The University City Science Center is set to launch a fundraising effort next year for a $15 million endowment in support of a program to facilitate commercial investment in early stage life sciences technologies with potential in the healthcare industry.
The proof-of-concept program presents three awards of $200,000 in each round, along with a year of guidance from advisers from life sciences and startup companies. Three Pennsylvania universities were recognized in the fourth round today for the first time.
The endowment will enable QED to continue advising 10 projects and funding three projects per year, a spokeswoman for the Science Center said.
With the Rise of AI, What IP Disputes in Healthcare Are Likely to Emerge?
Munck Wilson Mandala Partner Greg Howison shared his perspective on some of the legal ramifications around AI, IP, connected devices and the data they generate, in response to emailed questions.
The QED program, started two years ago, is funded with a $1 million grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration, with additional financial support from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Ben Franklin Technology Development Authority, the William Penn Foundation and Wexford Science and Technology.
It receives applications from 19 universities and research institutions in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware that participate under a common agreement that defines matching funds and intellectual property management.
There are only two other proof-of-concept programs in the U.S. that provide commercial guidance and funding similar to that of the Science Center — one at Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Deshpande Center and the other at University of California, San Diego — but both are focused on engineering and are not multi-institutional.
