WESTCHESTER COUNTY LIFE SCIENCES UPDATE

Take Your Venture to the Next Level!

Westchester County Biosciences Accelerator

August Info Sessions and Deadline Information

The Westchester County Biosciences Accelerator (WCBA), the County's first competitive-entry, six-month life sciences accelerator for first-time founders, is now accepting applications for the 2024 cohort. Life science ventures at any stage of development are invited to apply. Join a community of nearly 50 founders and expert mentors that has raised over $15 million in funding. 

Apply by September 1 for early action or by October 24.  

Program Benefits 

• An exclusive network of mentors and coaches including consultants, entrepreneurs, investors, business leaders from leading therapeutics, digital health, diagnostic, medical devices, and healthcare delivery companies; 
• Bootcamp, roundtables, and workshops designed and delivered by industry leaders; 
• Introduction to leading professional service companies including legal, financial, and IP; 
• A vast network of program alumni and entrepreneurs in the Metro NY region, including: JelikaLite, CatchU, Chiefy, Vyir, NyTmT, Laronix; 
• Support from municipalities and corporate sponsors; 
• Potential collaboration for clinical feedback 

Upcoming Information Sessions 

Learn more about the program, meet an alum and hear what you stand to gain from becoming a 2024 venture at an upcoming information session: 

2024 Program Info Sessions

Date: August 3

Time: 12:00 PM

Register

Date: August 24

Time: 12:00 PM

Register

Strengthening Your Application Workshops

Date: August 10

Time: 12:00 PM

Register

Date: August 31

Time: 12:00 PM

Register

If you have questions and/or cannot attend the information session and would like to learn more about WCBA, please feel free to contact Doris Alcivar, Assistant Program Manager, WCBA at doris@firstxfounder.com.  

Microsoft & Teladoc Health Expand Partnership, Enabling AI To Reduce Clinician Workload

Purchase’s Teladoc Health announced that it will be expanding its collaboration with Microsoft to integrate the tech giant’s advanced artificial intelligence capabilities into Teladoc’s virtual care platform. Specifically, the goal of the expanded partnership will be to integrate Microsoft’s Azure OpenAI Service, Azure Cognitive Services, and the Nuance Dragon Ambient eXperience (DAX) Service, with an aim to help alleviate administrative and documentation burdens for physicians.

These tools can help automate the clinical documentation process during a physician-patient encounter, providing physicians more time with patients that would otherwise be used to write notes and document the visit. Nuance’s Dragon dictation platform, which transcribes dictation by physicians and providers to written notes that can be saved under patient records, is a common staple already embedded across many hospital systems nationwide, making further integration even easier.

Read more

WCBA Alum James Scholtz Awarded Activate Fellowship

Join us in congratulating James Scholtz, founder and CEO of Vyir Tech and a graduate of the Westchester County Biosciences Accelerator's 2022 cohort, on being selected for the prestigious Activate Fellowship. Activate empowers scientists to reinvent the world by launching startups to address climate change and other global challenges.

This incredible opportunity will support the further development of Vyir's groundbreaking low-cost, high-resolution optical infrared (O-IR) camera.

Regeneron Presents Two-Year Results from PHOTON Trial

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced the first presentation of positive two-year (96 weeks) results from the pivotal PHOTON trial investigating aflibercept 8 mg with 12- and 16-week dosing regimens, compared to EYLEA (aflibercept) Injection, in patients with diabetic macular edema (DME).

The results were presented at the American Society of Retina Specialists (ASRS) annual meeting in Seattle.

During the trial, the company noted patients receiving aflibercept 8 mg could have their dosing intervals shortened down to an every 8-week interval if protocol-defined criteria for disease progression were observed. Patients were only able to extend their dosing intervals in the second year by 4-week increments up to 24-weeks, if pre-specified criteria were met.

Read more

Alnylam Reports Updated Positive Interim Phase 1 Results for ALN-APP, in Development for Alzheimer’s Disease and Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced updated positive interim results for the ongoing single ascending dose portion of the Phase 1 study of ALN-APP, an investigational RNAi therapeutic targeting amyloid precursor protein (APP) in development for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease and cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA). The results were presented at the 2023 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) being held July 16-20, 2023 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. ALN-APP is the first clinical-stage program using Alnylam's proprietary C16-siRNA conjugate platform for central nervous system (CNS) delivery and the first investigational RNAi therapeutic to demonstrate gene silencing in the human brain. ALN-APP is being developed in collaboration with Westchester County-based Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Read more

Apply for Element 46 Tech Accelerator's Third Cohort By August 19

Applications are now being accepted for the Element 46 Tech Accelerator Powered by Cela's third cohort, which will begin in September 2023. The Element 46 program is designed to help tech founders catalyze their growth, and is open to Westchester County-based founders who are leading a tech venture. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

Apply

Click the video below to hear from the Element 46 team and program alumni about how the Element 46 Tech Accelerator can help you grow your venture.

New York I-Corps Hub x NYC Innovation Hotspot

Gotham Innovation Gambit

Applications for teams/startups are now open!

Got an exciting research discovery or idea? Are you ready to learn what it takes to create your own startup? The Gotham Innovation Gambit, hosted by the New York I-Corps Hub and the NYC Innovation Hotspot, enables participating teams to develop a business model and perform customer discovery, the process of evolving the product market fit —determining a product or solution that the market wants—based on intensive customer feedback.

The Fall 2023 Regional I-Corps Program will offer two course options: a (1) short course or (2) long course. Your team will select one option in this application (and will have the ability to switch during the course). As part of the short and long course, teams will conduct either 35 or 60 customer discovery interviews and become eligible for nomination to the national I-Corps program. Participants also receive assistance with navigating resources to support every stage of entrepreneurship.

Applications are being reviewed now on a rolling basis until Wednesday, September 6 at 12:00 PM.

Learn more and apply

Have good news to share with

Westchester’s life sciences ecosystem?

Please let us know.

Email lifesciences@westchestergov.com.