Event Date
Join us for an insightful session to discuss market trends and the related venture ecosystem opportunities. Gain firsthand knowledge, network with industry peers, and explore investment trends. A calendar invite with the Zoom link will be sent 24 hours after registration.
What to Expect:
- Macro Trends in Food & Health Innovation
- Capital Stack for Food & Health Startups
- The Role of the University in Venture Ecosystems
Meet the Speakers:
Dr. Harold Schmitz - Founding Partner, The March Group
Dr. Harold Schmitz is a seasoned venture builder with unique global experience at the interface between research universities and the food, health, and climate technology sectors. His passion for uncommon collaborations inspired relationships with the National Academy of Sciences, the Lindau Nobel Laureate Foundation and the University of California – including co-founding the Innovation Institute for Food and Health – UC Davis as a first of its kind organization to enable the New Economy for global health and environmental sustainability.
Irina Adler – Managing Director, Sawaya Partners
Irina has over two decades of advisory experience in the health & wellness, beauty, and personal care sectors. She has guided global private and public clients through some of the largest and most significant M&A and capital markets transactions in these industries. Irina was recognized with the Deal of the Year Award and named a Top North American Female Dealmaker, reflecting her leadership in high-profile transactions. Ms. Adler’s select advisory experience includes the sale of Thorne to L Catterton, DCP Capital’s PIPE / JV investment in Jamieson, the sale of Atrium (Garden of Life and Pure Encapsulations) to Nestlé, the sale of Ultima to Roundtable, New Mountain’s acquisition of Natrol, Gryphon’s acquisition of Metagenics, the Dr. Organic carve-out of Bountiful and sale to Damier, and Coty’s Reverse-Morris-Trust merger with P&G’s Specialty Beauty Business, among others.
Tom Andriola – Chief Digital Officer, UC Irvine; Venture Partner, The March Group
Tom Andriola is a transformative business and technology executive with a career driving innovation and exponential business growth. He has led organizations large and small and had a diverse set of career experiences as a software executive, Chief Information Officer, and business transformation leader. As CIO at the University of California and UC Health, he oversaw a technology function with 8500 people and a budget of $1.3B. As a business executive with Philips Healthcare, he ran their largest health IT with teams on four continents and introduced 16 new products into the market over a 4 year period. Currently, Tom is the Chief AI Officer for the Public Sector at Dynatrace, the world leader in AI Observability. He is an advisor to companies on data-as-strategy and AI-at-the Center, a practitioner of precision health & wellness, and sits on the boards of two technology companies.
Christian Brix Tillegreen – Director, BioInnovation Institute
Christian Brix Tillegreen is the Director of the Planetary Health team at the BioInnovation Institute, where he supports scientists in transforming groundbreaking research into impactful startups. With a strong background in entrepreneurship and innovation, Christian is dedicated to fostering solutions that address global health and sustainability challenges. His expertise spans funding strategies and guiding teams through the complexities of commercialization, making him a key voice at the intersection of science, business, and societal impact. Christian sits on a number of boards of biotech companies and is also in multiple grant committees, at different foundations and advisor for VC firm Climentum Capital.