This special section marks the launch of the annual Startups to Watch list, a collection of startups New Mexico Inno will keep an eye on in the next 12 months.
The list of 10 honorees includes businesses in various sectors — sustainable energy, health care and mobile communications, to name a few. Our Startups to Watch are trying to use data to identify the “social determinants of health” and deploy space-mining technology.
Like New Mexico’s broader startup ecosystem, one industry or vertical isn’t responsible for the majority of the startups we are watching. Generally, each company has raised funding and is in the process of developing or commercializing technology.
Startups to Watch honorees were selected by New Mexico Inno reporter Collin Krabbe, who, when considering each honoree, looked at how the businesses performed in 2021, as well as what they have planned in 2022.
Over the past few weeks, you've had a chance to read about each startup online and see the work they are doing to grow their businesses in New Mexico and beyond. All 10 companies were also highlighted in the Feb. 4 print edition of Albuquerque Business First.
Last up, Nob Hill Therapeutics.
This year could prove pivotal for Albuquerque biotech startup Nob Hill Therapeutics — and a new executive may soon be leading the charge.
Nob Hill CEO Yun Li told Albuquerque Business First in January that the startup is seeking a critical type of approval from the Federal Drug Administration, which would allow anybody to use its product. The startup is trying to commercialize a nebulizer that disaggregates powdered particles, spreading them out and enabling patients to use the medication more efficiently and effectively.
Li is the director of the New Mexico branch of the VIC Technology Venture Development, a technology commercialization organization. She, along with Nob Hill’s board, have helped to get the early-stage company ready to pursue federal approvals. Now that the startup is at that stage, Li said a new executive will take the reins.
The pulmonary technology was originally developed at the University of New Mexico before being licensed by Nob Hill Therapeutics, which is part of the VIC portfolio. Nob Hill’s main product is designed for pulmonary aspergillosis, a fungal infection caused by mold. However, its nebulizer can also be used for viral and bacterial infections, according to the company.
The upcoming CEO appointment will follow John Pritchard, Caroline Baxter, Charles Daley and Noel Greenberger’s appointments to Nob Hill’s “strategic advisory board,” which it announced in November.
The startup is also looking for a lead investor to join a series of co-investors on a Series A funding round, Li said, adding that they are trying “everything we can” to keep the company in Albuquerque. Local investors have already thrown their hats in the ring, including some from the New Mexico Angels investor network, according to Li. Currently, Nob Hill is located at the BioScience Center at 5901 Indian School Road. The company was founded in 2017.
