Chris Dammann is an accomplished scientist with more than 12 years of international experience in industrial and academic research. His expertise includes molecular biology, cell biology, biochemistry and biotechnology. Chris gained his extensive scientific experience through several positions at renowned institutions in Germany, Spain and the US. These include the “Institute for Gen-Biological Research” (now Max Planck) in Berlin, Germany and the Scripps Research Institute in San Diego, California.
For several years Chris served as the Director of Science & Technology at the “Invention Development Fund” of Intellectual Ventures. There, he managed the extensive life science patent portfolio. While he led the evaluation and triage of hundreds of inventions, he also developed product concepts, defined product development paths and identified assets for potential spinouts. As the life science expert of the fund Chris advised staff and inventors on technical issues, experiment planning, development projects and patent strategy in diverse areas such as biotechnology, medical devices, telemedicine, regenerative medicine, imaging, materials, diagnostics and drug delivery.
Chris has a significant experience in the business of intellectual property. Besides assessing the scientific and technical quality of patents, he also understands how to address their commercial potential. Over the years, he has analyzed numerous products, markets, competing technologies, patent landscape and company portfolios.
Prior to joining Intellectual Ventures Chris was a Senior Scientist at BASF where he worked on genetic engineering, metabolic engineering and systems biology projects. He was responsible for the coordination of research projects that involved sites in Germany, USA and Belgium. In addition to his scientific role, he led the evaluation of new technologies and advised management on the acquisition of external assets.
Chris holds a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology / Genetics, and a M.S. in Biology from the “Freie Universität Berlin”, Germany.