Sep 25, 2025
Pittsburgh’s Innovation Economy: Where Biotech and Health Care Converge
Pittsburgh is rapidly emerging as one of the nation’s most dynamic hubs for health care innovation. Once known primarily as a thriving steel town built on strong industrial roots, the region now boasts a flourishing ecosystem of research institutions, health systems, startups, and tech talent driving breakthroughs in digital health and life sciences.
Pittsburgh’s competitive edge is founded in UPMC and its deep partnerships with world-class academic institutions, including the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University, which drive groundbreaking research and opportunities for commercialization. Complementing this is an active network of venture capital and strategic partnerships that accelerate regional innovation and position the city as a leader in transformative growth.
One of the clearest signals of Pittsburgh’s rising prominence is the AI Horizons Summit, a premier event convening thought leaders, innovators, and organizations shaping the future of health care and technology. The conference draws national attention to the region’s leadership in digital health and showcases the collaborative spirit that defines Pittsburgh’s innovation economy.
As the innovation, commercialization, and venture capital arm of UPMC, UPMC Enterprises plays a pivotal role in shaping the region’s landscape in health care. Our mission is to turn bold ideas into life changing technologies, and AI is central to that vision.
We’re proud to be part of this conversation as participants in the AI Horizons Summit and active contributors to the region’s transformation.
UPMC Enterprises’ impact was particularly visible in a panel at AI Horizons, “AI in Healthcare: Boosting Productivity, Improving Outcomes.” During the panel, Deepan Kamaraj, director, data analytics and informatics, UPMC Enterprises, moderated a conversation among Reuben Daniel, associate vice president of AI, UPMC Health Plan; Chenyan Xiong, associate professor, Carnegie Mellon University Language Technologies Institute; and Avi Goldberg, partner, GreatPoint Ventures.
Panelists discussed the evolving role of AI in health care, and both Kamaraj and Daniel reviewed UPMC’s approach to integrating technology while maintaining strong industry ties, ethical implementation, and Pittsburgh-based partnerships.
Specifically, Kamaraj highlighted Ahavi ™, a platform developed by UPMC Enterprises designed to provide insights from primary source-verified, de-identified, real-world health care data to researchers, scientists, and developers.
“Ahavi provides a scalable, cost-effective solution that harnesses structured, unstructured, and imaging data. It is through this access to multimodal data that we can build multimodal models, connecting data across formats to uncover meaningful real-world evidence to enable clinical trials, optimize treatment pathways, and inform data-driven decision making,” said Kamaraj.
Other notable participation in AI Horizons included three UPMC Enterprises’ portfolio companies featured on panel sessions.
- Molly Johnson, senior director of data sciences, Avista Therapeutics | “AI in Medicine: Accelerating Discovery and Cures”
- Shiv Rao, CEO, Abridge | “Transforming Health Care with AI”
- Will Kaigler, CEO and co-founder, sovaSage | “Health Care Without Walls: Al Driving Integrated Care”
Looking ahead, we’re excited to highlight several upcoming initiatives and events that continue this momentum, including:
AGENTIC | Tuesday, Sept. 16, New York City, NY
Ketki Karanam, vice president of ventures, UPMC Enterprises, spoke on “The Investors” panel, which brought together leading investors and dealmakers to explore opportunities at the intersection of AI and life sciences, including the hottest sectors and what to look out for.
CMU Startup Week | Wednesday-Friday, Sept. 24-26, Pittsburgh, PA
Anna Mamo, director of Translational Sciences, UPMC Enterprises, participated in this event, which is a multi-day celebration of entrepreneurship, innovation, and frontier tech.
LSPA Life Sciences Future | Thursday-Friday, Sept. 25-26. King of Prussia, PA
UPMC Enterprises is proud to serve as a sponsor of this event, with multiple members of the Translational Sciences team attending and participating.
Becker’s Health IT + Digital Health + RCM | Tuesday-Friday, Sept. 30-Oct. 3, Chicago, IL
Deepan Kamaraj is speaking on a panel at this event, which brings leaders in cutting-edge technologies, interoperability, cybersecurity, and finance together to discuss key issues in health care.
HLTH | Sunday-Tuesday, Oct. 19 –21, Las Vegas, NV
Matthias Kleinz, executive vice president of Translational Sciences, is participating in a panel entitled “AI’s Mission to the Medical Margins.” Amy Meister, DO, president of Community and Ambulatory Services at UPMC, will also be on a panel titled “Market Force Winds.”
Global Innovation Summit 2025 — Forging the Future: The Intersection of Health, AI and Tech | Sunday-Tuesday, Oct. 19 –21, Pittsburgh, PA
Jeanne Cunicelli, president of UPMC Enterprises, and executive vice president, UPMC, will be speaking at this event, which will highlight cutting-edge innovations and celebrate Pittsburgh’s dynamic innovation ecosystem, driven by leading research institutions, top-tier health care, and strong public-private partnerships.
These efforts underscore our dedication to accelerating innovation and ensuring Pittsburgh remains at the forefront of the health care transformation conversation.
Next Steps
- Learn more about UPMC Enterprises portfolio of translational sciences and digital health companies.
*UPMC Enterprises has a financial interest in Abridge, sovaSage, and Avista Therapeutics.
