OBI Client Company Wins

Hemex
- We are excited to announce our new partnership with Cureleads for distribution of Gazelle in the Middle East, Turkey and North Africa.
- Our CEO, Patti White, was a keynote speaker in the OHSU Invent-a-thon Post-Hack!
- We are also releasing our newborn screening capacity for sickle cell anemia in May.
Caregiven
- Our big news is that we launched our app on April 15th!
- And we closed our pre-seed with a total of $700K raised.
- We are also a 2021 Oregon Technology Awards finalist!
SUTUREGARD Medical
- We shipped the most HEMIGARD ever in Q1 2021
- We have teamed with one of the leading foot and ankle surgeons in the world, Dr Mark Myerson. He has now enrolled 8 colleagues across the country and is initiating a clinical trial of HEMIGARD in ankle replacement/fusion surgery.
- We just attended the Chicago Lower Extremity Surgery Symposium in April as invited speakers, and we had the HEMIGARD successfully demo’ed on live video by the Symposium Chairman, Dr. Edgardo Rodriguez-Collazo.
Gamma Therapeutics
- David Eastman has retired as CEO of Gamma Therapeutics, and Ajay Nair has signed on as CEO.
- We are re-branding Gamma Therapeutics to Gamma Diagnostics, since our focus going forward will be on diagnostics.
Rewire Neuro
- We won a Cougar Cage grant from WSU (it is their version of Shark Tank).
- And we have advanced to the finals round of the Angel Oregon Tech TechFestNW competition.
Madorra
- We were selected from a pool of more than 100 applicants to present at Cooley’s Capital Call fundraising event.
- We were mentioned in the Femtech Insider interview with Portfolia Founder, Trish Costello.
- We were featured in HitLab’s Women’s Health Wednesdays interview.
Izon
- Grazia Abou Ezzi, Ph.D has joined Izon Science at OBI as our Senior R&D Support Scientist.
Consano
- We had our first Consano Speaker Series virtual event featuring one of our crowdfunding researchers from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute on 4/15 utilizing local tech platform Brandlive. It was a great success, raising over $10K for the project which is working to increase health equity for cancer patients by connecting them directly with community resources. Watch recording of the 45 minute event here.
OBI graduate AbSci announces completion of $125 million crossover financing to advance AI-powered synthetic biology drug creation platform. Read press release.

Mentor of the Month:
Peter Schuerman

Peter Schuerman is CEO of Open Clearing, LLC and is one of our valuable mentors. With a PhD in Genetics, and experience in ideation, business strategy, and intentional networking, Peter works with start ups in the role of coach, mentor, and advisor. He focuses on customer discovery, team formation and dynamics, business model innovation, and strategy; he enjoys creating environments and partnerships that foster success.

Each month, Peter’s mentee through the OBI Mentoring Program has glowing comments about working with Peter and his help in setting goals and concrete steps, brainstorming, and pivoting when needed.

Thank you Peter, for all you do!

SBIR/STTR Workshop May 25

The Federal Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs are a critical source of non-dilutive financing for early-stage companies. On May 25 from 10-11:30 a.m., NIH National Cancer Institute SBIR program directors Monique Pond and Jonathan Franca-Koh will deliver a virtual seminar covering eligibility, resources, and investor initiatives. Pre-selected companies will also be speaking with the program directors afterward for 1:1 meetings.

This event is a collaboration between the National Cancer Institute, Oregon Bioscience Incubator, OHSU’s Cancer Early Detection Advanced Research Center, and Oregon Clinical and Translational Research Institute.

Caregiven is Hosting an App Jam Focus Group
June 10 from 5:30-6:30 p.m.

Portland State Business Accelerator
is Hiring a Director

The Director will oversee and execute a suite of support services for resident companies, including workshops, boot camps, mentors, software tools and programs, and shared resource management. The Director will create and execute the operational plans for the PSBA and contribute to strategic direction for Propel PSU within Research and Graduate Studies, and be accountable for achievement of short-term operational objectives at the PSBA. The tasks for the position require interpretation and application of the PSBA’s strategy to set objectives, and ultimately impacts the achievement of results within the PSBA and Propel PSU. The position includes coordination of the PSBA’s wet-lab facilities, managing the PSBA budget, and seeking additional resources for the PBSA through sponsorships and grant applications.

For more information and how to apply, see the full job posting.

Americans are Relying on Vaccines
to get through the Pandemic

Data shows Americans are relying on vaccines to get us through the pandemic. As we continue to combat the pandemic, America’s biopharmaceutical industry is working around the clock in unprecedented partnerships to manufacture COVID-19 vaccines, reaching billions of doses by the end of the year. Vaccination rates and willingness to receive a vaccine among Americans are also at a high, where half of all adults in the U.S. have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

New Pre-Seed Venture Fund:
Startup Haven

Silicon Florist recently blogged about a new venture fund: the Startup Haven Ventures Fund is a new pre-seed venture fund, investing in North-America-based pre-seed companies with capital-efficient business models and early signs of commercialization. The Startup Haven Ventures Fund also invests in all of the companies who participate in the Startup Haven Accelerator.

Read more about this new fund and how you might get involved here.