Wednesday, January 09, 2019
Johnson & Johnson Innovation, LLC ("JJI") today announced it entered a definitive agreement to join NXT Biomedical Therapeutic Device Incubator ("NXT") through a strategic investment facilitated by Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC. Created in September 2018 by Deerfield Management Company, L.P. ("Deerfield") and Stanton Rowe, CEO of NXT Biomedical, this next-generation medical device incubator is committed to developing transformational technologies to address significant unmet medical needs, helping patients to lead longer and healthier lives. It will develop, advance and de-risk cutting-edge technologies in a highly capital efficient manner.
As a key member of NXT Biomedical, Johnson & Johnson Innovation will have the right to migrate selected NXT projects that are strategically aligned to areas of interest to the Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices Companies for further development at the Center for Device Innovation at Texas Medical Center ("CDI @ TMC"). CDI @ TMC will accelerate the early-stage development of these projects using the depth and breadth of its state-of-the-art engineering facilities and its expert R&D team. Furthermore, access to GLP (Good Laboratory Practices) pre-clinical facilities, the MITIE™ Simulation Center and TMC Clinical Research Institute will drive device development through to commercialization.
"The CDI @ TMC model was created to enhance early-stage internal and external medical device innovation," said William N. Hait, M.D., Ph.D., Global Head, Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC. "Our collaboration with NXT Biomedical has the potential to further strengthen the CDI @ TMC pipeline with validated science coming through the NXT incubator, and to ensure that jointly we deliver best-in-class medical device innovation to patients around the world."
"Through this strategic partnership with NXT Biomedical and Deerfield, we are creating a novel approach to the external funding of projects at CDI @ TMC," said Bruce R. Rosengard, M.D., F.R.C.S., Vice President, Medical Devices, Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC. "This will enhance our medical device pipeline and is an example of the industry-leading collaborations Johnson & Johnson Innovation is forging to secure funding for early-stage innovation."
CDI @ TMC brings together the unique strengths, experiences and resources from across Johnson & Johnson and the Texas Medical Center to create a novel approach for medical device innovation. It spans the entire development pathway from needs-based ideation to rapid technology prototyping, pre-clinical and clinical testing all aimed at enhancing development timelines.
The CDI @ TMC team has a proven track record of successful medical device innovation. Since its launch in November 2017, the internal and external CDI @ TMC engineers have advanced six cutting-edge projects from early concept stage through multiple prototypes. This flexibility to engage in new opportunities across a spectrum of different services and needs, including independent development, collaborative co-development, machining / prototyping, design for manufacturing and strategic advising, make CDI @ TMC an ideal destination for projects coming through the NXT Biomedical incubator.
NXT Biomedical expects to invest up to $25 million in cutting-edge technologies over the next five years. Deerfield has allotted up to an additional $250 million for the formation and development of up to eight startup companies that emerge from the incubator.
The deal terms and amount of JJI's investment in NXT Biomedical were not disclosed.
