The Bottom Line The Decisions That Made Me: Harry Destecroix (Ziylo, Science Creates, SCVC)
Dec 4, 2025
Harry Destecroix, an entrepreneur and scientist, co-founded Ziylo while pursuing his PhD, creating technology to revolutionize diabetes treatment. He discusses his challenging journey, including funding struggles and pivotal decisions that led to Ziylo's acquisition by Novo Nordisk for a whopping 600 million pounds. Harry also founded Science Creates, an incubator supporting deep-tech startups, and a VC fund to foster university research. His passion for STEM outreach is evident as he shares plans to engage thousands of children in entrepreneurship.
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Choosing Debt To Buy Time
- Harry Destecroix ran out of PhD funding and debated taking jobs or starting a company while finishing his thesis.
- He opened a second credit card to pay rent so he could keep writing and pursue the startup.
Built An Incubator Out Of Frustration
- Frustrated by lack of local lab space, Harry persuaded a chairman to give him £5,000 and a month to try building an incubator.
- He created Science Creates to lease flexible lab space to early deep-tech startups near the university.
Lab Space Is A Critical Bottleneck
- Early-stage deep-tech startups require proximate, flexible lab space to survive after spinout.
- Without that infrastructure, world-class university research often fails to produce companies.