Past Events

$25K BenDaniel Venture Challenge (Deadline: 3/22/24)

Friday, March 22, 2024 - 9:00am to 11:00pm

Applications Now Open for the BenDaniel Venture Challenge  

The BenDaniel Venture Challenge (BVC) is Big Red Venture’s Annual Pitch Competition. BRV will select five finalists to pitch their business ideas to a panel of investors during Entrepreneurship at Cornell Celebration on April 12. Winners will earn a cash prize totaling $25,000 with an additional $25,000 match if the company’s technology is licensed through Cornell.   

Companies based in New York state or with a Cornell affiliation are eligible to apply. Applications are open through March 22, 2024. Apply now. 

Big Red Ventures logo with half of a house shape and the words in all capital letters. The phrase "Big Red" is bold.

JLABS Investor & Partnering Day (Application Deadline 3/22/24)

Friday, March 22, 2024 - 9:00am to 11:45pm
Location: The New York Genome Center, 101 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10013

Johnson & Johnson Innovation's annual JLABS Investor & Partnering Day will take place in New York City on Thursday, May 2, 2024, 8:30 am to 6 pm, and applications are now open for qualified, promising, early-stage biotech startups seeking pre-seed, seed, or series A funding in the next 12 to 18 months.

The day will consist of one-on-one matched meetings with strategically aligned life science investors, perspectives from experts including Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC, Inc., a networking lunch, and a reception to provide additional opportunities to meet with investors and fellow biotech CEOs.

Please submit your application by March 22 and reach out to Miriam Huber if you have any questions. Note that there are limited spots available, so attendance is not guaranteed and is based on additional screening.

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Sanders Tri-I TDI Drug Discovery Mini-Course (Begins 4/1/24)

Wednesday, March 20, 2024 - 1:15pm to Monday, April 15, 2024 - 3:00pm

Join scientists from the Sanders Tri-Institutional Therapeutics Discovery Institute as they share their broad knowledge of small molecule and biologics drug discovery. This mini-course will be provided in four sessions over the course of three weeks (4/1, 4/2, 4/8 and 4/15). Classes will be structured informally with ample opportunity for questions and discussion.

The course covers:

  • An overview of Sanders TDI
  • Target identification and validation
  • Assays for drug discovery
  • Assay development
  • Screening methodologies
  • Introduction to medicinal chemistry
  • Introduction to computational chemistry and molecular modeling
  • Antibody generation strategies
  • Immunization strategies
  • Antibody engineering and optimization
  • Developability assessment

 The number of seats is limited. Register now. Questions? Contact Leigh Baxt at lbaxt@tritdi.org

Sanders Tri-I TDI logo with three arcs in red, light and dark blues forming a triangle shape

The Mark Foundation Emerging Leader Award (Deadline: 4/29/24)

Wednesday, March 20, 2024 - 9:00am

The Mark Foundation Emerging Leader Awards support innovative cancer research from the next generation of leaders. These grants are awarded to outstanding early career investigators to support high-impact, high-risk projects that are distinct from their current research portfolio.

Award Terms

  • The grant amount is $250,000 per year for three (3) years totaling $750,000.
  • Indirect costs are not to exceed 10% of direct costs and are included in total.
  • Emerging Leader Awards are granted to a single investigator; co-investigators are not permitted. The award may be used to support projects carried out with collaborators, who may provide letters of support.
  • In Year 3, at The Mark Foundation’s discretion, select Awardees may be invited to apply for up to two (2) years of additional funding depending on project progress.
  • The letter of agreement will include IP terms with a revenue sharing component.
  • Award start date will be January 1, 2025.

The portal to submit letters of intent for the upcoming Emerging Leader Award will open on March 20, 2024. Letters of Intent must be submitted through the online application system no later than 5 PM Eastern Time on Monday, April 29, 2024. Learn more about the application process here

The Mark Foundation logo - a dark blue capital M with the right vertical line being a strand of DNA formed by greenish blue and dark blue dots

CTL@WCM Special Office Hours with Jason Novak

Tuesday, March 19, 2024 - 10:00am to 4:00pm
Location: Belfer Research Building, BB212, 413 East 69th St., New York, NY 10021

Center for Technology Licensing (CTL) at Weill Cornell Medicine is offering a special opportunity to meet personally with Jason Novak, J.D., of Norton Rose Fulbright, whose specialties in health care and AI will provide valuable information to the Weill Cornell Medicine community following his March 18 panel appearance on the topics at Cornell Tech. 

Jason has extensive experience in IP and data rights strategy. For data rights, Jason advises clients on transactions, protection and general strategy. On the IP front, Jason's experience extends to patent portfolio management, preparation and prosecution, oppositions, counseling, licensing and technology transactions, in and out-licensing, freedom-to-operate, various types of due diligence, IP training, risk recognition and management and dispute resolution.

Register for your 1:1 session now!

