Mobile Internet companies raked in a total of $19.2 billion in new investment over the last year, more than double the previous period, according to investment advisory firm Digi-Capital.
The big winner? Mobile commerce, with $4.2
Strand Life Sciences (Strand) representatives will demonstrate new capabilities of the company’s variant interpretation and reporting software, StrandOmics at the Association For Molecular Pathologist (AMP) 2014 Annual Meeting to be held from November 12th to 15th in National Harbor, Maryland. The 20th anniversary meeting’s theme is “Realizing the Dream of Precision Medicine,” with a special address by Dr. Francis Collins, Director of the National Institute of Health. At AMP, Strand will host a workshop on the innovative developments and application of its StrandOmics software, plus new expansion efforts in Personalized Medicine.
Strategic Adviser for BioHealth Innovation Inc.
Tania Fernandez came to the biotech initiative through the venture capital world, where she worked in Silicon Valley and spent 16 years managing investments in companies.
What is the biggest way your day will change in your new role? My day won’t really change. I am a classified workaholic. I will continue to do what I have always loved doing: working with entrepreneurs, building companies and looking for good investment opportunities in the biotech/life sciences/health care sectors. BioHealth Innovation has built a very commendable ecosystem for startups, and I look forward to the opportunity to build out that ecosystem with them as we get ready to fund raise for the BioHealth Gap Fund.
One thing you wish everyone knew about your job? I founded DreamCatcher Ventures after having spent more than 15 years in hard-core academics and a decade in venture capital financing. I have watched people get burnt either because they were not grounded enough (which translates into operational weakness) or had their head way above the clouds (which translated to being unrealistic about long-term success and sustainability of business models). I created DreamCatcher Ventures with a simple goal to “Build the foundations for dreams.” That’s what I want people to know about my job. This quote by Henry David Thoreau, which is the tagline for DreamCatcher Ventures, says it all: “If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.” For entrepreneurs there is a fine line between being stubborn and being persistent, an even finer liner between being a visionary and having unrealistic expectations. In my day-to-day job, I work with clients to bridge that. It is great to dream but you need to have your feet planted on the ground. I believe in the power of dreams combined with the excellence of execution.
BioHealth Innovation clients Alex Lai (Speed BioSystems), Matthew Mulvey (Benevir), David Cetlin (MockV Solutions), and BHI Entrepreneur-in-Resident Ram Aiyar meet with Bahija Jallal.
Dr. Bahija Jallal is Executive Vice President, MedImmune, responsible for biologics research, development and clinical activities. As part of AstraZeneca’s Senior Executive Team, Bahija is tasked with advancing the biologic organisation’s pipeline of drugs targeting cancer, infections, respiratory and inflammatory diseases, cardiovascular and gastrointestinal disorders and pain. (Astrazenica Bio)
Join us in welcoming two new interns to our team!
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Vanessa Sorto Vanessa Sorto joined BHI on September 2014 as an accounting and human resources intern. She is responsible for supporting the director of finance and human resources in assembling monthly expense reports for BHI senior staff, reconciling bank accounts, preparing monthly financial reports, assisting in audit preparation, and maintaining payroll. She is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree at The University of Maryland, College Park in Accounting and Information Systems. She is a Hillman Entrepreneur scholarship recipient. |
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Kurt Herzog Kurt Herzog joined BHI in 2014 as a Business & Research Analyst. He assists BHI’s client companies with market entry strategies for their products by engaging with clients to understand current products, researching existing and potential markets, and analyzing business strategy. His work includes developing executive summaries, investor slide decks, tailored presentation materials, and creating financial models for presentation to investors. Kurt also works with Tania Fernandez on the BioHealth Gap Fund, a $50 million fund announced October 2014 in partnership with the EAGB to support early-stage therapeutics, medical device, diagnostics, and health IT companies in central Maryland. Kurt has experience in investment banking, international micro-lending, renewable energy project finance and project development, forest carbon sequestration monitoring, institutional investing in hedge funds, and working for a non-profit startup accelerator. Kurt holds a BA in Economics and Environmental Studies with a Natural Science concentration from Bowdoin College. He also completed substantial coursework in chemistry. |
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To attend a NICE/UKTI Scientific Advice Seminar for developers of devices and diagnostics.
