Fogarty Innovation

Nominations open today for the Thomas J. Fogarty Innovation Prize, a prestigious new recognition for an innovator or team who has developed and brought to market a lifechanging medical technology. The award consists of an unrestricted $100,000 cash prize, a custom-cast bronze medal, and a formal celebratory dinner and award ceremony with medtech leaders in Silicon Valley. Named in honor of cardiovascular surgeon and serial medical technology innovator Thomas J. Fogarty, MD, the Fogarty Prize is made possible through a foundational grant from the Linda and Mike Mussallem Foundation, with Silicon Valley-based law firm, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, also contributing to the prize endowment. As an article in the San Francisco Business Times today notes, "The prize honors an innovator who was plucked out of the bowels of Cincinnati's Good Samaritan Hospital as a teenager after taking it on himself to arrange the surgical equipment he was tasked to sterilize in a way he thought would make procedures easier for surgeons to perform. At 20 and going to college, he devised the signature embolectomy catheter." Learn more in the SFBT story (paywall): https://bit.ly/426ip3s, or read the press release: https://bwnews.pr/4hEGi7S

Do you know a 6–12th grade female student interested in coding? Fogarty Innovation is thrilled to partner with Saint Francis High School’s Girls Who Code club to host AdaHacks VI—a free, in-person hackathon designed to inspire the next generation of coders, on Saturday, April 5, from 7:30am - 8:30pm at Fogarty Innovation. This is a fantastic opportunity for students to explore coding, participate in workshops, and connect with inspiring Women-in-Tech leaders. We also need volunteers, including mentors, judges and facilitators. Scan the code in the flyer below learn more, participate or volunteer! #AdaHacksVI #GirlsWhoCode #STEMEducation #WomenInTech

Congratulations to the ten impressive finalists who presented their innovative devices at the 2025 UCSF-Stanford Pediatric Device Consortium Pitch Competition! After participating as one of the judges, CEO Andrew Cleeland and the rest of the Fogarty coaching team will select four companies to take through our Fogarty Physical, a cross-functional assessment that helps identify obstacles and optimize progress. Next, we'll go deep with one of the four, taking them through an intensive six month program to strengthen their offering and accelerate their journey to patient care. We are thrilled to see the gathering momentum in this underserved space and grateful to all who are working to drive this progress. Impact1 at Stanford Biodesign Stanford Mussallem Center for Biodesign

We had a fabulous time hosting the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Peninsula for a high school career exploration field trip last week. Our visitors toured our facilities with former BGCP member and now FI employee Lizbeth Villalobos, got an up-close (and in many cases hands-on!) look at how five of our startups (Auricle, Enspectra Health, Inc., Materna Medical, Ryme Medical, and G-Tech Medical) are solving problems in healthcare with innovative devices, toured clinical departments at our innovation partner El Camino Health, and chatted with Fogarty staffers whose expertise ranged from engineering to finance, regulatory, and marketing. As our Chief Commercial Strategy officer and BGCP liaison Marga Ortigas-Wedekind noted, "In all the work we’ve done over the years with BGCP, I’ve never seen such a quick transformation from reticent teenagers to engaged and curious future medtech people!" Thank you to all the Fogarty companies and employees who took the time to set up demos, develop stimulating dialogue, and simply speak from the heart about their experience in the field of medtech. #education #opportunity

Our #DxDPathways students learned directly from Immergo Labs co-founders Aviv Elor and Michael Powell about their journey from students to #healthtech entrepreneurs. The pair shared everything from what inspired them to create their #VR platform for physical therapy to how they incorporated feedback throughout the innovation process. The startup is one of the promising companies-in-residence at Fogarty Innovation, and we're grateful they shared their experience and expertise with our students, alongside Fogarty's Chief Strategy Officer Marga Ortigas-Wedekind this weekend. #meddevice #medtech #innovation

Before Tom Fogarty was a famous cardiovascular surgeon and serial medical technology innovator, he was a scrappy, inventive kid in Cincinnati, Ohio. Among other pursuits, he made his own wooden cars and competed in the soapbox derby. He became known as “The Flying Irishman” for racing in his green automobile. On St. Patrick’s day, we are thrilled to announce that nominations for the Thomas J. Fogarty Prize, a prestigious new recognition for an innovator or team who has developed and brought to market a lifechanging medical technology, will open next week, on March 24. Fogarty dedicated his career to improving medicine. His balloon embolectomy catheter, invented when he was still in medical school, revolutionized vascular surgery and launched an era of minimally invasive device innovation that has improved and saved the lives of millions of people. While Fogarty acquired 190 medical patents for his revolutionary work, nearly all of his inventions involved a long journey through what has been characterized as “hand-to-hand combat and a slog through things that ‘couldn’t be done.’” “The process of translating an idea into a commercially available medical device or therapy is hard,” said Andrew Cleeland, CEO of Fogarty Innovation. “This award illuminates and acknowledges the collaboration and grit required to drive a new therapy to patients and achieve broad acceptance and use.” The Fogarty Prize consists of an unrestricted $100,000 cash award, a custom-cast bronze medal, and a formal celebratory dinner with medtech leaders in Silicon Valley. It is made possible through a foundational grant from the Linda and Mike Mussallem Foundation, with Silicon Valley-based law firm, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, also contributing to the prize endowment. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gyqgtaxi

