Inaugural Event Extends NHLBI-Funded CAI Program.
UC Biomedical Research Acceleration, Integration and Development (BRAID), a consortium of five University of California (UC) medical campuses, and the UC Center for Accelerated Innovation (CAI), are partnering with UCI Applied Innovation for the first UC Pitch Day on November 30.
The goal of the event is to provide a forum where emerging technologies from the research labs of UC Irvine, UC Los Angeles, UC San Diego, UC Davis and UC San Francisco can be presented to potential investors.
UC BRAID oversees CAI, which is one of three centers funded by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI). CAI leverages the expertise and resources of the five BRAID medical center campuses and works to translate leading-edge discoveries into innovative products with high-commercial potential.
“CAI is leveraging the work that is made possible by NHLBI support,” said Mike Palazzolo, Director, UC Center for Accelerated Innovation. “We have identified and funded programs in areas specific to diseases of the heart, lung and blood and are excited to introduce them to the investment community.”
The UC Pitch Day is part of UCI Applied Innovation’s Born in California pitch series which focuses on high-potential startups in California and provides a forum for venture capitalists to connect with innovative projects.
“Projects selected to make presentations will be those that show strong commercial viability and address serious unmet medical needs,” said Richard Sudek, UCI Applied Innovation chief innovation officer and executive director. “This type of collaboration is a win for faculty inventors, a win for the UC medical campuses and a win for investors.”
A second UC Pitch day is schedule for April, 2019.