CONTACT:
Jeanan Yasiri Moe
Director of Strategic Communications
[email protected]
608.890.1491
MADISON, Wis. – Engaging an audience of more than 200 faculty inventors, investors and graduate students, WARF’s Managing Director Erik Iverson shared his vision for shaping the state’s entrepreneurial landscape as the organization he has led for a year looks to advance both drug discovery and startup investments.
Tuesday’s talk, titled “WARF’s Plans for Advancing Innovation and Entrepreneurship: What it means for campus and Wisconsin,” included panelists Rock Mackie (Association of Campus Entrepreneurs or ACE), John Neis of Venture Investors, and the Wisconsin Technology Council’s Tom Still.
The event caps a series of community engagements for Iverson, in which he discussed WARF’s plans to create two startup-related funds and a multimillion dollar program to bring new pharmaceuticals to market.
The panelists discussed the powerful implications for Wisconsin of the increased spending. They reflected on cultural shifts within academia, and considered how UW can leverage its global network of alumni investors to support entrepreneurial faculty and students.
About WARF
The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) helps steward the cycle of research, discovery, commercialization and investment for the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Founded in 1925 as an independent, nonprofit foundation, WARF manages more than 1,700 patents and an investment portfolio of $2.6 billion as it funds university research, obtains patents for campus discoveries and licenses inventions to industry. For more information, visit warf.org.
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