MATTER Matter healthtech incubator officially opens to crowd of more than 150

The official opening of the Matter healthtech incubator drew a crowd — and a group of speakers so large that Mayor Rahm Emanuel joked he was being pushed offstage.

More than 150 people attended Friday’s event, and speakers included Emanuel, Gov. Bruce Rauner, Sen. Dick Durbin and healthcare-industry leaders such as Marathon Pharmaceuticals’ Jeff Aronin and Horizon Pharma’s Timothy Walbert. American Medical Association CEO James Madara also spoke.

Sen. Dick Durbin says at the official opening of the Matter healthtech incubator at Chicago’s Merchandise Mart that “big ideas will make Chicago one of the world’s great cities.”

“We can be the capital, the heart of America for healthcare innovation, medical devices, medical technology, healthcare services,” Rauner said. “We can be the leader in America.”

Early this month, member companies began moving into Matter’s 25,000-square-foot space on the 12th floor of the Merchandise Mart. It now has 70 member companies.

Matter, adjacent to the 1871 tech incubator, is funded with state grants and loans, as well as $4.4 million from industry partners.

“What Matter does for us is give us unprecedented access to mentors, to colleagues, to capital and to curriculum that honestly weren’t otherwise available,” said Dana Edelson, founder of Matter member Quant HC. “I couldn’t do this alone. And to be totally honest, I would have been too terrified to even try.”

Speakers mentioned the importance of innovation and troubleshooting problems in the healthcare system, and they called on Matter to bring together the threads of Chicago’s schools, companies and healthcare networks.

“To do it,” Matter CEO Steve Collens said,“we need a central place to connect all the pieces of the community — entrepreneurs and innovators, scientists and doctors, healthcare executives and industry leaders.”