Hot Seat

Don’t Miss the Hot Seat FILMING

Join key industry leaders as they interview the trailblazers behind the latest technologies. Expect fiery discussions on cutting-edge advancements, company breakthroughs, and the evolving future of ophthalmology. Full interviews will be available online after the event. Sign-up here to stay up to date on Innovators Pop-Up news and events.

Don’t Miss the Hot Seat FILMING

Join key industry leaders as they interview the trailblazers behind the latest technologies. Expect fiery discussions on cutting-edge advancements, company breakthroughs, and the evolving future of ophthalmology. Full interviews will be available online after the event. Sign-up here to stay up to date on Innovators Pop-Up news and events.

Time
Interviewee
Interviewer
6:15 PM

Anthony Wallace – Vice President & General Manager

Andrew Stewart – President, Global Pharmaceuticals and International Consumer

Ryan Zimmerman – Managing Director and Medical Technology Analyst

6:30 PM

Mariam Maghribi, MBA – President & CEO
Ryan Zimmerman – Managing Director and Medical Technology Analyst

6:45 PM

Mark Saad – CEO and Board Member
Ana Carolina Victoria, MD

7:00 PM

Vartan Ghazarossian, PhD – Co-Founder & CEO

Kristen Harmon Ingenito, MBA – CEO

7:15 PM

Rob Chang – President & CEO
Ryan Zimmerman – Managing Director and Medical Technology Analyst

7:30 PM

Shravanthi Reddy, PhD – CEO & Co-Founder
Ryan Zimmerman – Managing Director and Medical Technology Analyst

7:45 PM

Keeley Puls-Boever, COA, CCRC – Executive Director
Kristen Harmon Ingenito, MBA – CEO
Download a copy of the film schedule here

Interviewers

Ryan Zimmerman

Managing Director and Medical Technology Analyst
Read Bio

Ana Carolina Victoria, MD

Oculofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon
Read Bio

Kristen Ingenito, MBA

CEO
Read Bio

Interviewees

Ben Toker

Co-Founder and CTO
Read Bio

Vartan Ghazarossian, PhD

Co-Founder and CEO
Read Bio

Mariam Maghribi, MBA

President and CEO
Read Bio

Anthony Wallace

Vice President and General Manager
Read Bio

Andrew Stewart

President, Global Pharmaceuticals and International Consumer
Read Bio

Rob Chang

President and CEO
Read Bio

Mark Saad

CEO and Board Member
Read Bio

Shravanthi Reddy, PhD

CEO and Co-Founder
Read Bio

Patricia Buehler

CEO and Founder
Read Bio

Keeley Puls-Boever, COA, CCRC

Executive Director
Read Bio

Travis Holman

Director of Clinical Operations
Read Bio

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Ana Carolina Victoria, MD

Interviewer

Dr. Victoria is a Board-certified Oculofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon, specializing in aesthetic, functional, and reconstructive procedures focused on the face, orbits, eyelids, and lacrimal system. She completed her ophthalmology residency at Montefiore Medical Center, followed by a fellowship in Craniofacial Plastic Surgery at Miami Children’s Hospital. She also trained for two years in Oculofacial Plastic Surgery at Sinai Hospital of Baltimore.

Dr. Victoria is passionate about serving underprivileged communities and has participated in medical missions to countries like India, Honduras, and Guatemala. A Colombian native, she moved to the U.S. in 1994, completed her Bachelor’s at the University of Florida, and is a proud mother of triplet boys. Dr. Victoria offers a range of personalized surgical and non-surgical rejuvenation treatments, providing patients with comprehensive care and options to meet their unique needs.

Ryan Zimmerman

Managing Director and Medical Technology Analyst

Ryan Zimmerman is a Managing Director and Medical Technology Analyst at BTIG. He provides coverage across the medical technology sector, focusing primarily on orthopedic and surgical companies. Prior to BTIG, Mr. Zimmerman was a Senior Associate at Canaccord Genuity, providing medical technology coverage with an emphasis on musculoskeletal companies. Previously, he was the Director of Surgery at Advocate Christ Medical Center, where he oversaw operations for a Level 1 Trauma hospital in the Chicago area. Mr. Zimmerman also held hospital management roles at Presence Health, and was a Fellow in Hospital Management at the University of Pennsylvania Health System. He is board certified in hospital management, and is a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives. Mr. Zimmerman earned a BS in anthropology and zoology from the University of Michigan, and a Masters of Healthcare Administration from the University of Illinois-Chicago School of Public Health.

