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Get the most interesting and important stories from the University of Pittsburgh.At a Nov. 7 signing day event on campus, five high-performing stars donned their hats and signed their papers, affirming their commitment to Pitt in front of light-up letters and balloon arrangements. Roc the Panther posed for selfies, and “Sweet Caroline” played on the speakers.
But these signees weren’t student-athletes choosing their team. They were Pitt innovators who recently spun off companies launched from their research to create products that fight cancer, improve wound care, support Black parents and more.
“We recognize that many of the qualities that make a five-star recruit also make our five-star innovators,” said Evan Facher, Pitt vice chancellor for innovation and entrepreneurship. “It takes a lot of effort to get these innovations from the lab to the market.”
This was Pitt’s first signing day for startups, an event created to spotlight scientists who are driving downfield to commercialize their research. The group joins Pitt’s large and growing roster of researcher-entrepreneurs.
Spinning off their research into a company is critical step in taking their discoveries — work that may have otherwise remained largely theoretical, stuck in the form of scientific papers and conference abstracts — and translating it into something concrete and marketable that can benefit society directly.
Among the signees were fourth year medical student Adi Mittal, whose company is developing a blood test for cerebral aneurysms; School of Medicine Assistant Professor Jason Lohmueller, co-creator of a tool for delivering cancer immunotherapies; School of Social Work Assistant Professor James Huguley, who offers a curriculum to support Black parents; School of Medicine Associate Professor Trent Emerick, developing a device that stimulates nerves to remedy chronic pain; and School of Medicine Professor Michael Tsang, whose company is crafting new ways to treat wounds.
Each team thanked colleagues, present and not, who collaborate with them in their efforts to translate their research. That’s another point that was repeated throughout the afternoon: Innovation, like sports, takes a team.
Senior Associate Athletic Director Pat Bostick, a former Pitt quarterback who delivered remarks at the event, knows a thing or two about signing days. He signed his own letter of intent to come to Pitt 18 years ago and never left, watching both Pitt’s sports teams and Pittsburgh's economy change.
“Whether your goal is to win a national championship, help cure a disease or solve some other important problem in our society — today more than ever, it’s possible at Pitt to achieve excellence and reach your human potential,” he said.
And at Pitt, that work is undergirded by the Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Each of the five signees thanked the office for the support they found there, whether through the protection of intellectual property, commercialization gap funding, mentorship and education programs or student competitions.
The work of a coach never stops: There’s always the next class of superstars waiting in the wings.
“Every single day, on average, a new invention comes in to the University's offices,” said Facher. “Every day we have a chance to solve some of mankind’s biggest challenges — that’s our privilege.”
Pitt is ranked No. 14 nationally for U.S. patents, with 114 in the past year alone. Over the past seven years, the University has spun out 109 companies from Pitt technologies.
Want to be one of them? If you are a Pitt faculty, staff or student with an interest in pursuing commercialization of a business idea or research innovation, contact the Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at innovate [at] pitt.edu.
Read more about the startups
Photography by Aimee Obidzinski