Speakers
 

Faciliator 

Gaylene Anderson
US Director, Strategic Research Relationships
Discovery Research Coordination with Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

 

Industry Participants

​Connect and Collaborate Speakers

Neil Boaz
Eastman Chemical Company

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Neil is a Technology Fellow in the Corporate Innovation Division at Eastman Chemical Company, and is tasked with helping discover, devise and develop the next set of technological “great things” for Eastman. He leads multiple projects in areas as diverse as New Approaches to Molecular Recycling for polyester and Carbon Capture and Use for decarbonization.

Neil has a BS in Chemistry from the University of Delaware and a PhD in Organic Chemistry from Harvard University. He joined Eastman Chemical in 1994 and has spent his career in Research and Development supporting a variety of businesses within Eastman. Neil has 32 scientific publications and holds 64 US patents. He has received multiple awards including the 2002 Industrial Innovation Award from the American Chemical Society (Southeast Region), the 2009 Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award administered by the EPA, and the 2019 ICIS Surfactants Award for Technological Innovation.

 

Michael Hansen
Eppendorf-SE
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Michael Hansen, PhD, MBA, CLP, is the Business Development Director - North America, at Eppendorf-SE, a life science company that develops and sells instruments, platforms, consumables and support services for liquid, sample and cell handling workflows across multiple applications in laboratories worldwide. In his role, he searches for, identifies and evaluates companies for investment, acquisition and partnering. He also participates in technology assessments, ranging from screening and evaluating early-stage concept ideas to identifying new technologies and application-driven business opportunities pertinent to Eppendorf-SE’s long term strategy objectives.
 
Throughout his career, Michael has held various roles at Cleveland Clinic, University of Cincinnati, Myriad Genetic Laboratories, Roche Diagnostics Corporation and Boehringer-Mannheim Diagnostics. His expertise has been instrumental in successfully negotiating and closing more than 70 deals, fostering collaborations with domestic and international partners, and establishing relationships with pharmaceutical, device, diagnostic,financial VC companies and TTO/incubators-accelerators.

Maurice D. Lee
Life Sciences with Start2 Group
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Maurice D. Lee works at the intersection of life sciences and early commercialization. As Program Director for Life Sciences for the Start2 Group, Maurice is a fierce champion of innovation and specializes in developing strategies to bring new technologies efficiently and effectively to market. Specifically, he helps startups identify, understand, and address the commercial risks and unique complexities of the U.S. Market.

Prior to his role at Start2, Maurice worked as an independent consultant in operations for several small and emerging biotech companies. Before that, Maurice was a medicinal chemist for 9+ years in the discovery and development of small molecule therapeutics for infectious diseases (targeted anti-infectives, anti-malarials) and cancer (immuno-oncology) at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard and Ensemble Therapeutics.

Maurice holds a B.S. in Biology from Trinity College (Hartford, CT), a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from Emory University (Atlanta, GA) and an MBA in Health Sector Management from Boston University (Boston, MA).

Kirsten Leute
University Relations at Osage University Partners (OUP)
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Kirsten Leute is a Partner in University Relations at Osage University Partners (OUP), a venture capital firm focused on investing in deep science startups originating from academic research institutions. In her role, Kirsten manages relationships with approximately 100 partner universities, engaging potential new partners and developing value-added programs for academic institutions and their entrepreneurs. Her extensive experience in technology transfer includes nearly two decades at Stanford University and the German Cancer Research Center, where she specialized in managing invention portfolios, particularly in biotechnology.

Outside her work at OUP, Kirsten actively contributes to initiatives that support university startups and promote diversity in innovation. She leads the Equalize program, a virtual mentorship and pitch competition aimed at addressing the underrepresentation of women academic inventors. Additionally, she serves on advisory boards for technology commercialization offices at several universities, is an Adcom member for America’s Seed Fund (SBIR/STTR through NSF), and has held leadership roles in organizations like Women in Bio and the Association of University Technology Managers.

Dr. Katy Montague
AstraZeneca Oncology R&D
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Dr. Katy Montague manages both the Global Collaboration Agreements and Project and Portfolio Management teams in AstraZeneca’s Oncology External R&D and Strategic Alliances group.  This multinational team is responsible for facilitating AstraZeneca’s preclinical and nonclinical Oncology collaborations with academics worldwide to support the company’s R&D strategy, and in particular preparing and negotiating the agreements that underpin these partnerships. She is based in Cambridge, UK.

Katy has over 15 years’ experience in technology transfer and negotiating industry/academic agreements.  Prior to joining AstraZeneca in 2017, Katy managed the commercialisation company of the Babraham Institute, an academic bioscience research institute. She also previously worked for the UK National Health Service, where she worked in protecting and commercialising NHS intellectual property relating to novel medical technologies.  Katy holds a Ph.D. in molecular biology and biochemistry from the John Innes Centre, and completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Oxford.

Stefan Schweizer
Thermo Fisher
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Stefan Schweizer, With a PhD in Chemistry from Georg-August University in Germany, worked for several years in biotech/pharma R&D on medical devices and cancer/infectious diseases drug development. Shifting gears, Stefan entered academic technology transfer, which launched him into an exciting career at the intersection of business and science/technology. The exposure to out-licensing of life science technologies and supporting start up companies for UTRF and USC provided the solid foundation for his current scope of work at Thermo Fisher on sourcing innovative technologies for future products, coordinating and driving due diligence and negotiating the respective financial terms and agreements.

Omar Zahr
TandemLaunch
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Omar Zahr began his career in venture capital after earning his PhD in Materials Chemistry from McGill University. His primary focus has been leveraging academic research for commercial applications, particularly in the consumer technology sector. As CTO of TandemLaunch, Omar oversees the development and strategic direction of new ventures, working closely with entrepreneurs, researchers, and industry experts to turn innovative ideas into viable businesses.

Since joining TandemLaunch in 2015, Omar has played a key role in the ideation and development of over 23 startups and has negotiated licensing agreements with over 27 universities worldwide. Omar's technical expertise includes metamaterials and nanotechnology, and he is credited with several publications in these fields.
In his current role, Omar shapes the technological roadmap of TandemLaunch’s investments, supports the professional development of its technical leaders and aligns startups with market demands and investor expectations. He is also active in IEEE Entrepreneurship and AUTM, working to enhance the link between university technology transfer and industry.
 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/omarzahr/