BTIG

BIO

Leveraging BTIG’s full resources, our Healthcare Investment Banking Group works alongside established and emerging, private and public healthcare companies to help them grow and capitalize on valuable market opportunities. With seasoned healthcare-focused banking professionals in Boston, New York and San Francisco, we collaborate with clients to execute transformative transactions.

We deliver deep sector and transactional expertise across biotechnology, life science and diagnostic tools, medical technology and specialty pharmaceuticals. Regardless of the stage of their development, BTIG’s knowledgeable, senior team delivers operational and financial guidance to corporate clients across the healthcare spectrum. And, with our extensive industry relationships, we offer investor perspective and insights that help adjust and evolve corporate strategy.

Center For Excellence In Eye Care

BIO

Kristen Ingenito, MBA

CEO

Kristen, CEO of Market Scope, has nearly two decades of experience in the ophthalmic industry, with 16 of those years spent analyzing data and ophthalmic market segments for Market Scope. She earned her MBA from the George Washington University School of Business as a Forte Fellow. She is a frequent speaker at ophthalmic meetings around the world and proudly serves on the board of directors for Ophthalmic World Leaders (OWL).

Market Scope

BIO

Ben Toker

Co-Founder and CTO

Ben holds an MBA from the UCSC and has an “Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare” certificate from Stanford School of Medicine. Currently the Co-Founder and CTO of Amaros – an AI- powered software platform that predicts eye diseases’ progression for vision care based on industry-first Machine Learning algorithms that integrate medical imaging, genomics, and health data.

Previously Ben was the Founder & CEO of Checkup, a data-driven health management company that provides smartphone-based at-home eye and health screening for preventive care purposes. Checkup monitored and interpreted the results, then provided AI-assisted actionable guidance. Ben shared the lessons from this journey in a TEDx talk.

Another notable project under Ben’s leadership was the development and launch of the first iPad/ mobile-based Children’s Developmental & Social-Emotional Screening app in partnership with the US Mental Health Department in the state of California. The program’s goal was to screen developmental challenges and predict the future outcome with machine learning.

Ben is a 16 year veteran in the Apple ecosystem, having built solutions for their datacenters/ cloud architecture, data science departments, and mobile Point of Sales software for the Apple Retail Stores.

Additionally, Ben was approved to receive one of the first Apple SDKs to launch an app in the AppStore in 2008 that reached 110M+ users within two years.

He has extensive experience in cloud/server architecture, back-end development, software application/database availability, monitoring, support, and project and team management. He also ensures that the ethnically balanced data records are adequately received, de-identified, anonymized, and stored in bank-level encrypted HIPAA compliant servers and archiving systems.

Amaros

BIO

Amaros offers an AI-powered platform that accelerates ophthalmology clinical trials and opens up new market opportunities for therapeutic companies.

Its Ophthalmic Answer Engine™ identifies eligible patients more efficiently, reduces costs, and enhances the overall patient experience—bringing innovation to the forefront of eye care.

Vartan Ghazarossian, PhD

Co-Founder & CEO

Vartan Ghazarossian, PhD,  biomedical scientist with 4 decades of experience in the healthcare technology industry. His expertise spans the research, development, and commercialization of therapeutic and diagnostic technologies, medical devices, and AI-based tools across various medical specialties, including cardiology, nephrology, hematology, and, most recently, ophthalmology.

Dr. Ghazarossian is currently the founder and CEO of StepWise Medical, LLC, a Silicon Valley-based accelerator he established in 2017. StepWise is focused on driving forward technological breakthroughs in eyecare. Notably, the company has been instrumental in launching six startups, focusing on medical devices, AI-driven ophthalmology software platforms, and state-of-the-art multi-focal contact lenses. A notable achievement is Visant Medical, Inc., a venture that successfully developed an innovative canalicular filler, which received FDA clearance, and was recently acquired by Amring/Nordic US.

