Penn’s one-stop solution for technology commercialization and entrepreneurship

The PCI FY22 Year in Review

>2.5 billion

Penn-licensed mRNA vaccine doses administered globally

929

Highest numbers of Penn patents filed in a single year

>$1B

Largest amount of annual revenue generated from the commercialization of IP in Penn’s history

$560M

Funds raised or received by Penn-affiliated startups 
Read the PCI FY22 Year in Review

Translating Discoveries

PCI helps to translate discoveries and ideas created at the University of Pennsylvania into new products and businesses for societal benefit.

We actively facilitate a broad range of technology development connections between Penn and the private sector. Whether the end result is a technology license, an R&D alliance, or the formation of a new venture, PCI serves as a dedicated one-stop shop for commercial partnering with Penn.

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Available Technologies

Find technology opportunities by sector or search:

Nanotechnology | Antibody | Optics & Photonics | Medical Devices | COVID-19 | Immunology | Oncology | Materials | Bioengineering | Neurodegenerative Diseases

View all technologies

PCI’s success and history highlighted in a recent Philadelphia Business Journal cover story

In an exciting development, the Philadelphia Business Journal recently featured PCI’s Managing Director John Swartley, MBA, PhD, on their cover as part of a story about his leadership and the success of PCI.  The in-depth interview with Swartley provides a comprehensive history about technology transfer at Penn as well as his unique perspectives on the establishment and current success of PCI.

As Managing Director of PCI, Swartley’s leadership has helped Penn rank first in gross annual licensing income among U.S. universities and research organizations, according to AUTM’s 2021 report. More importantly, PCI facilitated licenses and partnership agreements with the private sector have contributed to the approval and launch of many important products, including therapeutic drugs that have benefited billions of patients world-wide such as mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines that rely on technology developed at Penn by Dr. Drew Weissman and Dr. Katalin Kariko.

In terms of what’s next for PCI, Swartley points to a future full of further technological development and innovation. “There are multiple hundreds of invention disclosures per year, on top of the thousands of other technologies that we’re working on,” he said. “The volume is tremendous and we have to be able to react quickly to areas of opportunity. You can’t get static. … I think our world is going to change pretty quickly and we’re going to need to adapt with it.”

Read the full article here.

Penn ranks first in licensing income

Penn officially ranked number one in terms of licensing income in the latest Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) annual survey, which included 153 reporting institutions.

For context, Penn’s gross licensing income numbers were more than double that of the next largest contributor, which was the entire University of California system.

This is a huge milestone for PCI, Penn, and Philadelphia’s innovation ecosystem.

“These results, and all the other equally important indicators of Penn’s success, are a direct result of the exceptional research, development, and innovative breakthroughs made by the University’s world-class faculty and research community,” notes John Swartley, PhD, MBA, Associate Vice Provost for Research and Managing Director for the Penn Center for Innovation (PCI).

Read the full story here.

Upcoming Events

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PCI Open Office Hours at Penn Engineering

October 4 @ 11:00 am

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Penn Medicine Commercialization Speaker Series: Fall 2023, Session 1

October 5 @ 12:00 pm

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PCI Open Office Hours at Penn Engineering

October 12 @ 11:00 am

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