Speaker Information
Speaker Bios
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Dennis McWilliamsCEO and Founder, Apollo EndosurgeryDennis McWilliams is the CEO and Founder of Apollo Endosurgery, a venture-backed medical device company that is developing flexible tools for minimally invasive surgery. The company's first product, Overstitch(tm), was recently cleared by the FDA and is the world's first flexible endoscopic surgical suturing device.Prior to Apollo, Mr. McWilliams was an Entrepreneur in Residence at PTV Sciences, a venture capital fund focusing on life science and medical devices. Previously he co-founded Chrysalis BioTechnology, a development stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel drug therapies for tissue regeneration, including bone, cartilage, and dermal soft tissue. As Chief Operating Officer, he was responsible for corporate financing, strategic partnering, and M&A activities, raising over $15 million in financing and the signing three major corporate partnerships. Chrysalis was acquired by OrthoLogic Corporation (NASDAQ: OLGC) in August 2004. Prior to Chrysalis, Mr. McWilliams was a technology marketing specialist at the IC2 Institute (Austin, TX), a technology "Think Tank" which implements strategies for technology commercialization. His projects included commercialization strategies for the University of Texas Medical Branch, NASA, and CIA labs- including a project to apply missile tracking software to breast cancer detection. Mr. McWilliams received a Bachelor of Science with honors from the University of Texas and a Master of Science in Engineering Management from Stanford University. He serves on the Board for the Texas Exes as well as the Texas Life Science Center (part of the Emerging Technology Fund). In 2007, Mr. McWilliams was given the Outstanding Young Texas Ex Award by the University of Texas. |
