BioHive Launched at Utah Life Sciences Summit – Join the Campaign
November 13, 2020
The 11th annual Utah Life Sciences Summit (ULSS) Nov. 9-11, went virtual this year. But despite the physical distance, the ULSS made news and ignited our life sciences industry with a special announcement — the launch of BioHive, a new bold campaign to brand and expand Utah’s life sciences ecosystem.
ICYMI…view the video and see what the #BioHiveMentality is all about at www.BioHive.com. Download the toolkit and showcase your innovation story! Utah boasts over 1,100 companies, so get on board!
We are really excited about introducing this initiative we call BioHive,” commented Kelvyn Cullimore, president and CEO of BioUtah. “This initiative, with industry, government, academic, and economic development partners, will allow us to really shine a bright light on our life sciences industry’s efforts, growth, and innovation.”
Chris Gibson, CEO of Recursion, Jared Bauer, CEO of IONIQ Sciences and Katelin Roberts, CEO of LineLogic, and interim director of BioHive, unveiled the public-private initiative to attendees, explaining its role as a collective promoting Utah’s life sciences and healthcare innovation ecosystem. Gibson, Bauer and Roberts are key industry leaders in this effort.
“For me, it’s about creating local jobs that will last,” noted Spencer Cox, Utah’s governor-elect, in the pre-recorded video highlighting BioHive.
Since 2012, Utah’s life sciences community has grown faster than any other in the country. With more than 1,100 life sciences-related companies, the industry is well-positioned to further expand and join the short list of the world’s preeminent life sciences hubs.
The initiative is made possible due to partnering with other agencies and companies interested in promoting the life sciences in Utah. Those partners include, the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, Economic Development Corporation of Utah, Office of Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall, World Trade Center Utah, Recursion Pharmaceuticals, PIVOT Center at the University of Utah, Cibus Biotechnologies, IONIQ Sciences, Stryker, LineLogic and many others.
“We have attracted world-class scientists, researchers and engineers to Utah for the last 65 years,” Roberts explains. “Utahns have changed millions of lives through better patient outcomes with life-saving catheters, advancements in surgical imaging, and now we are leveraging new technologies for novel drug discovery and therapeutics.”
Building on this legacy, BioHive now serves to give expression to the efforts of the state’s researchers, developers, and manufacturers of therapeutics, devices, and diagnostics, as well as laboratory facilities, healthcare delivery systems, digital health, health IT, and businesses that support these industries.
Utah’s bioscience industry employs 43,000 people directly and 88,000 indirectly, for a total of more than 130,000 (among the nation’s highest concentration). These dedicated experts are paid an average wage almost 50% higher than Utah’s average.
Here’s a quick look at how BioHive stacks up against the rest of the best:
- World leader in genetic research
- Nation’s fastest-growing life sciences community since 2012
- 2nd in the nation for medical device employment concentration
- 6th in the nation for per capita VC investments
- 538 bioscience-related patents in 2019
- $13 billion direct and indirect GDP from industry
- Accounts for 8% of Utah’s total GDP
- Contributes to Utah’s nation-leading export growth rate
The collective has bold plans to use its efforts of branding and highlighting industry accomplishments to support recruitment, capital raising, fostering diversity, promoting the industry, and continuing to develop the workforce.