Today, I had the incredible opportunity to shadow Dr.Zachary Edmonds, MD, MBA during rounds and procedures, alongside Tiana Avila, at the El Camino hospital. Dr.Zachary Edmonds, MD, MBA generously opened the doors for students like myself to immerse ourselves in the daily routine of a healthcare professional. Observing procedures such as bone marrow biopsies, lumbar punctures, and thoracic punctures was truly an enriching experience and has deepened my understanding of these critical medical procedures. I want to express my sincere gratitude to Dr. Zachary Edmonds, MD, MBA for your time and for generously sharing your expertise. This experience has been one of the most valuable I’ve had, providing not only hands-on insight into medical procedures but also a deeper understanding of patient care. A special thank you to the Diversity by Doing (DxD) HealthTech program for making this possible and for adding a new element to the program—"Clinical Immersion Day." This initiative allowed me to learn much more about patient care and observe firsthand how patients use medical innovation devices, such as glucose monitoring devices, to manage their health. I'm grateful for the opportunity to continue learning and growing in this field, and I look forward to applying the knowledge gained today to my future endeavors. #dxdpathways #womeninhealthtech #HealthcareJourney #ClinicalImmersion #MedicalInnovation #ShadowingExperience #PatientCare

Find out why managers from companies like Enspectra Health, Inc., Fogarty Innovation, Imperative Care, Longitude Capital, Pulmonx Corporation, Shifamed, Shockwave Medical, The Foundry and Triple Ring Technologies recommend the DxD HealthTech Exploration Workshop. The immersive, two-day experience brings together high-performing, diverse interns from all across the country to be mentored by more than 50 seasoned industry professionals, build a network, discover the Stanford Biodesign process, and create a community that will sustain them throughout their careers in medtech. Register for session: https://lnkd.in/gD2mWtpT #HealthTech #MedTech #MedDevice #SummerInternship

Developing entrepreneurial leaders is a focus at Fogarty Innovation, and we were delighted to host a visit from the Velocity Conference—an annual event organized by the Indiana University - Kelley School of Business in partnership with University of California, Berkeley. Designed to accelerate entrepreneurial careers, participants tour Silicon Valley and learn firsthand from accomplished founders through presentations and networking time. During their visit, Fogarty CEO Andrew Cleeland shared insights from his career journey and chief alliance officer Allie Gregorian described how Fogarty Innovation integrates three pillars—education, incubation, and alliances—to help medtech startups deliver innovative solutions to improve patient care. Tracy MacNeal, CEO of Fogarty company-in-residence Materna Medical, shared her company's journey to address women's most common pelvic health concerns, and spoke candidly about the challenges of running a startup and her innovative strategies for building a connected, high-performing team. We enjoyed the wide-ranging, thoughtful questions, and the chance to get to know this impressive group!

Thank you Petra Loer, CFA, ASA (BV), Managing Director and Anna Vorontsova, Investment Analyst & Business Evaluation Specialist at Andersen for an informative Lunch & Learn presentation on the "The Art and Science of Valuations for Early-Stage Startups." A few takeaways: ?? Understand the purpose and importance of 409A valuations to properly incentivize employees and avoid issues with the IRS.?409A valuations are required when issuing equity compensation and provide a safe harbor if done by an outside appraiser.? ??Be aware of the impact of financing structures like convertible notes, safe notes, and tranche financing on the 409A valuation and common stock value.?These can significantly reduce the value of common shares.? ??Work closely with tax advisors to take advantage of tax benefits like qualified small business stock (QSBS) which can shelter substantial gains from taxes if certain requirements are met. ??Ensure the 409A valuation is done properly by a reputable firm, as it involves both art and science.?Be prepared to discuss and potentially negotiate the valuation, but understand the appraiser also needs to protect their integrity. Thank you for helping us learn about this essential topic! Want to be notified of upcoming educational events at Fogarty Innovation? Sign up for our mailing list here: https://lnkd.in/gKXKUwSd