Carr & Ferrell, LLP was founded in 1992 in downtown Palo Alto, California. Now in its13th year, the Firm’s team of professionals combines technical expertise with proven legal and business experience. This combination allows Carr & Ferrell, LLP to provide superior representation within a range of practice areas, including Intellectual Property, Corporate Law and Litigation.
www.carrferrell.com

Delphi Ventures is a venture capital firm focused on early stage healthcare investing, including medical devices, diagnostics and biotechnology. More than 80 of our companies have either completed an initial public offering or have been acquired by leading healthcare corporations. www.delphiventures.com

The partners at De Novo Ventures (www.denovovc.com) truly understand the issues facing life science entrepreneurs, as they founded and ran some of the most successful companies in the medical device industry, including ACS, Perclose, Origin, CTS, and FoxHollow. De Novo invests in early stage therapeutic medical device and biotechnology companies, and currently has $350 million under management.

Heller Ehrman is a leader in providing innovative legal services to clients throughout the world. With more than 730 attorneys and professionals in 12 cities nationwide and abroad, we offer the full range of litigation, business and intellectual property capabilities needed to succeed in today's competitive marketplace.
www.hewm.com

The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation of Kansas City works with partners to encourage entrepreneurship across America and improve the educational achievement of children and youth. The Kauffman Foundation was established in the mid-1960s by the late entrepreneur and philanthropist Ewing Marion Kauffman. More information about the Kauffman Foundation is available at www.kauffman.org

Frazier Healthcare Ventures, founded in 1991 and with $1.2 billion of capital under management, is a leading provider of early stage venture and growth equity capital to healthcare companies. Having invested in more than 85 companies, Frazier Healthcare is known well for the depth of experience and technical expertise of its investment team. Partnering with Frazier Healthcare provides access to capital and an unparalleled breadth of industry experience. www.frazierhealthcare.com

Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB) is an active venture capital partnership headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area with a large capital base for investment. Since 1972, the company has invested in over 420 technology companies which have accrued market valuations exceeding $300 billion and employ more than 285,000.
www.kpcb.com

Founded in 1978, New Enterprise Associates (NEA) has been practicing classic venture capital for over 25 years. NEA focuses on early stage investments, playing an active role in assisting management to build companies of lasting value. With $6 billion under management, NEA's experienced management team has invested in over 500 companies, of which more than 149 have gone public and more than 195 have been acquired. For additional information, visit www.nea.com.

ONSET Ventures is a 20-year-old venture capital firm specializing in seed and early stage investing across three sectors – medical technology, software and communications. Within medical technology, we focus on medical devices and drug delivery systems.

With more than $700 million under management, ONSET has pioneered a shirt-sleeves style of active collaboration with entrepreneurs to conceive and develop sustainable businesses of significant value. www.onset.com

Prism Venture Partners, Westwood, MA, is a leading venture capital firm with early-stage investments in communications, business infrastructure software and systems and life sciences. With over $1 billion in capital under management, Prism has earned industry recognition through the firm's depth of entrepreneurial experience and active role with portfolio companies. Prism's access to an established pool of seasoned entrepreneurs and skilled executives, collaborative approach to working with portfolio companies and integrated network of investors contribute to the firm’s investment success. Additional information on Prism Venture Partners can be found at www.prismventure.com.

Biodesign is a broad collaboration between faculty and students at Stanford who share a vision for technology innovation in biomedical engineering through, Invention & Discovery, Education, Ethics & Policy, and Technology Transfer. Our mission is to promote the invention and implementation of new health technologies through interdisciplinary research and education at the emerging frontiers of engineering and the biomedical sciences. Biodesign is a thematic area within bio-x, a program supporting multidisciplinary work related to biology. biodesign.stanford.edu

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati's broad range of services and legal disciplines are focused on serving the principal challenges faced by management and the board of directors of business enterprises. The firm, which is headquartered in Palo Alto, California, has offices in Austin, Reston, New York City, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco and Seattle. For additional information, visit www.wsgr.com

The National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance fosters invention, innovation, and entrepreneurship in higher education as a way of creating innovative, commercially viable, and socially beneficial businesses. NCIIA works with universities to build collaborative experiential learning programs that help nurture a new generation of innovators and entrepreneurs with strong technical and business skills and the tools to make the world a better place. See our website for further info.

