Chris Coburn
Chief Innovation Officer | Mass General Brigham
Chris Coburn is Chief Innovation Officer, Mass General Brigham, an integrated health care system that consists of Harvard University affiliates Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Eye and Ear, and McLean Hospital. Mass General Brigham is the nation’s largest academic research enterprise with over $16 billion in annual revenue, 1.5 million patient visits and more than $2 billion in research expenditures. It also has a managed care organization, out-patient facilities and community hospitals. Its 6,200 faculty are appointed at Harvard Medical School.
Mr. Coburn leads a team of more than 140 tasked with the worldwide commercial application of the unique capabilities and discoveries of Mass General Brigham’s 85,000 employees. His unit’s business development responsibilities include investing, company creation, innovation management, industry collaborations, and licensing. Commercialization revenue exceeds $160 million annually and more than 300 companies have been spun-off from Mass General Brigham in the last decade. Large-scale industry collaborations have been established in areas such as AI and drug development. His group also manages a nearly $500 million venture fund.
Prior to joining Mass General Brigham, Mr. Coburn was founding director of Cleveland Clinic Innovations and served for 13 years as its executive leader. During his tenure, Cleveland Clinic spun off 57 companies that raised more than $700 million in equity financing. There were none before Coburn’s arrival. His team also managed an innovation alliance network in which Cleveland Clinic directly supported technology commercialization for healthcare systems throughout the United States.