Learn how to prepare for an evaluation by NICE, the UK’s health technology assessment body.
The seminar will cover:
- “Value” from the perspective of NICE
- How value propositions link to the need for specific evidence
- The types of evidence considered by NICE
- The general principles of health technology assessment (HTA)
- Advantages of doing business in the UK
Who should attend?
- Developers of medical technologies, in particular SMEs
- Investors in the field of medical technologies
- Anyone new to the world of health technology assessment
- Academics, scientists, or clinicians who want to know more about how NICE assesses the value of innovative products
The seminar program is funded by UKTI to allow you free event registration (standard event rate – $550)
BioHealth Innovation, Inc. (BHI), a regional private-public partnership focusing on commercializing market-relevant biohealth innovations and increasing access to early-stage funding in Central Maryland, announced today that venture capitalist, Tania Fernandez, Ph.D., has joined the BHI team as a strategic advisor. Dr. Fernandez will be a member of the management team for a new BioHealth Gap Fund, which will provide up to $50 million in seed and early-stage equity investments to therapeutics, medical device, diagnostics, and health IT companies in Maryland. Additional BioHealth Gap Fund management team members include Richard Bendis, Ram Aiyar, Todd Chappell, and Ken Malone, who each bring domain knowledge and industry access to the fund.
“Dr. Fernandez has ten years of experience as a venture capitalist in the life sciences/biotechnology industry. Her work in Silicon Valley, along with her research experience at the National Cancer Institute, makes her a tremendous asset to the BHI team,” said Richard Bendis, BHI President & CEO. “Dr. Fernandez brings a West Coast investment perspective, and she will have an active role in helping to manage the BioHealth Gap Fund. She will also support our BHI Entrepreneurs-in-Residence and clients: helping our startups to grow and raise strategic funding.”
ROCKVILLE AND BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, September 30, 2014 – BioHealth Innovation, Inc. (BHI), a regional private-public partnership focusing on commercializing market-relevant biohealth innovations and increasing access to early-stage funding in Central Maryland, announced today that venture capitalist, Tania Fernandez, Ph.D., has joined the BHI team as a strategic advisor. Dr. Fernandez will be a member of the management team for a new BioHealth Gap Fund, which will provide up to $50 million in seed and early-stage equity investments to therapeutics, medical device, diagnostics, and health IT companies in Maryland. Additional BioHealth Gap Fund management team members include Richard Bendis, Ram Aiyar, Todd Chappell, and Ken Malone, who each bring domain knowledge and industry access to the fund.
Maryland Industrial Partnerships (MIPS) Funding for Technology Product Development MIPS provides funding, matched by participating companies, for university research projects that help companies develop new technology products.
Benefits to Maryland Companies
- Cost-effective research with world-class university faculty
- Access to university students, state-of-the-art facilities, laboratories and equipment
- Non-dilutive, non-debt funding for research
- Opportunity to work directly with talented students—potential future hires
- Rapid proposal evaluations—MIPS notifies award winners within 60 days of the proposal deadline
Benefits to Maryland Faculty
- Research translates directly to new product development
- Potential for published papers and improved university facilities
- Students gain valuable experience working on commercial technologies
Visit www.mips.umd.edu or call 301.405.3891301.405.3891 for details.
APPLICATIONS ARE DUE BY OCTOBER 15, 2014!
BioHealth Innovation, Inc. (BHI) announced today that Roche Pharma Research and Early Development (pRED) and BHI have entered into an agreement to advance healthcare technologies coming from academic institutions, federal laboratories and startups based in Central Maryland. Under the terms of the agreement, BHI will identify health technologies that Roche will evaluate for potential research, development and commercialization opportunities. Priority areas of interest will include oncology, neuroscience, ophthalmology, rare diseases, immunological and infectious diseases. Financial terms for the agreement were not disclosed.
The agreement was initiated through Roche pRED Academic Relations and Collaboration (ARC) group, which is led globally by Juan Carlos Lopez. “Sourcing of technologies from academia, federal labs and early-stage startups can be a challenging and lengthy process,” said Lopez. “As we seek to expand our capabilities to source and screen technologies aligned with our strategic interests, BHI is an ideal partner to support identification of external opportunities in a broad, systematic fashion.”