STARTUP NEWS
Akava Therapeutics (Prof. Richard Silverman, Weinberg), which is developing small molecule therapeutics that inhibit protein aggregation and enzymes in a variety of cancers and neurodegenerative diseases, received FDA clearance on their IND application to treat ALS. Read more
Opera Bioscience (Prof. Danielle Tullman-Ercek, McCormick) received an NSF SBIR Phase I Grant for $275K to further develop their novel protein expression platform, improving protein purification quality and efficiency.
Minute Molecular Diagnostics (Prof. David Kelso, McCormick), which developed a rapid point-of-care PCR testing system merged with Nuclein. This merger will accelerate the development of new products and technologies. Read more
| |
Q RESIDENT STARTUP GRADUATES
Congratulations to our first InQbation Lab graduates, Volexion (Prof. Mark Hersam, McCormick) and Rhaeos (Prof. John Rogers, McCormick). We are grateful for their contribution to The Q community and look forward to their next stage in development.
NORTHWESTERN STARTUPS with an active option or license may apply to become Q Residents HERE.
| |
CURRENT STARTUP FUNDRAISING ACTIVITY | | |
|
Actinia (Prof. Mercouri Kanatzidis, Weinberg) is raising $3M in Seed funding to reach production-level manufacturing capacity.
Stemloop (Prof. Julius Lucks, McCormick) is raising $1M in Seed funding to support the commercialization of their first product, µSense for Lead.
| |
Volexion (Prof. Mark Hersam, McCormick) is raising $1.2M in Seed Series 2 funding from undisclosed investors with $250k remaining. They continue the development, scale-up, and commercialization of their graphene encapsulation technology.
Flashpoint Therapeutics (Prof. Chad Mirkin, Weinberg) is actively subscribing a $10M round. They have identified a lead investor who has committed $5M.
| |
|
|
NORTHWESTERN STARTUPS may share fundraising or milestone news through this monthly newsletter. Please email inqbationlab@northwestern.edu for consideration.
INVESTORS may contact InQbation Lab directly for more information regarding these opportunities.
| |
Q ENTREPRENEURIAL FELLOWS
The Q Entrepreneurial Fellows convened for the first time on September 1. This first cohort (pictured left to right) includes Jack McGee, Jesse Gordon-Blake, Yoshi Kratish, and Rebecca Keate (starting Jan 2024), who will lead four Northwestern projects based in the labs of Profs. Joseph Moskal, Neil Kelleher, Tobin Marks, and Guillermo Ameer, respectively. They were each accepted into The Engine's Blueprint Program, which is designed to help researchers explore the commercial opportunities of their breakthroughs and startup projects over 5 weeks.
| |
EXECUTIVES-IN-RESIDENCE
The Querrey InQbation Lab is piloting one-week executive residencies on a (bi)monthly basis that embed seasoned executives in the Northwestern community. The goal is to equip Northwestern faculty and startups with new perspectives, broader networks, and actionable recommendations in their approach to next steps of derisking or commercialization. The first year of programming (Fall 2023) will focus on: Sustainability, Health Data, and Therapeutics. For more information, contact Sonia Kim (sonia.kim@northwestern.edu).
Our October executive-in-residence is Ananth Naman. Naman has over 20 years of industry experience in specialty chemical, industrial and electronic materials. He was most recently Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Cabot Microelectronics.
| | |
|
Q Founder Series| Building the Team—How to Hire the First Employees
Adam Falkof, Partner, Quarles & Brady
Monday, September 11, 2023 | 2 PM- 3 PM
Chicago Campus, SQBRC Lurie Grey Seminar Room
More Details
| | |
|
Q Founder Series | SBIR/STTR programs supporting innovation in R&D
Kris Parmelee, SBIR/STTR Consultant, Parmelee Consulting
Wednesday, September 13, 2023 | 12 PM - 1 PM (remote)
More Details
| | |
|
Q Founder Series| Building the Team—How to Hire the First Employees
Adam Falkof, Partner, Quarles & Brady
Tuesday, September 19, 2023 | 12 PM - 1 PM (Hybrid)
1801 Maple Ave, Evanston
More Details
| |
LEADERSHIP COACHING FALL QUARTER 2023
The Center for Leadership offers Northwestern undergraduate students, graduate students and postdocs the opportunity to develop their leadership skills through a tailored Leadership Coaching. This program provides training on time management skills, how to approach conflict and deal with change effectively. Apply no later than September 20, 2023.
Graduate-level students coached this Fall will be eligible to apply for a more intensive Fellowship in Leadership. Application details will be available in October.
| |
CROSSTOWN SHOWCASE: AI in HEALTHCARE
Northwestern and University of Chicago are joining forces to showcase talent at the intersection of AI, healthcare, and data. This dynamic event will offer the opportunity for crosstown networking with the goal of strengthening the ecosystem of people in the world of AI and healthcare will take place on September 14, 2023 in Chicago. For registration details, visit the registration page. This event is hosted by the Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine (I.AIM), leading research on AI in healthcare at Northwestern, and the Center for Healthcare Delivery Science and Innovation at UChicago Medicine, transforming healthcare delivery in the pursuit of perfect care.
| |
CHICAGO BIOCAPITAL SUMMIT
Chicago BioCapital Summit will bring together cutting-edge programs and/or startups and connect them with a national audience of VCs. Coordinated by the Chicago Biomedical Consortium, in partnership with Northwestern University, the University of Chicago, and the University of Illinois Chicago, the BioCapital will take place on November 2, 2023 in downtown Chicago. Visit the registration page for more details.
| |
INTERNATIONAL TOP-DOWN PROTEOMICS SYMPOSIUM
Northwestern’s Chemistry of Life Processes Institute will host the second International Top Down Proteomics Symposium, October 3-5, 2023 at Northwestern Medicine’s Prentice Women’s Hospital. Leading experts in the field will discuss groundbreaking technologies and approaches for the analysis of human proteins that are advancing precision medicine. More details.
| | | | |