Dr. Ghazarossian has contributed to nearly fifty scientific publications and abstracts and holds a portfolio of over 30 patents.

Mariam Maghribi, MBA

President & CEO

Mariam has over fifteen years of experience in increasingly responsible roles within business strategy, finance, R&D, and operations in the medical device and diagnostic sectors. Currently, she is Chief Business Officer of Shifamed and CEO of Atia Vision, a portfolio company of Shifamed. Prior to Shifamed, she served as the Chief Operating Officer for deltaDOT QSTP-LLC, a joint venture between Imperial College of London and Qatar Foundation. Prior to that, she was Principal Engineer at Johnson & Johnson, where she co-founded JJ MeMs, an early stage medical microsystems incubator. Prior to Johnson & Johnson, Mariam was a Research Scientist at the Center for Micro and Nano Technology at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories where she was a technical lead on the Department of Energy’s Retinal Prosthesis Project. Mariam is an inventor on 21 issued US patents. She holds a B.S. degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology and a Ph.D. in Biomedical engineering from University of California, Davis. She also earned dual M.B.A degrees from Columbia Business School and the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business.

Atia Vision

BIO

Atia Vision, a Shifamed portfolio company, is developing a next-generation technology for cataract surgery with its OmniVu™ Lens System, a dual-optic presbyopia-correcting intraocular lens technology. This system is designed to:  

– Deliver refractive predictability – Provide continuous vision across a broad range of defocus

– Preserve natural image quality while minimizing visual disturbances – Stabilize intraocular structures and promote capsular bag health

– Preserve future options for surgeons and patients through its modular, adaptable platform  

The OmniVu™ Lens System combines a fixed power front optic made from hydrophobic acrylic with a fluid-filled, shape-changing base made from silicone. This design is based on learnings from prior generation technologies and aims to address gaps in current solutions, with the goal of providing improved visual outcomes while maintaining long-term stability and flexibility.

Anthony Wallace

Vice President & General Manager

Anthony is a seasoned healthcare executive who spent the last 28 years in various sales, marketing, operations, supply chain and leadership roles. Anthony has held commercial leadership roles at Merck & Company, Novartis, GlaxoSmithKline, Intercept Pharmaceuticals and Sandoz. Before moving into his current role as Vice President & General Manager of the North America Surgical Business Unit at Bausch + Lomb, he served as Vice President & Head of the U.S. Ophthalmics Franchise for Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation.

Anthony completed his Undergraduate Degree in Accounting from The Pennsylvania State University and briefly worked in public accounting and auditing before completing his MBA in Marketing from Indiana Wesleyan’s DeVoe School of Business and joining the Healthcare Industry.

Anthony is passionate about healthcare innovation, access to medicines, and honored to play a part in helping patients improve their quality of life.

Bausch + Lomb

BIO

Bausch + Lomb is dedicated to protecting and enhancing the gift of sight for millions of people around the world – from birth through every phase of life. Its comprehensive portfolio of approximately 400 products includes contact lenses, lens care products, eye care products, ophthalmic pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter products and ophthalmic surgical devices and instruments. Founded in 1853, Bausch + Lomb has a significant global research and development, manufacturing and commercial footprint with approximately 13,000 employees and a presence in nearly 100 countries. Bausch + Lomb is headquartered in Vaughan, Ontario, with corporate offices in Bridgewater, New Jersey. For more information, visit www.bausch.com and connect with us on X, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Andrew Stewart

President, Global Pharmaceuticals and International Consumer

Andrew Stewart has more than 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry and currently serves as President of Global Pharmaceuticals and International Consumer Products for Bausch + Lomb.

Mr. Stewart joined Bausch + Lomb from AbbVie, where he served as General Manager within the Eye Care franchise. At AbbVie and its predecessor, Allergan, he led the U.S. Retina business, global marketing for Eye Care and business development initiatives.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Stewart served at Bristol Meyers Squibb years in R&D, and at Merck & Co., Inc. in manufacturing.

