeadershipConservation and community capital connectors across the Adirondack Park
Paul Smith's College
Academic LeadershipEnvironmental science, sustainability, and workforce development expertise
AdkAction
Board & AdvisorsAdvocacy and community-organizing leaders with regional policy reach
What founders get access to
C-suite operating experience
CEOs, CFOs, and COOs who have scaled companies through commercial milestones
Board-ready governance guidance
Mentors who have sat on public and private boards and can help founders build governance infrastructure early
Investor network introductions
Warm paths to institutional LPs, family offices, and strategic investors through Point Positive relationships
Regional institutional relationships
Connections to hospital systems, academic medical centers, and state economic development programs
Community capital and credibility
Nonprofit and foundation leaders who open doors to capital and regional stakeholder trust
Preparation, Resilience, Excellence and Self-reliance
Lake Placid has hosted two Olympic Games and is home to global sporting and cultural events. It is a small community with a long history of world-class outcomes — outcomes built not on scale or resources, but on preparation, resilience, excellence, and self-reliance. That is the philosophy we bring to every company we build.
We are not building a program. We are not running an accelerator. We are building companies — with the full weight of a senior operating team behind each one. Founders have the science. We have the team. The window is open now.
Operators, Not Observers
Every member of the First Tracks BioWorks bench has held operating responsibility in a life-science company. We have made the decisions founders face. We bring that experience to every engagement.
Aligned Incentives
We receive founding shares at par alongside each company founders. We assume genuine early-stage risk. Our compensation becomes meaningful only when the company succeeds.
Rooted in the Region
Our intended outcome is a pipeline of investable companies that stay rooted in upstate New York — building the region's life-science ecosystem one company at a time.
Founders have the science.
We have the team.
The window is open now.
Want to build something with us?
Whether you have a discovery, want to join the operating bench, or want to learn more about the model — we'd like to hear from you.