Who We Are & What We Do

Innovative Technology Prototyping Fund (ITPF) was recently created to provide a framework for bringing investor capital and resources to the underserved physical and engineering science intellectual property at universities and stalled startup companies, including medical devices, where friend and family capital was exhausted. Our end product is the Prototype, which having been optimized for commercial utilization, is sold or licensed.

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We use artificial intelligence (AI) to rate and rank patents before they are considered for further development. The resulting list is culled based on a number of criteria; availability of a subject matter expert to lead the development efforts, available solutions, potential market, available product recipient, and competitive space just to name a few.

Our management team, Innovative Technology Management LLC, has extensive expertise in all phases of creating products, using a disciplined methodology to create commercial value.

Meet The Team

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Alan Letton, PhD

Managing Member

I live at the intersection of technology and creativity. As a jazz drummer I learned to innovate within a defined structure. My approach to technology and business leadership has been the same. I enjoy taking technology and science and using it to develop new and creative products, demonstrating success by creating new revenue streams and new businesses. I’ve taken this same jazz style to leadership. In my academic roles and corporate roles, fortune 500 corporations and startups, I’ve established strategies and processes that create a unique path to growth based on my technical background, knowledge of strategic processes, and ability to “jam” with leadership teams.

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Linda Sharkus, PhD

Managing Member

Whether it is the wind in a sail or something that needs improvement, I have the foresight to see a problem and implement a solution, the ability to transform a vision into a plan and the drive to implement that plan.

I worked in corporate America for a number of years.  I joined a technical recruiting firm where I built a successful network of candidates ranging from Executives to new PhD grads.  Incorporating the knowledge that I gained over the years, I started my own recruiting business, Acquis Associates Inc.  During that time, I met Alan Letton who would become my partner for the start-up of Innovative Technology Management LLC(ITM).

Working as a consultant for a business development company conducting business in Italy, I was introduced to LipidViro Tech.  LipidViro had a platform to reduce inflammation, with a focus on treating stroke, which I found intriguing.   This effort led to my acquiring LipidViro Tech which later became AcquiSci Inc.  AcquiSci’s platform technology was sold in 2014 and it is currently operating as ImmunoRes.  Through AcquiSci I met Vikki Hazelwood who would become a member of ITM rounding out our ITM team.

While winding down AcquiSci, I got involved with ELabNYC, as a mentor to life science companies and then as head of Screening.  This program provided me with first-hand experience of the struggles start-up companies face trying to raise capital, a problem I experienced with AcquiSci. The problem being, in order to raise capital, you need a team, to have a team you need to offer compensation.  This “Catch 22” confirmed the need to provide investment capital to start-up companies once friends and family funding has been exhausted.  Recognizing the problem, I formulated a solution and implemented a plan. This solution became the underpinning for Innovative Technology Prototyping Fund.

I have sailed competitively, and dabble in real estate, both buying to hold and flipping. I enjoy converting houses in disrepair to move-in ready condition.  These projects are completed within budget, on time and with awareness of the current market status.

Whatever the endeavor, I identify the need, devise a plan and then, put that plan into action.  I am a visionary, a creative thinker, intuitive, motivated, tenacious and have an unbridled thirst for knowledge.

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Vikki Hazelwood, PhD

Innovation Advisor

I loved to play outside as a kid. Sometimes I’d imagine something I ‘needed’ and usually figured out how to build it with just the stuff we had around the house and yard. I’m a chip off the ol’ block, whose Dad encouraged me use his workbench and tools anytime I felt inspired to create. I didn’t know what engineering was until I got to college, but once discovered, I knew it was in my genes to become one. Perhaps not surprisingly, I followed with a successful career designing and engineering equipment for chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturers and developing devices to address unmet needs in the medical community.

About 15 years ago, I was lured to Stevens to teach my practice: Engineering Design. Why not? I saw this as a chance to fuel my innovative spirit beyond corporate constraints and to motivate the next generation. My students thrive in the real word challenges I give them. We’ve since designed and built more than 100 prototypes, wrote several patents, and launched a few start-up companies. And together we have created a small army of young new innovators.

