Prize4Life
Prize4Life is a non-profit organization founded in 2006 in Cambridge, MA focused on accelerating therapy development for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, aka Lou Gehrig's disease). Prize4Life uses incentive prizes to attract new minds and drive innovation in ALS drug development. The organization is running the $1M Avi Kremer ALS Treatment Prize4Life challenge for preclinical validation of a novel ALS therapeutic in an ALS mouse model, and submissions to this prize will be accepted until June 6th 2015. In addition to prizes, Prize4Life also runs infrastructure programs to support the ALS research community, such as the ALS FORUM, an online portal of cutting edge research and drug development news in ALS (www.researchals.org).
Sara Shnider
Executive DirectorProlog Ventures
Prolog Ventures is a venture capital firm based out of St. Louis Missouri that was founded in 2001. The firm is currently making investments out of its vintage 2013 4th fund of approximately $100 million. The firm is looking to make equity investments in companies ranging from $500,000 to $3 million. The firm will invest in companies across the United States and plans to make approximately 3-4 investments over the next 6-9 months.
Brian Clevinger
Managing Director
RCT Ventures
RCT Ventures invests in early-stage life science companies including medical devices, drug discovery platforms, and research tools.
Chad Souvignier
Managing DirectorRiverVest Venture Partners
RiverVest Venture Partners is a venture capital firm that was founded in 2000 and is based in St. Louis, Missouri with additional office in Cleveland, Ohio. The firm currently has managed over $208 million of total assets. RiverVest has raised two investment funds with total committed capital of $165 million since inception. The recent fund closed at $75 million. RiverVest typically makes equity investments into global companies, and has no specific geographic preferences. The firm will consider making investments at all the stages, and focuses on investments in seed, early-stage and select later-stage companies. The typical investment size is around $6 million, though the firm can invest more or less, depending on the opportunity.
RiverVest is extremely opportunistic when it comes to investments in the life sciences space; with that being said RiverVests specified sectors and sub sectors of interest may or may not be an area in which RiverVest is currently looking to allocate capital to. The firm invests in companies in the biotech therapeutics and diagnostics, as well the medical technology space.
Some of the firms investments have included companies developing biotech therapeutics and diagnostics targeting diseases of the blood and blood forming organs, neoplasms, cancer, and oncology, skin and subcutaneous tissue, cardiovascular diseases, diseases of the ear, and infectious diseases. The firm has also invested in companies developing anti-body based therapeutics. The firm has also invested in firms developing medical technologies such as therapeutic radiation devices, active implantable devices, non active implantable devices, hospital hardware, and imaging devices.
Karen Spilizewski
VPSafeguard Scientifics
Gary Kurtzman
Managing DirectorSand Hill Angels
Stephen Pollitt
Board Member Membership ChairSanofi-Genzyme BioVentures
Jason Hafler
Director of InvestmentsSanus Advisory Asia
Sanus Asia is a Singapore based advisory firm providing investment and transaction-related services across Asia with a focus on Healthcare and Life Sciences.
We work with investors and high potential companies to assist growth/development across Asia through capital raising and strategic/operational support.
We seek to identify high potential US/European Medtech and Digital Health companies with near-term commercialisation potential in Asia.
Will also consider earlier stage investments as a principal Angel investor if there is a strong Asian angle to the technology/business model.
Science Futures
Nola Masterson
Managing DirectorSENS Research Foundation, Inc.
SENS Research Foundation is based in Mountain View, CA. The foundation provides grants for research into rejuvenation biotechnologies that prevent or reverse age-related tissue damage. Historically grants have ranged from $40,000 to $200,000 although this range may change in the future. Grants are available to researchers worldwide. SENS requests that grants not be used to cover overhead/facilities costs. At present, 15 projects are being supported.