{"id":117985,"date":"2025-08-04T10:48:18","date_gmt":"2025-08-04T10:48:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/117985\/"},"modified":"2025-08-04T10:48:18","modified_gmt":"2025-08-04T10:48:18","slug":"can-san-diego-biotech-bounce-back-from-slump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/117985\/","title":{"rendered":"Can San Diego biotech bounce back from slump?"},"content":{"rendered":"

SAN DIEGO \u2014 Ever since Vince Kato was laid off, he has felt like he was just two to three months away from landing a new position. But more than a year later, he\u2019s running out of options, and out of time.<\/p>\n

Kato, who was a senior engineer at Illumina, was let go in March 2024 and since then, has applied without success for hundreds of positions at biotech startups and larger pharma firms, including roles he is overqualified for. With a monthly rent of $3,600 eating through his savings, he\u2019s now facing hard choices.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve either got to leave San Diego, move back to Minnesota, or something. I don\u2019t know,\u201d Kato said. \u201cAt this point, I\u2019m just reaching the end of my rope financially.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\tBiopharma layoffs are leaving the industry\u2019s scientists reeling \u2014 and in search of scarce opportunities<\/a><\/p>\n

His predicament is one of the starker examples of the state of San Diego\u2019s biotech industry, which ranks third<\/a> among the nation\u2019s life science hubs, behind Boston and the Bay Area, for its concentration of employees, companies, and funding. Despite select success stories, many of the region\u2019s companies are struggling to raise money, with the uncertainty only exacerbated by the Trump administration\u2019s many disruptions to science. On the ground, that means lab space is plentiful, but jobs are hard to come by.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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