Prem S. Paul Innovator of the Year

The Prem S. Paul Innovator of the Year award went to Shane Farritor, chief technical officer of Virtual Incision and Lederer Professor of mechanical and materials engineering. The award recognizes an individual who exemplifies innovation and entrepreneurship by advancing novel research into significant commercial use. Farritor is a co-founder of Virtual Incision, a university spin-off company developing miniaturized robots for general surgery abdominal procedures, such as colon resections. The company has more than 140 issued patents and patent applications, and has raised millions of dollars to advance its technology.