Todd Sherer is the Executive Director of Emory’s Office of Technology Transfer.
When I kicked off our 40th anniversary celebrations back in January, I don’t think many of us knew the changes that 2025 would bring.
Emory University and many of our peer institutions grappled with serious uncertainty, as proposed budget cuts to federal research agencies and a government shutdown threatened funding for essential research. Throughout the year, we were braced for impact, expecting that the shifting guidelines in federal research funding would dampen the university’s life-saving research efforts.
However, while some impacts were felt, Emory’s research enterprise and technology transfer activity remained strong: the number of invention disclosures and grants remained stable relative to the past five years, licensees continued to advance Emory technologies, start-ups found ongoing support, and more. In a year where many elements were in flux, we remained resilient.
This is something to celebrate — as is OTT’s four decades of bridging academic discovery with industry impact. Over the year, we’ve highlighted what OTT does best: enable impact, support innovators, and build bridges between researchers and industry.
- In April, we hosted the Tech Partnership Forum, which included a Technology Showcase and award ceremony honoring faculty and their teams. More than 100 guests from Emory and Atlanta’s biotech and business community joined us.
- We’ve told the story of OTT’s evolution — from the modest “Tech Shack” on Ridgewood Drive to becoming a national-recognized model for academic tech transfer — in a blog post, interactive timeline, and anniversary video.
- We’ve also highlighted the people that make tech transfer at Emory possible, from our staff and in-house patent group to Emory’s faculty researchers. Tech transfer would simply not happen without this human collaboration.
- Finally, we’ve revisited important “firsts” that happened in the last 40 years and promoted our under-the-radar products — each a reminder that behind every milestone is a researcher, an idea, and a hope for impact.
OTT remains committed to research and the people who drive discoveries in service of humanity. In the years to come, we’ll prioritize and deepen faculty and stakeholder partnerships. We’ll find creative ways to market and promote Emory technologies. And we’ll continue to invest in people so that we can continue our legacy of excellence in research translation.
Finally, as 2025 comes to a close, I’d like to share another win that bookends this year nicely. Focused Cryo, an Emory University start-up, announced their Focused Cryotherapy System received 510(k) clearance from the FDA in December. This is a major milestone for the team, and we wish them the best of luck.
Thank you for joining us on this journey of celebrating 40 years of innovation. We’ve achieved so much through dedicated collaboration and teamwork with our faculty, university, and industry partners, allowing us to complete the cycle of investing in research that becomes solutions to transform people’s lives.
I look forward to continued collaboration, helping Emory researchers innovate today to ignite impact tomorrow.
