Eyeworld

30 | EYEWORLD | APRIL 2022 Contact Kliman: www.eyecelerator.com/ contact-us Thompson: vance.thompson @vancethompsonvision.com by Ellen Stodola Editorial Co-Director About the physicians Gil Kliman, MD Managing Partner InterWest Partners Los Altos, California Vance Thompson, MD Vance Thompson Vision Sioux Falls, South Dakota community and making connections, so to be able to have such a prestigious session that was previously at the ASCRS Annual Meeting come onto the Eyecelerator program is fantastic." Vance Thompson, MD, one of the co-mod- erators of the Winning Pitch Challenge, was involved in the initial creation of the concept. He's excited for it to be included on this year's Eyecelerator program. "Our goal has been to inspire," he said. Those ophthalmologists who have ideas in the clinic or during surgery that they think can help patients often don't know where to start. "We started this challenge as a place for them to get advice." This includes advice on the intellectual property journey, developing the pitch deck, and more. The session will include three finalists who will deliver their pitches, as well as three honorable mentions. Submissions come in from around the world. "I'm excited for the partici- pants who have worked hard on their ideas and pitches," Dr. Thompson said. Rounding out the Eyecelerator program are a variety of other sessions, including a focus on funding and on patents. "Being in Washington, D.C., we're hoping to have some people from the United States Patent and Trademark Office and specialized patent attorneys speak," Dr. Kliman said. Several spotlights will highlight cataract, refractive, cornea, and glaucoma companies. Dr. Kliman said these will feature companies with interesting innovations of merit, adding that the meeting is seeking to support new companies and those with news to share. Dr. Kliman said he's hoping to see even more attendees at this year's meeting, partic- ularly international attendees who may have been unable to travel in 2021. Eyecelerator cre- ated value with its virtual programming in 2020 and has since shown the high value of in-person meetings, he said, adding that attendees have noted how important the networking opportuni- ties at the meeting are. ANNUAL MEETING PREVIEW ASCRS NEWS 2022 Eyecelerator@ASCRS E yecelerator, a joint venture between ASCRS and the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), will take place ahead of the ASCRS Annual Meeting on Thursday, April 21 at the Renaissance Washington, DC Downtown Hotel, led by Gil Kliman, MD, program director, and program co- chairs Eric Donnenfeld, MD, and John Berdahl, MD. Dr. Kliman spoke to EyeWorld about what's coming up at Eyecelerator@ASCRS, the first Eyecelerator program of 2022. "We're building on the success that we had in 2021," Dr. Kliman said. The joint venture started in November 2019 but had to pivot to feature several virtual events in 2020 due to the pandemic. In 2021, Eyecelerator held two in-person meetings—one ahead of the ASCRS Annual Meeting in Las Vegas and another ahead of the AAO Annual Meeting in New Orleans. Both were huge successes, Dr. Kliman said, adding that attendance has been impressive to the point that Eyecelerator is now the leading innovation meeting in the world in terms of size and attendance. Almost 600 people attended the meeting in New Orleans, and future meet- ings are anticipated to be even larger as the pandemic recedes. Dr. Kliman noted the wide range of speak- ers and companies involved. "At the November Eyecelerator meeting we had 93 speakers as a result of our efforts to bring in new and more diverse speakers," he said. There were 36 pre- senting companies, including 25 presenting for the first time. "Eyecelerator sponsorship is also robust and growing. We have sponsorship from the smallest companies up to the largest, and we're proud of the community we've created." The 2022 Eyecelerator@ASCRS meeting will feature a full day of programming, and Dr. Kliman said one of the main themes of the meeting will be digital ophthalmology. New this year is the addition of the Winning Pitch Challenge to the program. In the Winning Pitch Challenge, which was previously present- ed during the ASCRS Annual Meeting as a sym- posium, pre-chosen finalists present their ideas for new techniques, products, and innovations in ophthalmology. "I couldn't be more excited," Dr. Kliman said. "We always want to be building the

• Cover