Mr. Stewart earned an MBA from the New York University Stern School of Business and a master’s degree in Environmental Science from Rutgers University.

Rob Chang

President & CEO

For the past 30 years, Rob has focused on the development and delivery of novel medical devices.

Rob has specialized in areas such as:

  • Titratable glaucoma therapy at Myra Vision, a Shimafed-founded and incubated company, where Rob is currently President and CEO
  • Percutaneous mitral valve repair at MVRx, a development-stage company. As President, CEO, and co-founder, Rob led MVRx from formation through worldwide clinical trials, and he continues to serve on the board of directors
  • Aortic valve replacement at Sadra Medical, a Shifamed-founded company that developed the Lotus transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). As Executive VP and CTO, Rob was responsible for all aspects of development and operations, from first clinical trials through early commercialization, prior to the Boston Scientific acquisition
  • Mitral valve therapy at Ample Medical. Rob was founder, President, and CEO, and led the company from concept through early clinical trials
  • Obesity therapy at Satiety, where Rob was COO and marshalled the development of multi-platform solutions
  • Coronary stent platforms at IsoStent. As President and COO, Rob led the development of radioactive and non-radioactive stent platforms, including the stent system that was acquired by Johnson & Johnson and later became the first commercial drug delivery stent system


Rob has earned 2 degrees in Mechanical Engineering—a B.S. from Cal Poly and a S.M. from MIT. Rob is an inventor on over 35 US-issued and numerous international patents.

Myra Vision

BIO

Seeking to answer the need for personalized glaucoma care, Myra Vision is developing the Calibreye™ Titratable Glaucoma TherapyTM (TGT) Surgical System—the next-generation solution designed for patients with glaucoma who require low intraocular pressure (IOP).

The Calibreye TGT Surgical System aims to:

  • Personalize glaucoma care by enabling adjustable outflow control
  • Provide a safe solution to IOP reduction by using biocompatible materials that conform to the eye
  • Enhance the confidence of ophthalmologists during implantation, by leveraging the well-established method of ab externo delivery
  • Reverse hypotony due to excessive flow with an adjustable feature built into its innovative design


As an unprecedented development in glaucoma care, the Calibreye TGT System is designed to improve outcomes and minimize complications associated with conventional approaches.

The Calibreye TGT Surgical System is for investigational use only and is not for sale in the US or outside the US.

Mark Saad

CEO and Board Member

Mark has 30+ years of experience in health technology as an executive, venture investor, board member and investment banker. He has been a partner with Alethea Capital, the lead venture investor of NuLIDS. In 2020, in response to unprecedented challenges of COVID, Mark stepped in to lead the Company and has driven the successful development and introduction of NuLIDS PRO.

Previously, Mark served as the chief financial officer of two west coast life science companies where he led finance, capital raising and corporate development activities. He began his career in New York City in corporate finance with the health care investment banking divisions of Salomon Smith Barney and UBS, where he ultimately served as Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer. Mark has a BA in economics from Villanova University where he was also a rower on Men’s Crew. He lives in Las Vegas with his wife and three teenage children who all enjoy adventures in the mountains of Utah.

Shravanthi Reddy

CEO & Co-Founder​

Shravanthi Reddy, PhD is a visionary leader in the field of ophthalmic technologies with a strong track record of bringing innovative technologies to from concept to market. As the co-founder and CEO of Oculotix, she has spearheaded the development of AI-based software designed to optimize cataract surgery outcomes. Shravanthi has successfully led multiple medical device ventures, including operations for Visant Medical, which was acquired by Nordic Pharmaceuticals, and Sharklet Technologies, which was acquired by Peaceful Union private equity group.

In her 20+ years in the industry, she has led teams of scientists, engineers, and regulatory experts to bring cutting-edge medical technologies to market. Shravanthi holds a PhD in Chemical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin and a BSE from Princeton University.

NuLids

BIO

NuLiDS is an innovative eyelid care technology developed by John Olkowski, MD, a board-certified ophthalmologist and corneal specialist. Dr. Olkowski recognized the central role of eyelid care in ocular health and developed the safe, effective, and convenient NuLIDS to proactively manage common, under-diagnosed conditions like dry eye. The San Diego-based company has sold 25,000 “At Home” units and recently introduced the “PRO” in-practice version of NuLIDS globally.

