A new Pittsburgh life sciences startup incubator will grow early stage companies

Another link has been added to Pittsburgh's burgeoning life sciences ecosystem with the announcement of a new focused incubator approved by the University of Pittsburgh Board of Trustees Sept. 25 that will provide support for young life sciences startups. Located in the city's Oakland neighborhood, the incubator will provide founders with ready access to the equipment and support needed to grow their companies at the earliest stages.

The result will be a more robust path for life sciences innovators in the region to found, grow and scale startups with the aim of bringing their inventions to market and benefiting society.

"For early-stage life sciences startups, the cost of specialized equipment and access to quality lab space can be the difference between a promising idea moving forward and never getting off the ground," said Rob Rutenbar, senior vice chancellor for research. "This new incubator will remove that barrier for some companies and give them more of a reason to build their future here in Pittsburgh."

Pitt already plays an outsize role in the region's life sciences ecosystem. Ranked No. 7 in National Institutes of Health funding, the University attracts researchers and companies to Pittsburgh and hosts facilities like The Assembly and BioForge that serve as hubs for scaling and accelerating innovation.

Until now, however, there remained a missing piece: Support for companies just starting out, before they're ready to scale up operations.

The incubator, located at 3343 Forbes Ave., will provide wet lab, maker-space, office and supporting facilities and equipment to aid new life sciences and medical technology companies. The University will fund the costs of facility renovation, furnishings and scientific equipment, and we are in discussion with Wexford Science and Technology, to develop the facility and operate it via their Connect Labs organization, an experienced team that will provide programming to build a community of innovators centered at the incubator.

The space's Oakland location, which combines the region's densest concentration of university research, clinical expertise, scientific talent and flagship hospitals, is an important component for this element of the ecosystem. Its proximity and transit access will allow founders and researchers to move between their home labs, the significant local academic and clinical facilities and the incubator in minutes.

Though the building is in Oakland, Pitt's investment in the incubator represents a step forward for the broader life sciences ecosystem and innovation pipeline of the entire region.

"Pittsburgh's life sciences ecosystem continues to build momentum at the convergence of world class clinical research and emerging technologies," said Megan Shaw, president and CEO of the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Alliance. "Investments in infrastructure that support translation and company growth are critical to building the ecosystem into a global innovation leader and regional economic engine."