As Director of UF Innovate’s Incubation Services, Mark Long ‘Got Stuff Done’
UF Innovate is saying goodbye to the man who wrote the book on business incubation. Mark Long, the author of several such books, has directed UF Innovate’s two business incubators, Sid Martin Biotech and The Hub, since January 2016. He will retire on June 30. “Mark’s positive, ‘get stuff done’ attitude – along with his […]
UF Innovate Names New Director of Incubation Services
UF Innovate is pleased to welcome Karl R. LaPan as the incoming director of incubation services. He will join the team May 3 and work alongside current Director Mark S. Long, who will retire this summer. LaPan comes to the position with more than 20 years of experience in business incubation.
Sid Martin Biotech Bids Long-Time Leader Merrie Shaw Goodbye
Merrie Shaw has made a tremendous impact on the economies of Alachua County and the state of Florida by helping companies find talent, funding, and partnerships.
UF Startup Shadow Health Is Going Big and Staying Home
In early December, local UF startup Shadow Health, which develops virtual simulations for nursing and healthcare education, became part of Elsevier, a global leader in information and analytics, that is part of RELX, an even larger global provider of information-based analytics. The acquisition will hasten Shadow Health’s ability to reach its biggest goals.
Alachua’s Life Sciences Ecosystem Raises Over $1.0 Billion in 2020
UF Innovate | Sid Martin Biotech announces the City of Alachua’s life sciences industry has raised more than $1 billion in 2020. The life sciences community has accelerated growth with government grants and contracts, mergers and acquisitions, successful financing rounds, and sales revenue.
PanVent Emergency Ventilator Created to Fill Urgent Need During COVID-19
Dr. Samsun Lampotang has spent his career engineering solutions to medical problems. At the start of 2020, Lampotang’s focus was on designing, building and validating mixed reality guided intervention simulators to train physicians and nurses in medical procedures without putting patients at risk. But then COVID-19 changed all this.
UAVs and AI Are the Newest Tools Growers Can Use for Crop Management
They say knowledge is power. That philosophy is what drives Dr. Yiannis Ampatzidis, an assistant professor at the Southwest Florida Research and Education Center in Immokalee, where he leads the precision agriculture engineering program.
Concept Companies Provides New Lobby Furniture in Honor of Sid Martin Biotech’s 25th Anniversary

Gainesville-based developer Concept Companies has made a considerable sponsorship to the award-winning UF Innovate | Sid Martin Biotech incubation program making possible the purchase of new lobby furniture for the benefit and use of its resident entrepreneurs.
UF Researcher Finds a Way to Mitigate Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), a Complication of Coronavirus Infection
Why would a doctor specializing in gastrointestinal disorders be interested in therapy for COVID-19, a primarily pulmonary disease? The answer lies in a seemingly convoluted link between the gastrointestinal tract and the lungs: water.
Inspired by Photosynthesis, David Wei Creates Cost-Effective and Sustainable Industrial Chemicals
By using solar energy, the technology could have a huge economic impact At first glance, it might seem a bit farfetched for a chemist specializing in metallic and semiconductor nanomaterials to cite nature as his primary source of inspiration. But to discover the next big innovation in clean energy, David Wei, an associate professor in […]