Daniel Hommes, M.D., Ph.D., an expert in gut immunology and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), is shifting his focus from treating patients to bridging academic discovery with biomedical innovation as UT Southwestern’s new Vice President and Chief Innovation Officer.

Known for building a highly successful center for IBD at UCLA Health prior to his arrival at UT Southwestern in May, Dr. Hommes is now leading the development of the institution’s new Innovation Hub. The initiative aims to connect UT Southwestern’s rich culture of discovery with market opportunities in the biomedical industry. More broadly, he is spearheading an effort to embed innovation across all aspects of the institution, from patient care to education and research.

Prior to joining UTSW, Dr. Hommes spent several years as an entrepreneur and health care executive, serving as Chief Medical Officer at InterVenn Biosciences, a company developing artificial intelligence (AI)-powered, protein-based diagnostics, and as founder and CEO of DEARhealth, a developer of AI-driven clinical decision support tools for complex diseases. He previously held academic leadership roles as Chair and Professor of Gastroenterology and Hepatology and Professor of Applied Artificial Intelligence, all at the Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands.

We spoke with the Vice President about his background and goals for the new Innovation Hub at UT Southwestern.

When did you first realize the power of innovation and discovery in academic medicine?

While I appreciated the rigor of academic medicine, I always felt a strong pull to turn ideas into real-world, scalable solutions. Early in my career, I helped build the Dutch national biobank for human biomaterials and worked closely with biotech, health technology, and pharmaceutical partners. These experiences gave me a front-row seat to the systemic impact of academic innovation.

That passion ultimately brought me to UCLA, where I established a center of excellence for IBD and joined a core team advancing value-based health care, an effort deeply rooted in data science and patient outcomes. That environment proved to be catalytic and led to the spin-out of a venture. That was the moment I fully recognized the transformative power of academic institutions to not just generate discovery, but to translate it into meaningful impact.

What elements of your background inform your leadership of the Innovation Hub?

The venture we spun out at UCLA deepened my interest in building solutions at the intersection of science, data, and care delivery. That momentum carried into my next role as Chief Medical Officer at InterVenn, a San Francisco-based life sciences company focused on decoding glycoproteins through an advanced AI platform.

At InterVenn, I worked with a top-notch team to shape product development, clinical strategy, and commercialization. Immersing myself in the San Francisco Bay Area’s innovation ecosystem, advising boards, navigating regulatory paths, and translating science into solutions broadened my perspective. It taught me what it truly takes to move transformative research beyond the lab and into the lives of patients. That experience continues to guide my leadership at the Innovation Hub.

Why is engaging the business community through efforts like the Innovation Hub important?

Academic medicine holds extraordinary, often underutilized, commercial potential. Our researchers are working on some of the most pressing challenges in disease prevention, treatment, and cure. They often hold the seeds of world-changing innovations. But moving those ideas from lab to market requires strategic collaboration with industry.

UT Southwestern stands apart in this regard. We have a legacy of scientific excellence, a culture of intellectual curiosity, and a community that deeply believes in medical progress that includes our philanthropic partners. The Innovation Hub exists to bridge science and society, not just as a local opportunity, but as a global imperative.

For me, this truly is a dream role. It may have taken decades to arrive here, but each chapter – academic, entrepreneurial, and clinical – has prepared me to help build the infrastructure for innovation that UT Southwestern deserves. I am honored and energized to lead that effort.