The Biomedical Innovations Building

Report prepared for the
​Tahbazof Family Foundation

January 2022

Thank You

Thanks to your generosity, Stanford has built a state-of-the-art facility that has the capacity to bring together 1,000 faculty, students, and staff from across medical disciplines. Together, they are working towards the goal of precision health — developing the knowledge, tools, and treatments to not just treat disease, but also proactively predict and prevent illness into the future.

The Biomedical Innovations Building (BMI) is now the center of Stanford’s effort to elevate standards of discovery and patient care around the world. Collaborative and translational work will be key to achieving lasting impact and the BMI Building now provides the space to work across teams with ease.

Thank you for your visionary support and dedication to innovation across biosciences.

With gratitude,

Lloyd Minor, MD
​Carl and Elizabeth Naumann Dean of the School of Medicine

Biomedical Innovations Building at a Glance

  • 16 Departments in the building
  • 1,000 faculty and researchers working in the building
  • 92 out of 94 labs operational to date
  • 125,000 net square feet per floor of flexible wet and dry labs

The innovative design of Stanford’s Biomedical Innovations Building brings together scientists and clinicians in related fields to work together on translational research and clinical treatments. Departments in this space include:

Above: A lab in the Department of Pediatrics, second floor of the BMI Building

A New Home for Innovation

Construction on the BMI Building at 240 Pasteur Drive finished on time and received a Temporary Certificate of Occupancy at the end of 2019. Fit-up work began on the labs in January 2020 and labs started moving in late February 2020 to inhabit the building. This process was paused in mid-March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Progress resumed in late July 2020 with the labs gradually filling the building, as the fit-up work was completed (a complete schedule is below). While the pandemic slowed the process of occupying the building, both in the timeline of the space readiness as well as the comfort-level of the staff moving into a new space while research projects were under way, all labs are now fully occupied in the new building.

The pandemic also necessitated new health and safety measures to be implemented, such as mandatory masking, social distancing, and capacity restrictions. Luckily, the new facility provided the space to safely continue work on important research.

Building Construction Timeline


Tahbazof Family Otolaryngology Lab

Otolaryngology is already working with our 'neighbors' in the BMI building and our proximity has made collaboration much easier. The new labs have been a game changer, allowing our department the space to acquire new equipment to progress our research and to work closely with colleagues."
​Teresa Nicolson, PhD
​Edward C. and Amy H. Sewall Professor in Otolaryngology

The new Tahbazof Otolaryngology Lab features an open design, co-locating lab benches and computer work-stations in the same area, which promotes communication and collaboration.

Left: A collaborative common space
​Right: Dr. Nicolson in her lab


​Before the BMI Building, Otolaryngology labs were dispersed in different buildings on Stanford’s campus. Now they are under one roof, making collaboration more efficient and organic. Dr. Nicolson is working with fellow otolaryngologists Alan Cheng, MD, and Stefan Heller, PhD, both of whom work on hair-cell regeneration, to understand the role of hair cells in hearing loss to treat deafness and balance disorders. Impromptu conversations and more in-depth collaboration are now taking place as a result of their physical proximity.

Each level of the building has two defined common spaces, designed to foster collaboration and camaraderie with comfortable seating, convenient beverage stations, or kitchens. The commons on the west side abuts to terraces providing open air gathering space, which has been especially welcome during the pandemic.


Otolaryngology/Head & Neck Surgery

Alan Cheng, MD, PhD Elizabeth Erickson DiRenzo, PhD
​Nicolas Grillet, PhD Stefan Heller, PhD
​Daibhid O’Maoileidigh, PhD Teresa Nicolson, PhD
​Anthony Ricci, PhD
​Peter Santa Maria, MD, PhD


I would like to thank you for being generous benefactors to our department. You have played a key role in helping the Stanford Initiative to Cure Hearing Loss attain an astonishing level of research excellence that stands out among our peers. I am deeply grateful for your belief in this team and in our mission."
​Konstantina Stankovic, MD, PhD
​Chair, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery


Tahbazof Family Garden

Sited alongside the BMI building and facing the New Stanford Hospital, the Tahbazof Family Garden inspires scientists, physicians, and visitors with a glimpse of nature and color.


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Thank You

We are so grateful for the support of the Tahbazof Family Foundation and its commitment to Stanford’s Biomedical Innovations vision. The new building provides a wonderful facility for some of Stanford’s most dynamic labs to work together. We look forward to keeping you updated on the innovation that develops in this space.


​For more information, please contact:

Cliff Harris | Senior Associate Director, Major Gifts
​650.721.5659 | cliff.harris@stanford.edu

Medical Center Development
​​485 Broadway, 4th Floor
​​Redwood City, CA 94063