Early phase drug development is undergoing a fundamental shift. Biology is increasingly complex, regulatory expectations are rising, and sponsors need decisive human data earlier than ever before. Traditional CRO models — built for scale, operational breadth, and late phase execution — were not designed for this environment. Early phase success depends on scientific depth, integrated capabilities, and the ability to move seamlessly from strategy to execution to interpretation, without the fragmentation that slows programmes and dilutes insight.
This is the context in which hVIVO is unifying its brands under a single identity. The integration is not a change in direction. It is the culmination of a multi year evolution: the deliberate creation of a purpose built early phase ecosystem designed to deliver clarity, speed, and scientific continuity across the most critical stages of drug development.
Over several years, hVIVO has been assembling the capabilities required to operate as a unified early phase engine. Each part of the organisation has brought something essential:
CRS, acquired in 2025, added more than 40 years of clinical pharmacology experience and internationally recognised leadership in cardiometabolic disease, led by Prof Thomas Forst and the Mannheim team.
Venn Life Sciences, part of hVIVO since 2019, contributed more than three decades of early drug development consulting, regulatory strategy, and biometry expertise.
hVIVO’s own heritage in respiratory and infectious disease, combined with advanced virology and immunology laboratories, created a scientific foundation that few early phase providers can match.
Individually, these capabilities were strong. Together, they form something fundamentally different: an integrated, science led ecosystem capable of generating rigorous, decision ready human data earlier in development.
This is what “More than a CRO” means in practice. It is not a slogan — it is a structural reality.
The missing piece — now in place
Before CRS joined the organisation, hVIVO had deep expertise in respiratory and infectious disease, world leading human challenge capabilities, and advanced laboratory platforms. What was missing was a complementary centre of excellence in clinical pharmacology and cardiometabolic research — a therapeutic area where early phase complexity is high and decisive human data are critical.
CRS filled that gap completely.
With Professor Forst and his team — authors of more than 300 publications and long recognised as leaders in metabolic and cardiovascular research — hVIVO now has the depth of expertise required to support sponsors across a broader spectrum of early phase biology. This is not expansion into a new area; it is the scaling of an established, expert led capability.
The integration of these scientific engines is what enables hVIVO to operate as a unified early phase ecosystem rather than a collection of services.
Building one integrated organisation
Over the past year, hVIVO has been aligning the organisation behind this model. The integration has been deliberate and operationally deep, including:
unified SOPs and quality frameworks
harmonised financial and legal systems
shared scientific governance
cross functional teams spanning clinical, laboratory, and consulting functions
a flat structure that gives sponsors direct access to the senior experts
common processes that allow programmes to move seamlessly across capabilities
This work ensures that the integration is not cosmetic. It is structural, scientific, and operational — designed to remove friction, accelerate timelines, and strengthen the continuity of expertise across every programme.
With this foundation in place, hVIVO is now ready to launch its integrated solutions under a single brand.
The unification of hVIVO’s brands is designed to make early‑phase development faster, clearer, and more reliable for sponsors. Sponsors benefit from:
One integrated entry point: Access to clinical pharmacology, human challenge expertise, advanced laboratories, and early‑phase consulting through a single, coordinated team.
Seamless movement from strategy to execution: Study design, biomarker strategy, assay development, clinical execution, and data interpretation are aligned within one scientific framework.
Deeper scientific expertise across multiple sites: World‑leading human challenge and respiratory capabilities in London, established cardiometabolic expertise in Mannheim, and specialist‑population capacity in Kiel, including renal and hepatic impairment studies. .
More meaningful data, earlier: Integrated scientific leadership ensures that endpoints are more relevant, biomarkers more informative, and data decision‑ready.
Greater delivery certainty: Owned clinical sites, continuous participant recruitment, and advanced laboratory capacity reduce operational risk and improve predictability.
This is not a traditional CRO structure. It is a purpose‑built ecosystem designed for the scientific and operational realities of early‑phase development.
The brand is unifying under the hVIVO name, reflecting how the organisation already operates: as a single, integrated early phase engine.
What is not changing is the expertise, the people, or the scientific leadership that sponsors rely on. The teams in UK and the EU remain central to hVIVO’s identity and capability. The integration simply makes their expertise more accessible, more connected, and more impactful. To find out more about the impact of the changes, and FAQs on the changes please visit the One hVIVO page.
The integration of hVIVO’s brands marks the next step in the company’s evolution — not a departure from its past. It reflects a model that has been built deliberately over time: a science-led early phase ecosystem designed to deliver the clarity and confidence that modern drug development requires.
As the industry continues to evolve, hVIVO is positioned to lead with a model that is more integrated, more scientific, and more aligned with the realities of early phase biology than the traditional CRO approach.
This is what it means to be More than a CRO. It is a commitment to scientific depth, operational excellence, and integrated capability — delivered through one unified hVIVO.