San Diego’s biotech startups are about to get a big boost: Pharmaceutical heavy-hitter Eli Lilly and Company announced plans to open its first-ever Gateway Labs in SD next year.

The 62,000-sqft site, in partnership with Alexandria Real Estate Equities, will be located at 4796 Executive Dr., near Interstate 805, in the UTC area.

It’ll be designed to serve as a “shared innovation accelerator” where local, early-stage scientific and biotech companies can rent lab space and stations to conduct their work. There will be enough room for 10 companies and 120+ biotech and Lilly employees.

According to Lilly, young companies that use the space will also have access to the company's scientists, researchers, and industry leaders. This could strengthen opportunities for mentorship, collaboration, or even the potential for financial investment from Lilly or venture capital funds.

Pharmaceutical heavy-hitter Lilly is bringing a Gateway Labs to San Diego in 2024. | Photo via Eli Lilly and Company

Per local experts, this could be a “game changer” for the future development and growth of local biotech companies of which San Diego — as a biotech hub (aka “Biotech Beach”) — has plenty.

Lilly’s chief scientific officer and president Daniel Skovronsky, M.D., Ph.D., said bringing Gateway Labs to SD’s “thriving life sciences community” makes a whole lot of sense.

“We can support scientists from research institutes, universities and small biotech companies as they work to discover the next generation of medicines for patients," Skovronsky added.

The company said local start-ups that might be interested in joining Gateway Labs can reach out via email.

By the way, in true SD fashion, this news is kind of a big deal: Lilly only has three other Gateway Labs in the US — two that opened in San Francisco in 2019 and 2022, and another in development for Boston in 2024.