We are delighted to have been invited to speak at the 10th annual Nano Ontario conference at York University. Nano Ontario Conference aims at gathering academic and industrial sectors involved in nanoscale research across the province of Ontario. Nano Ontario’s voice is projected to feature the field and further the excellence of the province in fundamental and applied nanotechnology.
Aarash Sofla, uFluidix’s CEO, joined the panel discussion on the first day of the conference on November 29, 2019, to discuss the potentials and pain points in the micro/nanofluidic domain. The panel discussed the funding opportunities across the province as well as the country. Partnership potentials with the academia, essential skills for hiring new-graduates in the industry, funding strategies, and IP protection policies were among the topics covered by the panel.
In his concluding remarks, and in response to the audience for advice for new startups, Aarash discussed several reasons why a startup might fail.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
University researchers should have some sort of business plan before launching a company for commercializing their invention. At that stage, while planning the upcoming business, it is critical that they investigate whether there is a problem or need in the market which their product would address. Also carefully look at the status quo to see how that specific problem is served at the time of launching their venture.
Aarash carried on by explaining the two types of approaches for launching startups: Problem-based and solution-based. A great number of startups fail in the early stages since they have an innovation (a solution) for which there is no associated “problem” in the market. However, when an entrepreneur designs a product based on a need in the market the probability of the failure dramatically decreases.
Pouriya is a microfluidic production engineer at uFluidix. He received his B.Sc. and M.A.Sc. both in Mechanical Engineering from Isfahan University of Technology and York University, respectively. During his master's studies, he had the chance to learn the foundations of microfluidic technology at ACUTE Lab where he focused on designing microfluidic platforms for cell washing and isolation. Upon graduation, he joined uFluidix to even further enjoy designing, manufacturing, and experimenting with microfluidic chips. In his free time, you might find him reading a psychology/philosophy/fantasy book while refilling his coffee every half an hour. Is there a must-read book in your mind, do not hesitate to hit him up with your to-read list.
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