UW Names Interim Director for Technology Transfer

An expert in business development, strategy, startups and new venture development has been selected as the interim director of the Wyoming Technology Transfer and Research Products Center at the University of Wyoming.

Arundeep Pradhan, a Registered Technology Transfer Professional, will support UW faculty, staff and students, and Wyoming entrepreneurs in the protection, marketing and transfer of their intellectual property to industry.

“I am pleased to have Arun and his team working with us as we reimagine our tech transfer office and the critical role it plays in building UW’s and the state’s innovation ecosystem,” says Steve Farkas, associate vice president for economic development in UW’s Research and Economic Development Division. “We are looking forward to building increased opportunities to collaborate with our researchers and private-sector partners.”

Pradhan is the president of Apio Innovation Transfer (APIOiX), a company that accelerates innovation and entrepreneurship through business development, training and technical assistance. APIOiX provides programs and strategies to help innovators and inventors at universities, small businesses and government entities throughout the world.

“The University of Wyoming has unique resources and capabilities that can be leveraged to utilize and commercialize the results of its research activities,” Pradhan says. “As we look at these opportunities, my role is to assist in building the capacity of UW’s technology transfer efforts and to structure them in a manner that has impact for the university and for Wyoming.”

Previously, Pradhan was the director and associate vice president for technology transfer at Oregon Health & Science University, where he managed technology transfer and business development functions resulting in the launch of 48 startup companies. He also created the Springboard Fund to assist startup companies and mentor faculty and student entrepreneurs.

Pradhan also served as the director for technology transfer at the Colorado State University Research Foundation, now known as CSU STRATA. While there, he developed the Commercial Opportunity Fund to advance commercially promising research. He also worked on the Colorado BioScience Association task force to create a statewide strategic plan for bioscience industry.

Pradhan has worked with more than 30 companies on research, product development and commercialization strategies for startup and small-business proposals for funding from the Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs. He has helped launch more than 100 university startup companies in various fields by assisting with business plans and product development plans and identifying sources of funding.

Additionally, he served as a board member and president of AUTM -- formerly the Association of University Technology Managers -- the leading association in technology transfer.

Pradhan earned his master’s degree in pharmacy administration from the University of Utah. He received his bachelor’s degree in pharmacy from Birla Institute of Technology and Science in Pilani, Rajasthan, India.