BioVentures LLC

Are you a researcher or first-time founder wondering what it really takes to launch a startup?

Join us at BioVentures Innovation Day 2026 for Entrepreneurial Support Resources, a practical discussion covering the foundational steps of building a company, from assembling the right team and forming the business to navigating early commercialization decisions.

The session will feature:
Karen Bergh, Innovation Strategist, ASBTDC
Sarah Smith, Patent Attorney, Arkansas Research Alliance
Melissa Kempkes, Executive Director, Ark Angel Alliance
Kris Adams, Senior Associate, ARise

📅 August 19, 2026
🕒 3:00–4:00 p.m.
📍 Jack T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, 12th Floor

Registration is free. Reserve your spot today: bioventures.tech/innovation-day-2026

🎙️ New Episode of the BioVentures Podcast is Live!

What does the future of university technology transfer look like?

In Episode 20, we’re joined by Luna Acosta, Director of Technology Transfer at Arkansas State University, for a conversation on how tech transfer is evolving to create greater real-world impact.

Together, we discuss:
• How AI is reshaping research commercialization
• Why customer discovery and industry partnerships matter more than ever
• The shift from counting patents to measuring impact
• The current funding landscape and the enduring importance of the Bayh-Dole Act
• How collaboration across Arkansas institutions can strengthen the state's innovation ecosystem

Whether you're an innovator, researcher, entrepreneur, or technology transfer professional, this episode offers valuable insights into the future of research commercialization.

🎧 Listen now and join the conversation!

How can innovators protect their discoveries before taking them to market? 💡

Join us at BioVentures Innovation Day 2026 for Intellectual Property & Protecting Your Innovation, a practical session covering the fundamentals of intellectual property and how to protect discoveries, technologies and creative ideas.

Hear from experienced IP professionals:
🔹 Tolga Gulmen, PhD, Patent Attorney at Quarles
🔹 Allison N. Krepel, Patent Attorney at Polsinelli
🔹 Blake Glasgow, Patent Attorney at Wright Lindsey Jennings
🔹 Sarah D. Eddy, PhD, Senior Associate at Norton Rose Fulbright

📅 August 19, 2026
🕚 11:00–11:45 a.m.
📍 Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, 12th Floor

Whether you are developing an early-stage idea or advancing an established technology, this session will provide practical guidance for protecting your innovation.

Register today: www.bioventures.tech/innovation-day-2026

Applications are now open for the next CADET cohort.

CADET supports UAMS graduate students and postdoctoral fellows working in cancer research, biomedical research and related scientific fields. Through the program, participants develop practical skills in healthcare innovation, intellectual property, technology commercialization, business development and industry engagement.

Important dates:

Application deadline: August 7, 2026
Selection notification: August 14, 2026
Program begins: September 4, 2026

Learn more and apply:
www.bioventures.tech/programs/cadet

What if your next research collaboration, licensing opportunity, or startup connection started with a single conversation?
That's what BioVentures Innovation Day 2026 is all about.

Join us on August 19 at the Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute at UAMS for a full day of conversations, expert insights, and networking focused on moving discoveries from the lab to real-world impact.

Whether you're a researcher, entrepreneur, investor, clinician, or industry partner, Innovation Day is an opportunity to explore commercialization pathways, connect with Arkansas' innovation ecosystem, and discover what's next in health care innovation.

📍 Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, UAMS
📅 August 19, 2026
🕣 8:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
🍽️ Free registration and lunch included.

Register today: https://bioventures.tech/innovation-day-2026
We look forward to seeing you there!

BioVentures is excited to welcome the fourth cohort of the Medical Innovation and Entrepreneurship Honors Track (MIEHT).
This year’s participants, Nithin Reddy, Hogan Turner, and Bryson Edwards, will take part in a four-year program designed to introduce medical students to health care innovation, intellectual property, entrepreneurship, and technology commercialization.

Facilitated by Megan Reed, Ph.D., of BioVentures, and Anthony Gunderman, Ph.D., of the University of Arkansas, MIEHT helps future physicians explore how clinical insight and research discoveries can move toward real-world impact through licensing, industry partnerships, and startup formation.

We’re excited to support this new cohort as they begin their innovation journey.

Learn more about the Medical Innovation and Entrepreneurship Honors Track (MIEHT): https://bioventures.tech/programs/mieht/

How does a university discovery move toward clinical development?

Our latest Licensing Spotlight highlights NanO₂, an investigational oxygen therapeutic invented at UAMS and licensed to NuvOx Therapeutics through BioVentures.

Developed from research by William C. Culp, M.D., Robert D. Skinner, Ph.D., and Evan C. Unger, M.D., NanO₂ is based on dodecafluoropentane emulsion and is designed to improve oxygen delivery to tissue affected by ischemia.

Today, the technology is advancing in the NOVEL Phase IIb clinical trial in the United Kingdom, where it is being evaluated alongside standard-of-care reperfusion therapy for patients with acute ischemic stroke caused by large vessel occlusion.

The story of NanO₂ reflects the path from academic discovery to intellectual property protection, licensing, industry collaboration, and clinical evaluation.

Swipe through to learn more about the UAMS-to-NuvOx journey.
Read the full story: https://bioventures.tech/licensing-spotlight-from-uams-research-to-nuvoxs-nano₂-stroke-program/

The BioVentures team recently attended the BIO International Convention 2026 in San Diego, the world's largest biotechnology event, bringing together innovators from across industry, academia, investment, and technology transfer.

Throughout the week, we connected with partners from around the world, explored new opportunities for collaboration, and showcased the strength of innovation at UAMS. Events like BIO help build the relationships that move discoveries beyond the laboratory and closer to improving patient care.

We're excited to bring new ideas, new connections, and new opportunities back to Arkansas as we continue supporting health care innovation.

Have you registered for BioVentures Innovation Day 2026?

Join us on Tuesday, Aug. 19, for a full day dedicated to health care innovation at the Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute (12th Floor) on the UAMS campus in Little Rock.

From 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., researchers, entrepreneurs, investors and industry leaders will come together to explore how discoveries move from the laboratory to real-world impact through commercialization, partnerships and entrepreneurship.

The day will feature keynote speakers, expert panel discussions, breakout sessions, networking opportunities and an Innovation Showcase highlighting the strength of Arkansas' growing life sciences ecosystem.

A special thank you to our sponsors— Polsinelli , ARise Arkansas , Wright Lindsey Jennings , Synapse Communications Consulting and Norton Rose Fulbright —for helping make Innovation Day 2026 possible.

✅ Registration is free, and lunch is included.
Reserve your spot today: https://bioventures.tech/innovation-day-2026

Know someone who would enjoy Innovation Day? Share this post or tag them in the comments.

🚀 Applications are now open for the next cohort!

What happens when cancer researchers learn to think like innovators?
Just ask Lokesh Akana and Jose Andres Ochoa Roa.
As members of BioVentures' first Cancer and Developing Entrepreneurial Technologies (CADET) cohort, they developed and refined their technology, pitched their idea to a panel of judges, and ultimately won the program's final pitch competition.

Along the way, they gained hands-on experience in innovation, intellectual property, commercialization, entrepreneurship, and scientific communication, building the skills needed to help move discoveries beyond the laboratory and toward real-world patient impact.
If you're a graduate student or postdoctoral fellow interested in cancer research, innovation, and entrepreneurship, this is your opportunity to join the next CADET cohort.

📅 Application Deadline: August 7
🎓 Program Begins: September 4

🔗 Apply through the link in our bio or visit bioventures.tech/programs/cadet to learn more.

Know someone who would be a great fit? Tag them in the comments or share this post!