Thomas Weisel Healthcare Venture Partners L.P. (TWHVP) invests in the emerging Life Sciences and Medical Technology sectors. The fund focuses on medical device investments at all stages of development. In life sciences, the focus is on pre-mezzanine companies with products in development that show evidence of drug safety and efficacy in humans. For more information, click here.

Abbott Vascular Devices, a division of Abbott, is transforming the treatment of vascular disease, combining the latest medical device innovations with world-class pharmaceuticals to advance medicine and improve patient care. Abbott Vascular offers a comprehensive portfolio of vessel closure, endovascular and coronary products that are recognized internationally for their safety, ease of use and effectiveness in treating patients with vascular disease. Abbott Vascular is headquartered in Redwood City, CA. www.abbottvascular.com

Founded in 1979, Advanced Technology Ventures is a bi-coastal venture capital firm with more than $1.4 billion in capital under management. We work closely with entrepreneurial teams in several technology markets, including medical devices, biotechnology, communications, software and services, and IT infrastructure to build emerging-growth business ventures into market leaders. With more than 25 years of experience, ATV has a proven track record of success in helping to build strong, sustainable business enterprises. www.atvcapital.com

Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (ARE:NYSE) is the pre-eminent real estate investment trust focused principally on the ownership, operation, management, acquisition, expansion and redevelopment and selective development of properties containing office/laboratory space. Alexandria has an outstanding eight-year track record as an NYSE listed company with an approximate $2.85 billion total market capitalization. www.labspace.com

Boston Scientific is a worldwide developer, manufacturer, and marketer of medical devices. For over 25 years, Boston Scientific has advanced the practice of less-invasive medicine across a wide range of medical specialties. The Company's products help physicians and other medical professionals improve their patients' quality of life by providing alternatives to surgery that minimize risk, cost, trauma, aftercare, and procedure time. www.bostonscientific.com

Canaan Partners is an early-stage investor and creates next-generation companies in Internet infrastructure, communications, software and services, medical devices, biological sciences, pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. Founded in 1987, the firm has invested in more than 210 companies, completed 52 mergers and acquisition, and taken 45 companies public. Canaan was an early investor in DoubleClick (DCLK), Immunicon (IMMC), Dexcom (DXCM) and Peninsula Pharmaceuticals. www.canaanpartners.com

The California Healthcare Institute (CHI) is California’s political advocacy organization for medical technology companies and universities.  In Washington and Sacramento, CHI’s mission is to improve the economic, legal, regulatory and political environment for medical innovation. CHI has more than 250 members, including California’s leading academic institutions, medical device and diagnostics companies, and biopharmaceutical firms.  http://chi.org

Fenwick & West LLP, one of the nation's premier law firms, provides comprehensive legal services to national and international high technology and life sciences clients, from entrepreneur to investor, start-up to public company. Fenwick & West specializes in venture capital and other corporate finance, securities, corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions and strategic relationships, intellectual property, litigation and dispute resolution, antitrust, taxation and employment and labor law. www.fenwick.com

Guidant Corporation is a world leader in the treatment of cardiac and vascular disease. The company pioneers lifesaving technology, giving an opportunity for better life today to millions of cardiac and vascular patients worldwide.
Driven by a strong entrepreneurial culture of 12,000 employees, Guidant develops, manufactures, and markets a broad array of products and services that enable less invasive care for some of life’s most threatening medical conditions. For more information visit www.guidant.com

Hiemstra Product Development provides design and engineering services during all stages of medical device development – from early stage feasibility, R&D and clinical builds, through design for manufacturability. Hiemstra specializes in the design of unique hand held tools that require a high level of useability, including catheter-based delivery systems and minimally invasive surgical devices. www.hiemstra.com

Highland Capital Partners was founded with the mission of helping great people build great companies. Since its inception in 1988, the firm has taken a sector-focused and stage-diversified approach to investing in exceptional information technology, communications and healthcare companies. For more information, visit Highland's web site at www.hcp.com.

