Register Here: https://na.eventscloud.com/ereg/index.php?eventid=893512&
Registration is FREE and all events will be held in-person in Sacramento, CA
Link to high level agenda (subject to change)
Date: November 5–6, 2026
Location: Aggie Square, Sacramento, CA
- Advance light-based technologies for real-time intraprocedural decision-making
- Open to registrants worldwide
- 2026 School of Medicine Office of Research (SOMOR) Impact Symposia
Stay up to date with this event by contacting Jenny Harris.
Keynotes, Industry Participants, & Funding Agencies
Confirmed Keynote & Invited Speakers:
| Name, Affiliation, & Title | Type |
| Lihong Wang, PhD Bren Professor of Medical Engineering and Electrical Engineering, Andrew and Peggy Cherng Medical Engineering Leadership Chair, Executive Officer for Medical Engineering Caltech | Keynote |
| Arjun Yodh, PhD James M. Skinner Professor of Science, Chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy University of Pennsylvania | Keynote |
| Ferdinando Rodriguez y Baena Co-Director of Hamlyn Centre, Professor of Medical Robotics Imperial College London | Keynote |
| Collin Stultz, MD, PhD Nina T. and Robert H. Rubin Professor, Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Professor, Institute of Medical Engineering and Science, Co-Director Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine Massachusetts General Hospital Massachusetts Institute of Technology Harvard-MIT Health Sciences & Technology | Keynote |
| Shy Shoham, PhD Co-Director, Tech4Health Institute, Professor, Department of Ophthalmology, Professor, Department of Neuroscience New York University | Keynote |
| Robert Webster, PhD Senior Associate Provost for Commercialization and Technology Transfer, Richard A. Schroeder Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Professor of Electrical Engineering, Professor of Otolaryngology, Professor of Neurological Surgery, Professor of Urologic Surgery, Professor of Medicine Vanderbilt University | Keynote |
| Summer Gibbs, Ph.D. Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Douglas Strain Professorship, OHSU Knight Cancer Institute, School of Medicine Oregon Health & Sciences University | Keynote |
| Andreas Hielscher, Ph.D. Biomedical Engineering Department Chair, Professor New York University | Keynote |
| Fred Baik, MD Assistant Professor-Univ Med Line, Otolaryngology (Head and Neck Surgery) Stanford University | Keynote |
Confirmed Industry Participants:
| Name, Affiliation, & Title | Type |
| Ewa Zarnowska, PhD Senior Strategic Customer and Market Development Scientist Coherent | Industry Participant |
| Bogdan Valcu Clinical Director BrainLab | Industry Participant |
| Mike Barthold R&D Director DePuy Synthes | Industry Participant |
| Brandon Strong Chief Product Officer & Chief Research Officer Xironetic | Industry Participant |
Confirmed Funding Agency Participants:
| Name, Affiliation, & Title | Type |
| Erik Wolf, PhD Vice President The Confay Group | Funding Agency Participant |
| Songtao Liu, PhD Branch Chief, Image-Guided Intervention Branch NIH-NCI Image-Guided Intervention Branch | Funding Agency Participant |
Objectives
Objectives – The proposed Symposium on Intraprocedural Biophotonics will serve as a flagship forum dedicated to advancing light-based technologies for clinical decision-making during medical procedures. It is envisioned as a global platform for networking, collaboration, and the exchange of pioneering research and innovation at the intersection of clinical biophotonics, artificial intelligence (AI), extended reality (XR), and procedural medicine.
The initial clinical focus will center on neurological surgery, general surgery, head and neck surgery, and intensive care—clinical domains in which intraprocedural decision-making is particularly complex and where biologically specific, real-time information is critically needed. In these settings, biophotonic technologies—including fluorescence imaging, diffuse optical spectroscopy, photoacoustics, optical coherence tomography, and Raman spectroscopy—combined with AI- and XR-enabled approaches have the potential to substantially enhance procedural precision, improve patient safety, and optimize clinical outcomes. These focus areas reflect established strengths within the UC Davis School of Medicine and provide a strong foundation for future expansion into additional procedural specialties such as interventional cardiology, maternal health, and ophthalmology.
The symposium will convene a diverse, international community of clinician-scientists, engineers, data scientists, and industry partners to address critical translational challenges in intraprocedural biophotonics, including workflow integration, real-time data interpretation, regulatory and reimbursement pathways, and clinical adoption. Particular emphasis will be placed on AI-driven approaches that enable rapid analysis of complex optical data streams and deliver actionable decision support in time-sensitive clinical environments, as well as XR-based approaches—including virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR)—that enable intuitive visualization, spatial integration, and seamless delivery of optical information at the point of care.
The symposium will intentionally foster interactions between UC Davis investigators and external leaders to catalyze new interdisciplinary collaborations, strengthen academic–industry partnerships, and position UC Davis as a leader and convener in this rapidly evolving field.
By bringing together nationally and internationally recognized experts alongside emerging innovators, the symposium will elevate the national and international profile of the UC Davis School of Medicine and generate enduring outcomes—such as new collaborative research initiatives and a published meeting summary (expert opinion) or translational roadmap—that extend its impact well beyond the event itself. Ultimately, the symposium aims to accelerate the translation of intraprocedural biophotonics from the laboratory to clinical practice, reinforcing UC Davis’s leadership in advancing the future of precision, technology-enabled medicine.