NuLIDS is a small handheld electromechanical device which operates by low-speed oscillation utilizing single use disposable silicon tips. The comfortable 1-2 minute vibrating treatment is performed on a closed eye to (1) clean the eyelids and eyelashes, (2) massage the eyelids to enhance meibomian gland production and (3) remove demodex mites. With increased recognition of proactive ocular wellness, NuLIDS is uniquely positioned to enable convenient and affordable high quality lid hygiene in the office and at home.

Oculotix

BIO

Oculotix is applying AI-based software to optimize intraocular lens (IOL) model selection to improve patient vision outcomes and boost surgical efficiency in cataract and lens exchange procedures. The software provides surgeons with predictive analytics of vision outcomes and a recommended IOL model to achieve the best possible outcome for their patients.

Vision outcomes are predicted and compared to the patient’s expectations for day/night driving, spectacle-independence, and potential visual artifacts. This information provides the surgeon and patient with a quantitative pre-operative assessment, increasing the likelihood of patient satisfaction with surgical outcomes while also saving clinical time and resources. The software is particularly useful in boosting confidence in adoption of advanced technology IOLs, which can have benefits for patients well suited to the technologies available.

Patricia Buehler

CEO and Founder

I’ve been an eye surgeon for 25 years and have performed thousands of eye and eyelid surgeries, as well as trained and supervised surgeons in the US and overseas. One of my specialties is blepharoplasty, a surgery that removes unwanted and excess upper eyelid skin, resulting in improved peripheral vision and appearance. Patients routinely have a 25% improvement in their side vision and look younger and more revitalized. As a result of my experience and innovative insight, I have developed a novel medical device that markedly simplifies and improves this procedure. In 2021 we founded a company Osheru to develop and commercialize the Ziplyft device.  In addition to this work, I am a co-owner and managing partner of InFocus Eyecare, a six-provider 35-employee specialty medical practice with revenues of $5M. I am a founding partner and part owner of the Bend Surgery Center, a 450-employee facility.

Osheru

BIO

Osheru is a bold and creative medical device company specializing in innovative solutions for skin surgery. Founded by Drs. Patricia and Knute Buehler, Osheru aims to create and lead a new paradigm for eyelid surgery through its revolutionary Ziplyft device, designed to enhance surgical precision and patient recovery. The company’s breakthrough approach addresses key challenges in eyelid surgery, promising improved outcomes and reduced downtime for patients with enhanced efficiency and accuracy for surgeons. Osheru is focused on minimally invasive alternatives to traditional skin removal procedures and is poised to transform not only the field of ophthalmology but also dermatology, and plastic surgery. 

Keeley Puls-Boever, COA, CCRC

Executive Director

With over 15+ years experience in the ophthalmic field, prior to co-founding True North, Keeley served as the Director of Research at Vance Thompson Vision, overseeing strategic research initiatives and driving innovation and excellence in the field of eye care. Beyond being widely published in peer-reviewed journals and having conducted over a decade of clinical research trials as a Certified Clinical Research Coordinator, Keeley started her career in the eye care industry as an Optician, gaining invaluable knowledge of optics and hands-on experience with patients.

As the lead of this organization, Keeley provides invaluable expertise and leverages over a decade of experience overseeing more than 100 clinical trials. She is the compass that directs True North in pursuit of excellence in clinical research and vision care.

True North

BIO

True North Contract Research is a dynamic and rapidly growing Contract Research Organization (CRO) specializing in Ophthalmology research. We strive to deliver an experience that is second to none to our sponsor partners and site partners. Our longstanding commitment to advancing the field of ophthalmology through clinical research has provided us with the experience to execute trials efficiently with a focus on accuracy and compliance. We merge FDA and clinical site perspectives to identify effective solutions that are agreeable to both parties and then mitigate roadblocks to achieve trial endpoints. One of our greatest strengths is uniting with sponsoring companies as a seamless team that makes well-thought-through decisions on time.

Travis Holman

Director of Clinical Operations