At the Get Started Tucson business pitch competition, judges selected just eight teams out of a pool of 69 applicant companies to pitch at the Tucson version of ABC’s Shark Tank. Of those, two were companies working to commercialize technologies invented at the UA.

UA researchers, in collaboration with the University of California San Francisco, have developed a new treatment for acute myeloid leukemia. The team has formed a startup – Promutech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. – to further develop and commercialize the treatment.

The UA, through TLA, has partnered with TechCode, a global network of startup incubators and entrepreneurial ecosystems. TechCode will provide networking resources to increase the reach and effectiveness of TLA’s technology innovations and startups.

UPDATE: This year, we initially reported our results on August 30. Regrettably, on September 30, we discovered that two FY2016 agreements were misclassified in our system. We've since updated our process and documents.

Last year, we described how we are connecting people, resources and ideas to build a new kind of commercialization ecosystem. This year, we have broadened our work and deepened our reach, resulting in TLA's third year running of record results for the UA.

To address the growing number of inventions TLA evaluates for commercialization and help startups develop high-quality strategies and teams, the office has hired entrepreneur and executive Steven Wood for its Mentors-in-Residence team.