Licensing & Ventures Group

Enterprise Studio

“We have been designing the Enterprise Studio to be the place where UVA faculty members, research staff and graduate student researchers bring the best ideas for commercial solutions that can change the world." -- Managing Director Lisa Bowers
Lisa Bowers is a graduate of Yale University and the University of Michigan and moved to Charlottesville in 2023 after a career as a biotech executive and venture fund founder in the San Francisco Bay Area. She is the founding Managing Director of the Enterprise Studio.

The Enterprise Studio exists to support faculty, research staff and graduate student researchers who are considering commercializing their UVA-based ideas and inventions.

We aim to serve as a guide to help you evaluate the commercial potential and possible pathways for your idea, and to provide education and resources to help you navigate the commercialization process.

The Studio is built to serve every school on Grounds and will support faculty, research staff and graduate student researchers who are considering simple revenue-based businesses that are emerging from research at UVA, private companies that may someday be financed by venture capital and non-profit social impact start-ups. Our combined entrepreneurial expertise helps make the process of commercialization simpler and more accessible.

We are meeting with faculty, research staff and graduate student researchers across Grounds to learn how the Studio can serve each school uniquely. And we are connecting with existing and potential founders to support them as they make decisions about their work.

We are:

Open.

Responsive.

And serious about this effort.

And our aim is to encourage you, whatever your goals are for delivering real-world impact through your research.

Even if you’re not ready to take the first steps, let’s have a conversation.

ES is a collaborative effort between UVA Innovates and UVA’s Licensing & Ventures Group. 

Start the Conversation

Even if you're not sure you're ready for next steps, reach out. We'd love to help.

Email Us

The Enterprise Studio is above Kardinal Hall, adjacent to LVG's headquarters at 722 Preston Ave. You’ll need access to get in the building, so please let us know you’re coming.

Opportunities Around Town

The Studio is a collaborative effort between UVA Innovates and UVA’s Licensing & Venture Group. We are already collaborating across Grounds and the broader Charlottesville community to share information and opportunities with our faculty, research staff and graduate students. We are happy to help connect you with any or all of the programs listed below. Check back here for more updates as we gather more news from our partners.

  • Consider signing up for LVG's I-Corps, an immersive program for University researchers translating discoveries and inventions into impact, which starts in March.
  • LVG partner CvilleBioHub is recruiting companies for their new Commonwealth BioAccelerator, a state-of-the-art wet lab space with equipment, specialized programming and mentorship that is dedicated to advancing high-potential life sciences startups in Central Virginia.
  • Registration for the Batten Institute’s 2025 i.Lab Incubator is now open.
  • The National Science Foundation and the Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation are collaborating for a workshop in Richmond on March 20 that provides instruction on how to plan and write a competitive SBIR/STTR proposal to the NSF.
  • UVA Biomedical Engineering Chair Shayn Peirce-Cottler is hosting a seminar April 18 with Terry Layton from the University of Illinois at Chicago

Tutorials

Check out these videos, courtesy of Osage University Partners, that answer questions you may have. You can also reach out directly to members of the LVG licensing team: lvg@virginia.edu.