05/22/2018 | Ironwood Insight
A Connecticut Investor’s Perspective on the Yale Innovation Summit
On May 9th I was pleased to attend and serve as a judge at the Yale Innovation Summit in New Haven, Connecticut. The day-long annual event, with nearly 1,000 attendees, highlights the exciting and investable innovations originating within Yale University.
At the summit there were two tracks – biotechnology and technology. My job was to assess the biotech presenters. Pitch-session winners would share $16,000 of prize money and a chance to present their ideas at the Blavatnik Fund showcase, where they could receive grants up to $300,000 – real money to advance critical research.
I was thoroughly impressed by the breadth of scientific concepts covered, the ideas presented and with the presenters themselves. Their concepts offered a wide range of science and commercialization opportunities. You can go here to learn more about the event, the presenters and their companies. It was difficult to pick one winner among so much talent, but I expect many of these companies will be the next success stories and future employers of Connecticut. I look forward to seeing their continued progress and contributions, locally and globally.
As I listened to an investor panel talk about the dynamics of investing in the New Haven area, I thought about the sheer number of world-class companies, people and science developing in universities, labs, incubators and offices within Connecticut. I’m fortunate to live and work in this environment and proud of the role Ironwood Capital has served, helping to finance and advance Life Science technologies – a significant and growing core competency within Connecticut.
