A University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) professor emeritus, who is known as a world-renowned leader in pneumococcal vaccine research and co-founded a successful startup business, received the Bill L. Harbert Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship’s highest honor during the institute’s annual Innovation Awards Oct. 30, 2026.
Moon Nahm, M.D., Professor Emeritus in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy & Critical Care Medicine in the Heersink School of Medicine’s Department of Medicine, was given the 2026 Award for Excellence in Entrepreneurship. Nahm is the co-founder of SunFire Biotechnologies, a Birmingham-based company that supports pneumococcal vaccine developers worldwide.
The 2026 Innovation Awards winners.
Nahm was one of a distinguished group of innovators who were honored with Innovation Awards, including:
- TPM Research, Startup of the Year – TPM Research, founded by Tracy and Scott Comas, is a medical device and healthcare startup that focuses on the Care Continuum Chair, a mobility solution designed to improve patient comfort, reduce transfer times and enhance safety.
- Benzamin Choi, Community Partner of the Year – Choi is the chief executive officer of the Alabama Capital Network, a nonprofit that connects potential investors with Alabama startup founders and entrepreneurs.
- Andrei Stanishevsky, Ph.D., Most Prolific Inventor – Stanishevsky, an Associate Professor in the Department of Physics, has been advancing innovation at UAB for 25 years. He has been named on four U.S. Patents, including three issued in 2024 alone, and has been involved with multiple UAB startups.
- William Rainer, Most Outstanding Entrepreneurship Student.
“Our Innovation Award winners are people within and outside of UAB who are critical in making UAB a destination for work and study,” said Karthik Gopalakrishnan, Ph.D., Senior Director at the Harbert Institute. “Their work is advancing discoveries, solving real-world problems, and creating impact well beyond our campus. We’re proud to recognize all they have accomplished and excited to see what comes next.”
The Harbert Institute also inducted eight new members into the UAB Chapter of the National Academy of Inventors. Those new members include:
- Corinne Augelli-Szafran, Ph.D. – Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Heersink School of Medicine.
- Massimo Fazio, Ph.D. – Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Engineering & Heersink School of Medicine.
- Abdollah Mirbozorgi, Ph.D. – Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, School of Engineering.
- Omar Moukha-Chafiq, Ph.D. – Manager Research Scientist in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Heersink School of Medicine.
- Rakesh Patel, Ph.D. – Director and Professor of the Molecular and Cellular Division, Department of Pathology, Heersink School of Medicine.
- Thomas Ryan, Ph.D. – Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Heersink School of Medicine.
- Pengfei Wang, Ph.D. – Professor in the Department of Chemistry, College of Arts and Sciences.
- Richard Whitley, M.D. – Distinguished Professor and Co-Director in the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, Heersink School of Medicine.
-- Oct. 30, 2026