Portal Innovations, DEVCO mark opening of the New Jersey Innovation Hub

Portal Innovations and the New Brunswick Development Corporation (DEVCO) on Oct. 6 celebrated the opening of the New Jersey Innovation Hub, Powered by Portal (NJIH) at the Health and Life Science Exchange (HELIX) in New Brunswick.

The celebration brought together representatives from the State of New Jersey, New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA), Rutgers University, RWJBarnabas Health, Hackensack Meridian Health, Middlesex County, Johnson & Johnson, and the broader HELIX ecosystem, alongside NJIH’s resident companies and members of the region’s investment and entrepreneurial communities.

The event marked the opening of the 30,000-square-foot innovation hub and the collaborative efforts that brought the facility from concept to reality. NJIH is managed and operated by Portal Innovations, and the gathering highlighted the momentum behind New Jersey’s emergence as a destination for scientific innovation, entrepreneurship and company creation.

Portal Innovations, based in Chicago, is a venture development platform that provides early-stage capital, specialized lab space, and strategic resources to science-driven companies. It helps bridge the gap between scientific discovery and commercialization, helping entrepreneurs transform innovative research into successful businesses.

“The New Jersey Innovation Hub represents the hard work and commitment of our partners, our team, and the founders building the next generation of transformative companies,” said John Flavin, founder and CEO of Portal Innovations. “With 21 member companies calling NJIH home, we’re creating an environment where founders can collaborate and access the resources and relationships needed to turn promising science into successful companies. We look forward to the breakthroughs that will emerge from this community.”

Located within H-1 @ the HELIX, NJIH provides emerging biotechnology, life sciences, healthcare, and technology companies with access to state-of-the-art laboratory infrastructure, flexible workspaces, specialized equipment, and a connected community of investors, strategic partners, and experienced operators. HELIX is a 1.6-million-square-foot innovation district that provides industries, universities and entrepreneurs with the critical ecosystem to research, learn, work and collaborate.

Through Portal’s national venture development network, members also gain access to resources and relationships designed to help them start, grow and scale their companies. One example of these relationships is Portal’s connection with Johnson & Johnson, which announced the Johnson & Johnson Exchange at NJIH in May 2026. The exchange serves as a central gathering space to foster dialogue among founders, investors, academic leaders, and healthcare innovators.

“New Jersey has been Johnson & Johnson’s home for 140 years, connecting us to a center of healthcare innovation that accelerates our development of life-changing medicines and medical technologies,” said Joaquin Duato, chairman and chief executive officer of Johnson & Johnson.

“The New Jersey Innovation Hub builds on our home state’s heritage by creating new opportunities for scientists, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders to collaborate. We are proud to support efforts that strengthen the healthcare innovation ecosystem here in New Jersey.”

Read the full article on ROI-NJ here.