Carnegie Mellon University

James Antaki’s professional career has been devoted primarily to development of blood-wetted medical devices. Over the past 26 years, he has contributed to the development of several heart assist devices used clinically. Equally important as the devices themselves, his research has studied the methodology for prescriptive, rational design of medical technologies. He recently introduced a new course titled, “Inventive Problem Solving in Biomedical Engineering” that teaches young innovators how to “invent on demand.” His experience teaching the capstone Design course in Biomedical Engineering for the past 12 years has also convinced him of the need to bridge the chasm between early-stage brilliant ideas and the business community. The current emphasis aims to accelerate medical innovation by professional networking between physicians and medical product designers. In summary, he has placed himself at the intersection of academia, medicine, and industry because of his innate desire to make a positive difference in healthcare.