Dr. Syage is a strong proponent of the SBIR program, even recognized in the community as an SBIR “ambassador,” and is no stranger to SBIR Phase III success – together, Syagen and ImmunogenX have seen more than $117 million in Phase III investments amid strong commercial successes.
With more than 30 years of experience in creating and leading the development of innovative technologies in the analytical instrumentation field, you could say Dr. Jack Syage is a serial entrepreneur.
In 1997, he founded Syagen Technology, Inc., which received multiple Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grants from the Department of Defense (DoD), National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) which led to products with revenues of more than $100 million, non-SBIR contracts of more than $15 million, and additional investments of more than $2 million – and the eventual 2011 acquisition of the company by the multi-billion dollar French company, Safran. In 2013, Dr. Syage co-founded ImmunogenX (a subsidiary of Immunogenics LLC), a clinical-stage biotherapeutics company that has seen investments of $5 million and has a potential company enterprise value of greater than $100 million.
Dr. Syage is a strong proponent of the SBIR program, even recognized in the community as an SBIR “ambassador,” and is no stranger to SBIR Phase III success – together, Syagen and ImmunogenX have seen more than $117 million in Phase III investments amid strong commercial successes. Dr. Syage has demonstrated a high success rate on winning SBIR grants, with an approximate 40% win rate for Phase I awards and a 75% win rate for Phase II awards. Together with his strong record of commercialization, both of Dr. Syage’s companies have proven to be an excellent return on investment for the SBIR program.
Dr. Syage is regarded as a leading expert in mass spectrometry and trace chemical detection, and is in the top 1% of cited scientists – appearing on the list of Most Highly Cited Chemists – with over 130 publications and more than 30 U.S. patents issued or pending. He is highly-sought after as a speaker and counselor for entrepreneurs through his association with local entrepreneurial organizations in Los Angeles and Orange County, and has delivered around 100 invited talks and is a Fellow of the American Physical Society.
Dr. Syage is also on the Dean’s Leadership Committee for the University of California, Irvine, where he provides key strategic direction in bringing academic research into the commercial sector. His honorary positions include Fellow of the American Physical Society, Visiting Professor at the University of California, Irvine, Visiting Professor at the Université de ParisSud, Editorial Board member of the Journal of Physical Chemistry, and invitee to the Nobel Symposium in Chemistry. Dr. Syage currently sits on the Board of Directors of Flamentera AG, Advanced Telesensors, PhageTech, Analytical Detection, and Appellation Ventures.