BioPACIFIC MIP Seminar Series: Prof. Craig Hawker

Entrepreneurial Polymer Chemistry

Abstract

Key lessons in successfully navigating the transition from benchtop research to a commercially successful product will be illustrated through recent success stories in polymer-based pharmaceuticals and personal care products. The important of developing a broad patent portfolio, high-throughput research and the power of the internet for by-passing traditional competitive roadblocks to market penetration will be highlighted.

Biosketch

Professor Craig J. Hawker holds the Alan and Ruth Heeger Chair of Interdisciplinary Science at UCSB where he co-directs the California NanoSystems Institute. He came to UCSB in 2004 after eleven years as a Research Staff Member at the IBM Almaden Research Center in San Jose, CA. Professor Hawker’s work has led to over 600 peer-reviewed papers and 75 patents with Professor Hawker helping to establish a range of start-up companies including Relypsa, Intermolecular, Olaplex, and Tricida. For his pioneering studies, Professor Hawker’s recent honors include the 2021 Kathryn C. Hach Award for Entrepreneurial Success from the American Chemical Society, the 2017 Charles Overberger International Prize, the 2013 ACS Award in Polymer Chemistry and the 2012 Centenary Prize from the Royal Society of Chemistry. Professor Hawker has been honored with election to the Royal Society (London) as well as being named a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and in 2021 election to the National Academy of Engineering.