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Data Rights & Commercial Strategies in AI Innovation

Monday, March 18, 2024 - 6:00pm to 9:00pm
Location: Cornell Tech, 2 W Loop Rd, Bloomberg Auditorium, New York, NY 10044

This panel discussion delves into data rights in AI-related technologies and strategies for successful commercialization. Panelists include Jason Novak of Norton Rose Fulbright, Fernando Gómez-Baquero, Director of the Runway Startup Postdoc and Spinout Programs, and Vince Hartman, Co-founder and CEO of Abstractive Health. This engaging session will offer a multifaceted view on leveraging AI technologies for commercial success, ensuring data rights, and navigating the evolving landscape of AI commercialization. Food and drink networking reception to follow! 

Register here

Headshots of four panelists (three men and a woman) against a background of the Cornell Tech campus

Tri-Institutional Entrepreneurship Organizations: Helping to Launch Your Science to the Public

Friday, March 15, 2024 - 6:00pm to 8:00pm
Location: Weill Cornell Medicine Greenberg Center, 1305 York Ave, New York, NY 10021

Are you a graduate student or postdoc from Weill Cornell Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering, or Rockefeller University who is interested in bringing your science to the public? Join us to meet the leaders helping to propel life science entrepreneurs ahead!

Hosted by the startup venture group, BioVenture eLab, Life Sciences Technology and Innovation Fellows, Center for Technology Licensing, and Postdoc Runway Startup Program, attendees will learn about the incredible organizations that will help you along every stage of your entrepreneurial path.

​We will begin with an introduction from each organization followed by a Q&A from the audience. After the Q&A, each organization will be seated at a table to discuss more about the programs they offer with the audience in a fair style approach.

Speakers representing each organization include:

  • BioVenture eLab, a part of WCM Enterprise Innovation – Loren Busby
  • Life Sciences Technology and Innovation Fellows – Gregory Ray
  • Center for Technology Licensing – Lynda Inseque
  • Postdoc Runway Startup Program – Tomer Joshua

​This is an incredible opportunity to learn about how to develop your science into a product that can directly impact the lives of others!

​Food and non-alcoholic beverages will be provided! Register now.

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Startup Financing Trends 2024

Thursday, March 14, 2024 - 12:00pm to 1:00pm

OUP is pleased to invite you to our annual startup financing trends webinar. Join Harry Won, Nii Dodoo-Amoo and Nabil Ullah of OUP’s investment team for a discussion on startup financing trends to review the state of the venture funding landscape.

We’ll cover current market behaviors across the entire startup ecosystem with a specific emphasis on university spinouts. Harry Won will outline trends in the life sciences, including biopharma, research tools, diagnostics, and medical devices while Nii Dodoo-Amoo and Nabil Ullah will review the tech and physical sciences, ranging from software to climate tech.

OUP leverages public sources and its own proprietary database of active university spinouts from its partner institutions to provide unique insights and perspectives for 2024 and beyond. Register here

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Innovation & Entrepreneurship Workshop: Building Your Team

Thursday, March 14, 2024 - 11:45am to 1:00pm

A successful startup needs a strong team. Join this exclusive workshop to gain invaluable insights on team dynamics, talent acquisition and effective leadership strategies that will help you build, develop and manage a high-performing team.

Leading the session will be Dr. Steve Sauer, a lecturer in the Cornell Johnson Graduate School of Management and an expert on leadership, team dynamics and organizational behavior. He’ll be joined by Pablo Borquez Schwarzbeck, founder of ProducePay, and Julie Baker, co-founder and CEO of Ursa Space Systems.  

This workshop is part of a virtual series offered by Cornell Research and Innovation. Designed to explore the entrepreneurial journey from ideation to operation, the series is open to anyone with a vision for a startup, including researchers, faculty, doctoral students, graduate students, and undergraduates across Cornell’s campuses. 

Register here. Questions? Contact crea@cornell.edu.

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CTL@WCM Virtual Office Hours with Eric Bryant

Tuesday, March 12, 2024 - 1:00pm to 3:00pm
Location: Virtual

CTL at Weill Cornell Medicine Office Hours are open to all who wish to gain more information about the advancement of their patent filings and to discuss their technology venture project with a one-on-one meeting with a Weill Cornell business development and licensing professional.

The March 12th office hours will be hosted by Eric Bryant, Intellectual Property Officer at Weill Cornell Medicine Enterprise Innovation. 

Eric holds a Master of Science in Biomedical Engineering from New York University, a Juris Doctor from New York Law School, and is a registered patent attorney. He works with the Center for Technology Licensing to execute on intellectual property strategy, review submitted invention disclosures, and manage domestic and foreign patent filings and patent prosecution. 

Eric’s expertise encompasses a variety of technologies including, but not limited to, diagnostics tools and methods, pharmaceuticals, controlled release therapeutic devices, respiratory devices, surgical tools, biological technologies and nanotechnology. 

Schedule your 30-minute session here

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