CCCTEC eNews: December 2007

Cornell Technologies Attract Potential Investors

CTVF attendees listen to presentations on Cornell
technologies.

ITHACA - CCTEC hosted the 2007 Cornell Technology Venture Forum (CTVF) on October 26 to connect entrepreneurs with potential investors who traveled from Philadelphia, Boston, and throughout the state of New York. At the day-long event, Cornell faculty from the Cornell Ithaca campus and Cornell Weill Medical College presented startup company business plans to potential investors while faculty with earlier stage technologies presented emerging opportunities to launch new startups. Representatives from two regional angel investor networks and fourteen venture capital firms made up the audience of investors for the event.

Cornell startups DNANO, e2e Materials, Tetragenetics, and TransNav Systems pitched their business plans. For earlier stage technologies, Cornell researchers presented a wealth of emerging opportunities, ranging from genetic manipulation of plant leave senescence, to implantable devices for brain monitoring, to small molecule therapeutic candidates for ion channel modulation.

Dr. Geoff Abbott from Cornell Weill Medical
College presents his research on novel
derivatives of ion channel modulators.

In addition to the oral presentations, Cornell researchers presented posters on the following technologies:

• Multiplexed biomarkers for Alzheimer Disease diagnosis
• Long-life power source with built-in sensing capabilities
• C-Rel inhibitors for treatment of immune disorders and cancer
• Light-emitting nanofibers
• Improved tissue extraction apparatus for laparoscopic surgery
• Improved coils for enhanced magnetic resonance imaging
• Device to reset the internal circadian clock in humans

The oral presentations and the posters were held at the same time in connecting adjacent rooms to provide ample opportunities for networking between faculty and investors and in-depth discussions on business opportunities. Based on the positive response from the participants, CCTEC plans to make this an annual event to be held in early October each year. Mark your calendar for October 10, 2008 and don’t miss the event next year!

CCTEC Open House Connects Ithaca Tech Leaders with University Council

Guests mingle at CCTEC open house.

ITHACA - On October 19 CCTEC opened the doors to our new facility (we moved to a new building in August) to more than 60 regional technology company representatives and members of the University Council Technology Transfer Committee (UCTTC). The University Council is a group of alumni who are leaders in their industries. Committee membership represents a very broad spectrum of technology interests and expertise.

Each year the UCTTC meets during the Cornell Trustee/Council annual meeting in Ithaca to give updates and share information about technology transfer. This year the UCTTC agreed to hold their meeting during the CCTEC Open House. Robert Richardson, Senior Science Advisor and former Senior Vice Provost for Research at Cornell, thanked the outgoing UCTTC chair Mark Brandt and welcomed the incoming chair, Andrew Firlik. Brandt is Senior Vice President of Capital Works, a capital management firm in Cleveland, OH. Firlik is a partner at Foundation Medical Partners in Rowayton, CT and also serves on Cornell’s Life Sciences Advisory Board.

After remarks by Brandt, Firlik and Cornell's current Vice Provost for Research Robert Buhrman, Alan Paau, Vice Provost for Technology Transfer & Economic Development and CCTEC Executive Director shared his vision and goals for CCTEC and answered questions from the crowd.

Also, in attendance were over 25 representatives from regional technology companies, lending institutions, government officials and Cornell researchers. The list of attendees included representatives from several Cornell startups including Kionix.