FEATURED NEWS
OTC PARTNERS WITH SOPS ON PITCH COMPETITION

The University of Kentucky (UK) Society of Postdoctoral Scholars (SOPS) hosted their first Research Pitch Competition where 19 postdocs and fellows showcased their research with one-minute elevator pitches.

The competition was a partnership between SOPS and the Office of Technology Commercialization (OTC) with support from the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs (OPA), and sponsored by the UK International Center (UKIC) and the Office of the Vice President for Research (VPR).
UK JOINS PROMOTION & TENURE - INNOVATION AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP (PTIE) COALITION

The Promotion and Tenure - Innovation and Entrepreneurship (PTIE) is an NSF-funded study and conversation being led by Oregon State University. Representing UK, OTC's executive director, Ian McClure, will be attending the PTIE Summit, September 16-18 to learn about what other universities are doing to incentivize entrepreneurial and innovation activity as part of the promotion and tenure process.
WEBINAR: BUILDING INNOVATION AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
INTO PROMOTION & TENURE
Thursday, August 20
1:00 p.m. PT/4:00 p.m. ET

This webinar presented by ASCEND HUB is open to anyone and features Rich Carter, PhD, professor of chemistry and faculty lead for innovation at Oregon State University and co-founder/CEO of Valliscor, and Karl Mundorff, executive director for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Oregon State University. They will be providing an overview of the National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded initiative to recognize innovation and entrepreneurship within promotion and tenure guidelines through the PTIE coalition.
APPLICATION GOES ELECTRONIC
The UKPitch application is now electronic and information has been provided on the OTC website for each of the questions to assist UK innovators in preparing their application for funding assistance. UKPitch can provide up to $1,000 for registration and travel expenses.

UKPitch is an OTC-sponsored commercialization support program for UK researchers who want to "pitch" their research, technology, intellectual property, or startup company in a competition, at a conference demo day, or similar event.
STAFF NEWS
NEW STAFF MEMBER
Travis McKenzie is a New Ventures manager. He previously managed various projects and developed technology solutions for the College of Arts and Sciences.
NEW STUDENT MARKETING ASSISTANT
Nia Brown is a student marketing assistant. She is a senior pursing a bachelor's degree in integrated strategic communication with an emphasis on digital media & design.
Natasha Jones, commercialization manager, will be participating on a panel in an upcoming virtual Life Sciences Patent Network North America event. The panel's topic is "Fully Exploiting Your Innovations: Best Practice in Invention Harvesting."
Ian McClure, executive director, will be participating in the "Increasing the Visibility of Licensing's Economic Impact and Addressing the Challenges in Cross-Border Licensing" webinar on September 29, 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. ET. The panel includes a former director of the USPTO and a former chief judge of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. This webinar is part of a live webinar series on "Recognizing the Growing Economic Impact of Patent Licensing."
Congratulations
Mandy Wilson Decker!
Mandy Wilson Decker, a former Intellectual Property Development intern, was named to the 2019 Managing IP "Top 250 Women in IP" List. This is the fifth time she has been named to this list.
EDUCATION SESSIONS
September OTC Webinar
How Does OTC Market Technology?


Date: September 9, 2020
Time: 12:00 p.m. EDT
October OTC Webinar
ASK OTC


Date: October 14, 2020
Time: 12:00 p.m. EDT
Missed a Webinar?
You can access Licensing 101 and all of the OTC Monthly Webinars on our YouTube Channel. Check it out now!
BY THE NUMBERS
PATENTS ISSUED
JULY 2020

Kunlei Liu, Zhen Fan
Center for Applied Energy Research

Jian Shi, Joseph C. Stevens
College of Engineering
LICENSING DEALS
JULY 2020

Empire Discovery Institute
Vitaliy Sviripa
David Watt
College of Medicine

ParaTechs Corp.
Barbara Knutson
Stephen Rankin
Bruce Webb
College of Agriculture, Food and Environment
College of Engineering
AIKIDO PHARMA SPONSORS SURVIVAL STUDY OF UK ANTICANCER DRUG G4-1 IN EXCHANGE FOR EXCLUSIVE OPTION TO LICENSE
Congratulations to Chang Guo-Zhan from the College of Pharmacy on receiving funding from AIkido Pharma for a survival study in exchange for an exclusive option to license the drug.
"Proteasome inhibitors in current clinical use are all peptides with very low in vivo stability. G4–1 is a non-peptide proteasome inhibitor with the desirably high in vivo stability required for the treatment of solid tumors. We are excited about the opportunity to further evaluate the therapeutic potential of G4-1 with funding supporting from AIkido." --Chang-Guo Zhan
EVENTS
Every Wednesday, 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. EDT*
Virtual
*Summer Hours
Every Wednesday, 12:00 p.m. EDT
Virtual

Thursday, August 20, 4:00-5:00 p.m. EDT
Virtual



Friday, August 21, 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. EDT
Virtual
Wednesday, August 19, 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. EDT
Virtual
Thursday, August 20, 4:00-5:00 p.m. EDT
Virtual

Friday, August 21, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. EDT
Base 110
110 W Vine St, 3rd Floor, Lexington
*In person

Tuesday, August 25, 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. EDT
Hybrid of in person and virtual offerings
WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
AUSTIN WEISS
OTC FELLOW ALUM
Austin Weiss completed the OTC Fellows program from June 2018-June 2019. He is currently working as a senior product application specialist at Syngenta in North Carolina. Austin works in a multi-disciplinary team of scientists and engineers that work to bridge the gap between growers and their R&D chemists in the development of formulated pesticides.

1.      Did being an OTC Fellow change your career trajectory? If so, how?
I always had an interest in R&D but, it was a great boost to get me to where I was going. It was an amazing opportunity to learn about IP commercialization that I otherwise wouldn’t have had by just taking engineering courses. It also made me very competitive when applying for the job I currently have.

2.      How did being an OTC Fellow help you with your current job?
It taught me valuable skills and perspectives that are useful for R&D work in industry, such as how to read a patent to find required information. I also learned a lot about the commercialization process for new technologies, how to do marketing research and materials, and the value in creating partnerships and a network to name a few.

“My time as an OTC fellow made me better equipped and competitive for a career in R&D.” 
-- Austin Weiss