November Innovation

Mind Your Matter

News

XiR – Launching Startups and Taking Names

We are happy to welcome four new Executives-In-Residence who have joined Innovation Ventures and are providing feedback and working across startup opportunities at UCSF: Vijay Shreedhar, Lavanya Anandan, Saquib Rahim, Katie Ellias, and Richard Treadwell!

The XiRs provide feedback on UCSF technologies and work across startup opportunities at UCSF to help move our most promising inventions towards the investment milestone. They all have significant entrepreneurial and industry experience and bring tremendous value to UCSF Innovators and Innovation Ventures.

And you can listen to the roundtable interview with SEEN Therapeutics, a company born from the XiR program. You'll hear from program managers Darya Bubman and Todd Pazdera in conversation with CEO Althea Stillman and scientific co-founder Arun Wita as they detail their journey of collaboration, the science behind their novel cancer immunotherapy, and the strategic transition from the program's supportive environment to launching a full-fledged company.

Don't miss this inside look at how UCSF is fueling the future of medicine.

I–Corps

Leaders, including Principal Investigators, Faculty Leads, and Program Directors, from across the National Science Foundation Innovation Corps (I-Corps) Northwest Hub met on November 12, 2025, at UC Berkeley for the annual Site Visit. The Site Visit created a space for leaders to collaborate, proactively problem solve, and plan for 2026 programming.

Thanks to the UCSF Co-PIs, Charles Hart, Peter Kotsonis, and Aenor Sawyer, and Program Manager Nathaniel Prorok. In addition to UCSF, the Hub includes UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC Santa Cruz, Oregon State University, University of Alaska Fairbanks, and the University of Washington. The Hub receives up to $15 million over five years from the NSF to train faculty, trainees, and student entrepreneurs on how to commercialize their research.

UC Regents Innovation Awards

On November 19, 2025, the Regents launched the UC Regents Innovation Awards in pursuit of two objectives:

First, to further encourage the UC community of faculty and researchers to solve the world’s most pressing challenges. And second, to celebrate UC inventors and entrepreneurs. 

Starting in 2026 and for every subsequent year, three winners will be selected from UC’s ten campuses and three national laboratories in each of the following categories:

• Gamechanger Award
• Disruptive Research Award
• Best Startup Award
• Community Changemaker Award
• Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award

The winners of the Game Changer, Disruptive Research, and Best Startup awards will each receive a cash prize of at least $10,000.

Click the link below to find out more!



Save The Dates

UCSF Innovation Showcase @JPM 2026

January 13, 2026

6:00 - 9:00 pm

350 California Street, San Francisco

Innovation Ventures is proud to showcase our newest technologies during the 2026 JPMorgan Healthcare Conference.

Watch the IV Website for Registration details!



Where Science Meets Silence:

Innovations in Rare Diseases



February 13, 2026

9:00 am - 4:30 pm

UCSF Mission Bay Conference Center

Rare diseases affect more than 350 million people worldwide. The UCSF Catalyst Program, in partnership with Foundation Ipsen, invites you to our in-person rare disease symposium. With a focus on the interdisciplinary development of new diagnostics, therapeutics, and social advances for patients and their families affected by a rare disease, we hope that all participants will come away from this symposium with an expanded understanding of the field and the inspiration to make a meaningful impact.

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