InterWest Partners, founded in 1979, is a leading diversified venture capital firm. The firm recently announced its latest fund, InterWest Partners IX, a $600 million fund that will invest in early-stage life sciences and information technology companies. With the closing of this fund, InterWest Partners has cumulatively raised more than $2 billion. www.interwest.com

Organized in 1973, Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation (JJDC) is the venture capital subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson. JJDC makes private equity investments in venture funded health care companies. Portfolio companies include those in the fields of pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, medical devices, diagnostics and consumer products. JJDC also leads and manages internal investments in selected promising technologies.. www.jnj.com

Medtronic is the world leader in medical technology providing lifelong solutions for people with chronic disease. We offer products, therapies and services that enhance or extend the lives of millions of people. Each year, 2.5 million patients benefit from Medtronic's technology, used to treat conditions such as heart disease, neurological disorders, and vascular illnesses. www.medtronic.com

Morrison & Foerster has one of the nation’s premier life sciences practices, focusing on corporate finance and intellectual property protection, licensing, and litigation. In recent years, the firm has represented hundreds of life sciences clients in VC financings and M&A transactions. The firm’s Venture Intellectual Property Group, which focuses on performing IP due diligence for both companies and VCs, works with Morrison & Foerster's corporate group to provide full spectrum service for our clients. www.mofo.com

O’Melveny & Myers is an international law firm with over 900 attorneys in 14 offices. Our Silicon Valley office specializes in the issues confronting Silicon Valley companies: the initial business and capital formation of emerging companies; venture capital and private equity investments; M&A; technology transactions; private and public offerings; conducting business in Asia; business restructurings / reorganizations; spinouts / spinins; and corporate diversification. www.omm.com

Prospect Venture Partners is dedicated to investing in medical technology and life science companies that have outstanding entrepreneurial management teams and proprietary products. With more than $1 billion of capital under management, the firm invests in companies with a broad range of development and financing requirements including incubation, first and second venture financing rounds, and later stage rounds for private and public companies. www.prospectventures.com

Founded in 1979, Sanderling is among the oldest investment firms dedicated to building new biomedical companies. Sanderling demonstrates that significant companies are best built in close working partnerships with entrepreneurs.

Our unique approach combines a specialized investment focus with active management and long-term commitment to ensure the highest rates-of-return for both its entrepreneurs and investors. www.sanderling.com

Thomas, McNerney & Partners is a health care private equity firm investing in life science and medical technology companies with a multi-stage investment approach. The company has successfully funded over 40 entities with $500 million collectively. We provide seed-early stage funding to help entrepreneurs launch companies and growth capital to emerging companies for clinical development or expansion of product commercialization. www.tm-partners.com

Vanguard Ventures is an early stage venture capital firm that helps entrepreneurs build pioneering information technology and medical device companies. Since its founding in 1981, Vanguard has funded over 120 startups, including such notable companies as Ciena, Network Appliance and ZipRealty. Vanguard is interested in backing the next generation of medical device entrepreneurs.
www.vanguardventures.com

Venture Manufacturing accelerates the development and manufacture of newly devised medical devices. Our clients consist of start-up companies, entrepreneurs, and inventors. We offer services tailored to the various stages of development within the medical device industry to ensure the most time-efficient and cost-effective path to market release. www.vmgroupinc.com

Versant Ventures was founded in 1999 and is a leading healthcare-focused venture capital firm specializing in early-stage investments in medical devices, biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, healthcare services, and healthcare information technology. Versant's seasoned investment team, with more than 80 years of venture capital and more than 175 years of operating experience, raised its first fund in November 1999. The firm closed a $400 million fund in December 2001, for a total of $670 million under management. Offices are located in Menlo Park and Newport Beach, California.

Founded in 1988, The Vertical Group is a venture capital firm focused on the fields of medical technology and biotechnology. The firm manages private partnerships with a "vertical" range of investments including: early and late venture stage companies; private operating companies involved in buy-out or corporate spin-off transactions; and public companies of all sizes. The Vertical Group has offices in Summit, NJ and Palo Alto, CA. www.vertical-group.com

Since 1989, Windhover Information Inc. has been providing superior analysis and commentary on health care business strategy, industry dealmaking, marketplace trends, and the world of medical start-ups. The expertise that our editorial and research staff have developed--now consulted and relied upon by the industry's top executives, consultants, bankers and investors--finds voice in our publications, leading-edge conferences, and integrated, highly searchable databases of transactions and commentary. Windhover's editorial goal: to clearly present objective, accurate, fundamentally valuable decision-making information.
www.windhover.com

The Women's Technology Cluster is the pre-eminent business incubator in the US dedicated to women leaders building technology and life science businesses. Our mission is to increase the number of successful companies and to leverage their influence. Through our dedicated community of proven CEOs, investors, and industry experts, we provide extensive advisory services, coaching, and access to business and capital networks.
www.wtc-sf.org