Portal Innovations, LLC

Thank you to Illinois State Representative, Natalie A. Manley, for coming by Portal Chicago this week for a tour. We love showing our lab space to the political community and talking about how the Portal model helps life sciences startups across the U.S. The more we're able to help these startups grow, the faster potential therapies are able to get to patients.

One of our Chicago member companies, Inomagen Therapeutics, recently hosted a webinar featuring their Founder and CEO, Dr. Rishi Arora, to discuss a breakthrough approach to treating the mechanisms of atrial fibrillation. Atrial fibrillation (AF) currently affects over 10 million people in the United States alone, and the lifetime risk of AF for individuals over 50 is a staggering 1 in 3. In addition to impacting quality of life, AF is associated with increased morbidity and mortality, including:    A 4x to 5x increased risk of stroke Congestive heart failure (~50% of AF patients) A 2x risk of heart attack   Interested in learning more? Take a look at a highlight video of their webinar here: https://lnkd.in/giGBvEa9

Atlanta is quickly becoming one of the top life sciences markets in the U.S., and a common theme that creates biotech hotspots is the proximity to world-class research universities. John Flavin recently interviewed Steven Goudy MD, MBA (Pediatric Otolaryngologist at Emory University) and Ashley Cornelison (Executive Director, Atlanta at Portal Innovations) on Lab Rats to Unicorns to talk about the unique challenges and opportunities of building biotech companies from academic and clinical environments. Take a listen to the full episode here: https://lnkd.in/gKHrYkKJ

Progress on the UChicago Science Incubator space is growing rapidly - take a look at the latest pictures below! If you're a startup or entrepreneur near Hyde Park looking for lab space, send a note to Raul Vasquez (Raul.Vasquez@portalinnovations.com) for a tour or to learn more about the project!

Exciting news on the East Coast - Portal's VP of Venture Operations, Steven Lehmann, is speaking at the inaugural New Jersey Discovery Showcase, presented by HELIX NJ! The showcase takes place on April 29th at the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center, and gives national innovators the chance to discuss their groundbreaking scientific advancements. This will be a great event for attendees to celebrate life sciences and learn more about breakthroughs across the U.S. Interested in attending? Register here: https://lnkd.in/eb4fa6Ha

Thanks to Endpoints News for chatting with Portal's Founder and CEO, John Flavin, about the state of early-stage biotech. While biotech seed rounds are currently down when compared to previous years, John argues that investors need to have a long-term view. From the article: "That said, the model of seed-stage investing and biotech incubation requires a long-term view. John Flavin, who runs the biotech incubator and VC firm Portal Innovations, said the investors he talks to still maintain a 'positive tilt toward the long view on biotech.' Portal houses about 90 companies across labs in Chicago, Boston, Houston and Atlanta, and has invested in about 25 seed rounds since its 2020 founding. Portal has also contributed to 10 of those companies’ Series A rounds. 'Under the hood, [it’s] still looking strong,' Flavin said of biotech’s newest companies." Take a look at the full article here: https://lnkd.in/gHv-Q3Qc

Mark your calendars – our signature event during the annual BIO conference is set for June 17th! Join us at Portal Southline as we host a panel discussion on Accelerating Biotech: A Network that Drives Innovation Forward.   This will be a two-part panel discussion on the importance of building a national biotech, investor, and partnership network. Our first discussion will feature one of our investors, Skydeck Capital, and one of our Atlanta portfolio companies, Synaptrix | NOVABLOC, to talk about driving innovation forward. Our second panel will talk about the power of partnerships, featuring speakers from Thermo Fisher Scientific and J.P. Morgan, as they touch on the importance of long-term collaborations.   A special thanks to Thermo and JPM for sponsoring the event. Interested in attending? A full agenda, list of speakers, and registration page can be found below! https://lnkd.in/gpYTkRn3

Another Brewed and Briefed session with Jones Day at Portal Atlanta at Science Square is in the books! Thanks to Bill Zawrotny, Katie Vest, and Michael Bruner for coming to talk with startups in our ecosystem about protecting their IP strategy. The Jones Day team covered a variety of points including protection through patents, navigating data ownership, and safeguarding a distinctive brand. Stay tuned for Part 4 of Brewed and Briefed in the coming days!

Are you attending this year's Chicago Biolife Summit on May 28th? This event is one of the premier global forums for leaders in biotech to share the latest advancements in technology. We're excited to participate in a "Spotlight on Portal" session which will discuss how our model has helped benefit a number of our member companies in Chicago. Learn more and register below! https://lnkd.in/eyHFy4v4

We recently provided a hard hat tour of the UChicago Science Incubator space to the University of Chicago Biotechnology Association (UCBA) - it was great showing members the progress that's been made on the site. A special thanks to Raven Moten for organizing the tour, and to Matthew Hawkins of Power Construction for showing the teams around!