CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR NEWEST Q GRADUATES

Stemloop (Prof. Julius Lucks, McCormick) and HemoRhythmics (Prof. John Rogers, McCormick) are our newest graduate from the InQbation Lab. We are grateful for their contribution to the Q community and look forward to their next stage in development.

To become a Q Resident, startups must have an active option or license with Northwestern.

If you are interested, please complete THIS SPACE APPLICATION FORM.

OPPORTUNITIES TO JOIN THE INVO TEAM

The Innovations and New Ventures Office has several open positions for dedicated and collaborative individuals passionate about tech transfer and university technology commercialization. Join a highly collaborative team with a great mission and in an intellectually stimulating environment!

Open positions include Associate General Counsel, Assistant General Counsel, and Invention Manager.

Numat (Prof. Omar Farha, Weinberg), a global leader in metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), is constructing the world's first industrial-scale MOF manufacturing campus in Chicago's West Humboldt Park. The facility, set to be fully operational in Spring 2024, leverages digital technologies to expedite the development and production of MOF-based solutions for applications such as decarbonization and industrial safety. Read more

Sibel (Prof. John Rogers, McCormick) has unveiled its 'Discovery' physiological monitoring platform for clinical trials, featuring FDA-cleared wearable sensors to track participants' vital signs. They have partnered with Medidata, an AI-powered clinical trial solutions firm, to integrate 'Discovery' into its cloud-based platform, enhancing researchers' access to participant data and potentially advancing healthcare practices. Read more

Syenex (Prof. Josh Leonard, McCormick), has developed a platform called 'GEMINI' (Genetically Encoded Multifunctional Integrated Nanovesicles) that uses extracellular vesicles (EVs) to deliver biological drugs to T cells. Published this month in Nature Biomedical Engineering, this platform addresses the challenge of targeted drug delivery and potentially accelerates the development of gene and cell therapies. Read more 

At the 2023 Chicago Innovation Awards ceremony, Volexion (Prof. Mark Hersam, McCormick) won the "Up and Comer" Award, being recognized for the disruptive potential of their innovative graphene encapsulation technology, which pushes the limits and opens new horizons in battery technology. At the same ceremony, Sibel Health (Prof. John Rogers, McCormick and Dr. Steve Xu) were awarded the "Molex Creating Connections for Life" Award for their groundbreaking wireless sensors that will revolutionize medical monitoring and data collection for research and clinical trials. Read more

Actinia (Prof. Mercouri Kanatzidis, Weinberg), is raising $4M in Seed funding to reach production-level manufacturing capacity for their radiation detector materials.

Stemloop (Prof. Julius Lucks, McCormick) is raising $2M in Seed funding to support the commercialization of their first product, µSense for Lead, which utilizes cell-free biosensors.

MFNS-Tech (Prof. Vinayak Dravid, McCormick) has raised over $900k in their $1.34M Seed raise led by Good Growth Capital and other investors. This funding will support 6+ pilots, scale-up production, and business expansion of their nanostructure coating for environmental remediation.

Volexion (Prof. Mark Hersam, McCormick) is currently raising an oversubscribed $1.75M Seed Series 2 funding round with investments from Clean Energy Ventures, Clean Energy Venture Group, and Earth Foundry to develop, scale up, and commercialize their graphene encapsulation technology for commercial lithium-ion cathode materials.

Grove Biopharma (Prof. Nathan Gianneschi, Weinberg) is raising a $10M Series A to advance a lead program in pancreatic and non-small cell lung carcinoma to IND-enabling studies. Precision-Linked Proteomimetics, (PLPs), their new therapeutic modality, are synthetic, multifunctional, small protein-scale molecules that can target intracellular protein-protein interactions.

NU STARTUPS: To share your fundraising/milestone news, email inqbationlab@northwestern.edu.

INVESTORS: Contact InQbation Lab for more information regarding these investment opportunities.

KELLOGG-Q ENTREPRENEURIAL RESIDENCY

SPRING 2024

The Kellogg – Q Lab Entrepreneurial Residency is an exciting opportunity for faculty with translational research projects to partner with a Kellogg MBA student interested in research-based commercialization and entrepreneurship. This collaboration between Kellogg and The Q embeds a Kellogg MBA in cutting-edge technology projects from Northwestern's premier research centers. Potential deliverables include market studies, competitive analyses, gap analyses, or assessments of commercialization potential.

For the spring, Kellogg and the InQbation Lab are currently seeking:

1. Translational project submissions- Complete THIS APPLICATION by December 15.
2. Kellogg students- Attend Information Sessions on January 16 and January 23. Register in advance.

Q FOUNDER SEMINAR SERIES | ADVANCING THERAPEUTICS

WINTER 2023/2024

In November, The Q launched its Q Founder "Advancing Therapeutics" seminar series, which focuses on critical topics related to therapeutic development. The series continues through January, focusing on key considerations as scientists seek to advance a therapeutic from the lab to the market.

The first seminar, "A Reality Check on Sizing Your Biotech Market" was given by Jamie Kasuboski, VP of Omx Ventures. In his seminar on evaluating the market size for a potential therapeutic, he provided a framework and key considerations when picking an indication, identifying the market, considering technology limitations, and assessing the competitive landscape to determine the market opportunity accurately. Jamie is also a mentor in our InQbation Lab Mentor Network.

See the Upcoming December Events below.

NOVEMBER Q FOUNDER SEMINARS

FALL 2023

The Q and the Northwestern Biotech Club co-hosted a talk, "Getting to 'Yes' | What Goes into the Venture Diligence Process" by Erich Scheller, Director of TechAtlas at RA Capital Management. Erich provided insights into the investor's perspective on due diligence in the biotech sector and crucial aspects that shape the investment decision.

The Q hosted a panel, "SBIR/STTR Funding Opportunities with Leading NIH Experts" with four program officers from grant funding divisions including NINDS, NHLBI, NCATS and NMHD.

Note that the FAST Center at IL offers monthly webinars and resource support, including office hours and SBIR matching.

NOVEMBER STARTUP CEO ROUNDTABLE

The second CEO Roundtable featured invited guest Dennis Yang (McC '95), former CEO of Udemy. He met with executive leaders from Northwestern startups, including (from left to right) Jay Rosanelli (Syenex), Yosi Kratish, Nick Sather (Amphix Bio), Kurt Zoller (PreDx), Damien Despinoy (Volexion), Khalid Alam (Stemloop), Gerry Sapienza (Opera), Amartya Banerjee, and Randa Dumanian (MSi). Drawing from over two decades of launching and growing innovative companies and his extensive involvement in companies as an advisor, investor and board member, Dennis covered a range of leadership topics.

2023 CHICAGO BIOCAPITAL SUMMIT

The inaugural summit, held on November 2 at Portal Innovations, drew over 400 attendees including investors, industry experts and scouts, entrepreneurs, and academic partners. The event featured cutting-edge life science programs and startups originating from local universities. Over 20 Northwestern startups and faculty were featured in the Hall of Inventors. Northwestern Profs. Shana Kelley, John Rogers, and Alexis Demonbreun participated in a Panel and Lightning Talks. The success of the event highlights Chicago as a rapidly growing biotechnology and innovation hub. A second Chicago Biocapital Summit is being planned for 2024.

The Northwestern community appreciates the leadership and vision of CBC Executive Director, Michelle Hoffman, and the entire CBC staff and Entrepreneurial Fellows. The event was a collaboration between the Chicago Biomedical Consortium, Northwestern University, The University of Chicago, and University of Illinois-Chicago.

If you have any questions, please visit the Querrey InQbation Lab or email inQbationlab@northwestern.edu.