I still love the outdoors. My passion is waterskiing. It drives me to compete in tournaments, where I’ve often made it to the podium. It also led me to a role as a Stunt Actor for The Sopranos—in a waterski scene, of course. When the lakes freeze, I swap to cross country skis so that I can romp across them and through the woods with my boundlessly energetic chocolate lab. That’s typically when I imagine something we need and so head back to the design lab to create it.

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Frank Gregory, JD

Managing Member

I have always been driven by a quest to find the truth. My parents instilled a strong sense of moral compass in me from a young age, which has guided me. It is one of the reasons that I initially choose the practice of law. There are two sides to every case but only one set of facts and truth, and I found that I had a talent for digging through the stories (the noise), scrutinizing all sides of an issue, and finding the truth. That ability made me a powerful advocate for my clients as it allowed me to best apply the law to each client’s situation. 

After a successful legal career, the technology revolution of the late ‘90s drew me to Wall Street. I’ve also always loved creating things, am fascinated with technology’s impact on mankind, and the passion proved to be a strong draw. My legal skills translated well into the investment world as they gave me a knack for determining the veracity of an investment and predicting its success - I have a natural ability to see patterns and how seemingly uncorrelated ideas intersect. These skills led to a successful career at Lord Abbett, a $160 billion global asset manager. I also ran and consulted with a number of start-up firms to help them structure their product offerings and define their best approaches to markets. In the process, I raised over $20 billion for those organizations. I’ve also worked with investment committees and boards to ensure that they are acting in a legal and fiduciary compliant manner. I believe that you can raise money and achieve success without sacrificing your ethics.

On a personal note, I enjoy spending time with my wife, three kids, and multiple pets. Reading and a love of travel satiate my constant thirst for learning and knowledge, golf my perpetual quest for perfection (so far unattained), and extreme skiing my need for adventure and thrill-seeking.

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Josh Hawes

Managing Member

Born of a missionary family and Instilled at an early age, Josh’s view on life has been excellence through truth. Continual learning through experience and mentorship has been at the cornerstone of his major pursuits ever since childhood. From being a three varsity sport athlete to spending time in as many investment arenas as possible, Josh focuses on diving into a subject for complete immersion. This love of sports also has translated into a love of the arts, particularly of the instrumental nature with a liking all the way from Beethoven and Bach, to even Biggie. Running his own firms for many years now, Josh has learned the value “getting it done,” and always looks to cross strategic vision with tactful operational execution. Having a knack for not conforming to norms, he looks to approach problems with a different angle but an engineering bent, given his collegiate background. Ever the dichotomy, Josh loves training with his military friends and supporting their mission, while also being the reliable friend like his two loveable golden retrievers he’s rarely seen without.

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Rick Arons, ScD

General Advisor
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John Cronin

AI Advisor

Our Core Values

INTEGRITY is up front and center. ETHICS is essential. SOLUTIONS are our way of life.

What Sets Us Apart

ITPF is a first-of-its-kind alternative investment fund that falls between angel investing and venture capital, with an investment of $1 to 3 million/project to develop final working prototypes ready for commercialization, which then are sold. The resulting products can be easily translated to products specific to the receiving corporation, much in the fashion of acquisition used by corporations today. With more D(development) than R(research) in corporations, ITPF provides a research service to corporate America that allows them to bridge the “r & D” gap.

The fund is managed by three STEM educated PhDs with broad experience in product development. Selection of patents is conducted in a systematic way, employing tools utilized in the best of corporate America, stage-gate project management for example.

Stategate

We investigate broad technologies in areas of physical and material science, engineering and manufacturing technologies and medical devices.
This approach allows for development in a broad class of technologies, consumer products, manufacturing improvements, social impact technologies, medical devices, bioengineering and many more.