As the Central Massachusetts biotech and bioscience sector continues to grow, it needs places for new ideas and innovators. Enter MBI and its leader, Jon Weaver.
Weaver has been MBI’s CEO since 2019 – before that he was the chief operating officer for MBI since 2015 – and since then he’s seen the industry collaborator expand its incubator headquarters on Briden Street, at the entrance to Gateway Park. In 2022, MBI purchased that 50,000-square-foot building at 17 Briden St. and began the expansion project. The facility will add 10 new pilot manufacturing labs to help support early-stage clinical companies.
MBI was founded in 1984 and is the longest-running life sciences incubator in the state. Since 2000, the nonprofit helped start 175 and more than 1,000 jobs, and just added another three to the list of graduates: iVexSol, Inc.; Invetx; and TransCode Therapeutics. The three companies now employ around 60 people. The incubator not only helps startups, but doles out Workforce Challenge Grants to increase diversity in the life sciences workforce. Weaver is the connecting piece. He’s the man pushing the buttons and connecting the local sector to the greater world by bringing together industry, academia, and policymakers to identify industry needs and work collaboratively on solutions.
How should professionals best use the power they wield? “Ultimately, we should all endeavor to leave our community and the world a better place. For me, that means giving back to my community by helping to build a strong economy and a diverse workforce that supports the city and the wonderful people lucky enough to call it home.”
Handyman: Weaver is pretty handy and really enjoys DIY projects around the house.
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CORRECTION: A previous version of this story misstated what year Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives was founded, how many companies and jobs it helped create, and that it bought another 50,000-square-foot building near its headquarters. The correct facts are MBI was founded in 1984, helped create 175 companies and 1,000+ jobs since 2000, and purchased the 50,000-square-foot building it had already been leasing and using.
