"R&D acceleration is key to building a sustainable future for Armenia. I am convinced that SciNova will play an important role in equipping young Armenian scientists with competencies essential for producing and commercializing innovative scientific outputs".

Smbat Gevorgyan has defended his PhD at the University of Milan (Italy) in medical nanotechnology and then continued his research in Basel (Switzerland) as a postdoctoral researcher. Smbat returned to Armenia to join FAST as a Senior Researcher and started an ambitious project in life sciences commercialization. In the scope of the project, Smbat had training at Flagship Pioneering (USA) where he learned their unique methodology of scientific exploration process and startup formation as well as he established an extensive network with prominent members of the American biotech community. In Armenia, Smbat has shared his experience with junior scientists in idea exploration processes, teamwork, brainstorming and in bioentrepreneurship in general.