PITTSBURGH– A pair of the Pittsburgh region’s biggest boosters for the life sciences sector are taking their efforts to the next level, as LifeX Labs and Pittsburgh Life Science Greenhouse (PLSG) announced they are forming a strategic alliance to accelerate growth in the industry.
Together, the organizations will provide educational programming resources, company acceleration activities, and networking opportunities for early-stage life science companies throughout southwestern Pennsylvania. The collaboration will provide innovators a one-stop-shop for everything they need to advance their endeavors, from laboratory development to commercialization.
The new alliance comes just as the Henry L. Hillman and R.K. Mellon Foundations are also graciously throwing their support behind LifeX Labs’ mission of helping translate life sciences innovations into commercial successes. Their funds will serve to streamline support for regional startups.
“We are encouraged by the work LifeX Labs has done to build a broad array of resources and capabilities for growing the region’s life science sector. We are pleased to continue to support this key economic development infrastructure,” said Ty Gourley, Vice President of the Henry L. Hillman Foundation.
This will be the R.K. Mellon Foundation’s first financial support of LifeX Labs.
“We often forget that Herb Boyer, a Pitt graduate who started Genentech in San Francisco, helped to launch the biotechnology industry as we know it today,” said Sam Reiman, Director of the Richard King Mellon Foundation. “In the forty years since, that industry has created millions of American jobs, a multitude of new technologies, and countless lifesaving drugs that have helped individuals living with Covid-19, cancer, diabetes, and other diseases live longer, healthier lives. As this recent pandemic has demonstrated, the 21st century will be defined by advances in the life sciences. The Foundation’s support will help Pittsburgh and its entrepreneurs lead that future.”
“Foremost, we are extremely grateful for the generous support of the foundation community. The potential we have as a region would not be reached without their backing and this alliance between LifeX and PLSG is a direct example of their vision. I am confident the high-caliber programming and resources made available to the entrepreneurial community through this partnership will fast-track growth in our life science industry,” said Evan Facher, interim CEO of LifeX Labs. “The pooling of this collection of resources ensures our efforts are all advancing in the same direction, providing our local life science innovators additional support to help ensure their success.”
Further, the alliance will serve in a convening role for industry and financial organizations that wish to explore the region’s early-stage ecosystem.
“We look forward to the benefits this collaboration with LifeX Labs will have to offer,” added John Kuzmishin, PLSG board chairman. “Through this unique relationship, we are certain that an even greater number of young life sciences companies and entrepreneurs will receive the support they need to help grow our region’s presence at the forefront of health care innovation.”
To help centralize these regional capabilities, PLSG will co-locate its offices into the LifeX Labs Southside facility.
“Having these organizations under one roof will offer unprecedented access to the life sciences development resources that are available for the region with results that will ultimately benefit the entire Commonwealth,” said Chris Molineaux, Life Sciences PA President and CEO.
