The 60 million KHAN Technology Transfer Fund I (KHAN-I) and its subsidiary wings4innovation GmbH (w4i) are establishing an Austria-wide network for drug research with 19 top research institutions, AIT is part of it.
w4i strengthens the pharmaceutical research sector as a translational center and central contact in Austria. The aim is to quickly bring many promising proposals to KHAN-I for project development. To this goal, w4i and KHAN-I have concluded a framework agreement with 19 leading Austrian research institutions in the life sciences sector; AIT is part of this agreement with the Center for Health & Bioresources and is actively involved as a partner in the strategic project to create a Translational Research Center (w4i). This framework agreement regulates fundamental aspects of the identification and evaluation of project proposals as well as the implementation and exploitation of funded projects.
In the current investment portfolio of KHAN-I are three projects from Austria, which were scouted, evaluated and proposed for financing by the Austrian subsidiary w4i. The projects are developed according to industry standards together with research institutions and commercialized by KHAN-I. This initiative is a new chapter in the cooperation of pharmaceutical research in Austria.
wings4innovation GmbH (w4i) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of KHAN-I, with headquarters in Vienna, and is the central contact for academic partners from all over Austria. w4i scouts and evaluates projects ideas and, after approval by the w4i advisory board, puts forward suitable projects for KHAN-I financing. The role of w4i in financed projects is to coordinate work packages and the involvement of the academic project originators on behalf of KHAN-I. As part of its scouting activity, w4i offers academic partners general advice on translation opportunities for their results and hypotheses, and on aspects of industrial drug research and development.
KHAN Technology Transfer Fund I GmbH & Co. KG (KHAN-I) is a limited partnership under German law with the European Investment Fund (EIF), Max Planck Foundation (MPF), Austria Wirtschaftsservice GmbH (aws), and KHAN-I Vermögensverwaltung GmbH & Co. KG as non-managing limited partners and Khanu Management GmbH (KHANU) as general partner and fund manager. The purpose of KHAN-I is to invest in innovative drug discovery projects and spin-out companies, primarily originating from academic sources, at the discovery, pre-clinical and clinical development stage for human healthcare and, opportunistically, veterinary care as well as to commercialize the results and products of the investments and, thus, to participate, directly or indirectly, in future proceeds.