Breathe, Then Build

Entrepreneur

15-07-2025

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David Harris never set out to be a founder. For more than 30 years, he worked behind the scenes of the respiratory drug delivery industry, quietly growing frustrated with its obsession with imitation over innovation. Inhalers were treated as afterthoughts - mere packaging for the drug - and time after time, projects failed not due to lack of funding, but due to a lack of understanding of the physics that actually governs how patients breathe. In founding CHI, a Cambridge based healthcare technology company, Harris made a bold bet: that true change comes not from copying what exists, but from finally solving what doesn't. And to do that, he had to strike out on his own. Entrepreneur UK finds out more....
What inspired you to start your business?
I've worked in the respiratory drug delivery industry for over 30 years, and my frustration has accumulated over this time as the industry has simply tried to copy existing tech - rather than addressing the real need. There is a huge sector set up around copying existing technology on the market. For example, I worked at a number of product and technology development consultancies and the vast majority of project work was focused on developing generic 'me-too' devices that didn't offer any improvement whatsoever for the patient.
Pharmaceutical companies develop drugs - and treat the inhaler as packaging - and if it is easier to just copy something that is already proven, they aren't going to try and improve things. Copying existing devices isn't easy or cheap, so it is a false economy. Almost all of these projects fail, and never reach the market, or the patient. I didn't start my career dreaming of starting my own business. I've focused on inhalers because I want to improve patient outcomes. Over time I came to realise that this is what needs to be done for the industry to see real change, and as the consultancies I worked at were limited to do what was asked of them, starting a company to really innovate in this area seemed to be the most logical choice."
What was the biggest challenge you faced in the early stages?
Money. We nearly went under a few times, and that is hard especially when you have bills to pay. Developing technology takes time, licensing it takes time, and then getting through regulatory hurdles takes time, and there aren't many VC companies out there who have the patience for such long exit times. As a result, we've had to keep a tight control on costs while at the same time taking a lot of risks.
Technically there are challenges too. The equipment that you need to acquire data is very expensive, so we had to invent cost-effective ways of testing the technology to prove out concepts, test our assumptions and to be able to confidently show potential customers and partners.
There is also a significant lack of understanding within the pharmaceutical companies, and in fact generally, about respiratory physics. In a laboratory setting you can set up an experiment to mimic a patient inhaling in a very controlled manner - but in the real world it is a dynamic, transient, and complex event. Trying to work out what actually goes on has historically been difficult to do precisely, which is why clinical trials often just don't go as expected. That shows that the underlying physics are just not understood.
How has the UK's economic environment impacted your business decisions?
Ten years ago, it was possible to apply for grants, but there are fewer grants available and much stronger competition now. We've tried to stay clear of VCs as much as we can because we need people who understand the long timescales that are necessary for medical products, and the challenges of innovation. Instead, we've looked to partner with larger companies (like Aptar Pharma) in the industry who can bring expertise and commercial reach that we don't have. It was a model born out of necessity, but it is a very promising approach as it gives us a clear route to scalability, and that is important to our customers.
How do you stay ahead of industry trends and innovate within your field?
We listen and we try to understand the future barriers and challenges that the industry will face. For example, patients have very different inhalation capabilities, which can be affected by the condition that you are trying to treat. This lack of consistency among patients and in clinical trials is an issue, so we developed a platform called Aeolus, which has an in-built amplifier. This means that the formulation inside the inhaler doesn't know if it is being inhaled by an old person with poor lung function or an Olympic swimmer - they'd get very similar doses.
Another example is that we also heard from the industry that new generations of large molecules (like biologics) will require larger masses of drug to be delivered. Rather than expecting a patient to use a traditional inhaler multiple times, we set about developing Quattrii, which is a platform specifically for large fill masses. There are many other trends that we've identified that impact on the decisions we make. But sometimes, inspiration comes from left field. When it comes to 'how' we innovate, that requires hiring the right people and creating the right culture.
What steps do you take to build a strong company culture?
We hire the right people. Being based in Cambridge gives us access to incredibly creative people, but we need people with integrity and who are open, honest and trustworthy. We empower everybody to contribute towards solving problems and, importantly, give them permission to fail. The reality is that we fail more than we succeed, but if we take the time to understand and challenge our failures, we can learn and improve. If you hire good, honest people and offer them a safe space, then they will feel able to take responsibility and have the freedom to explore solutions.
What advice would you give to someone thinking about starting a business in the UK today?
Don't let your ego get in the way. Pursue your ideas but don't become blinkered. Challenge your ideas and biases or find people who can. It's also important to be prepared for the financial risk, which can be difficult as you get older. I was in my late 40s when I started CHI, which meant that I had a good amount of industry experience and a large network, but at the same time I have children and a mortgage. At times, these financial pressures have felt overwhelming, especially in the early stages.