About Us

With a proven track record for spotting and commercializing scanning and imaging technology that can make a difference in the lives of physicians worldwide, serial entrepreneur Gerald McMorrow is launching VerAvanti. Previously, McMorrow founded and led Verathon Inc., to soaring heights as Chief Executive Officer and Chairman, responsible for guiding the company’s transformation from start-up to a major international medical device corporation, before steering its eventual sale to Roper Industries. A recognized industry powerhouse, McMorrow was named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of The Year (2006, Pacific Northwest, Health Services category) and leveraged his early engineering experience and career into the high reaches of corporate management. McMorrow worked his way through school with the aid of the G.I. Bill and has Bachelor's and Master's degrees cum laude in Electrical Engineering from the University of Washington, Seattle.

Dr. Luis Savastano is a surgeon-scientist, inventor, and serial founder dedicated to solving unmet clinical needs through translational research and the development of breakthrough medical technologies. A hybrid cerebrovascular neurosurgeon, he specializes in both microsurgical and endovascular treatment of ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke. ​ He currently serves at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) as Co-Chief of NeuroEndovascular Surgery, Medical Director of Cerebrovascular Neurosurgery, Program Director of the CAST-approved Cerebrovascular Fellowship, and Principal Investigator of the Translational Neurosurgery and Technology Lab (TNTLab). In these roles, Dr. Savastano leads a multidisciplinary team working at the intersection of clinical care, innovation, and device development. As Chief Medical Officer at VerAvanti, Dr. Savastano plays a key role in shaping the company’s clinical research and validation strategy. He leads efforts to advance the SFE angioscopy platform through investigator-led studies and strategic collaborations with early access partners. Through regular research meetings and case-based discussions, he works closely with academic institutions and practicing clinicians to refine the technology and accelerate its path to clinical adoption. Dr. Savastano has conducted pioneering research on VerAvanti’s SFE platform and was among the earliest to explore its use in the evaluation of carotid artery disease and stroke, demonstrating its potential to provide real-time, high-resolution intravascular visualization. His work underscores a strong commitment to translating innovation into meaningful clinical tools that improve outcomes and reshape standards of care.

Research Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Washington and the Director of the Human Photonics Laboratory. Eric invented the scanning fiber endoscope (SFE) and many of its current application.

Mr. Vegarra has more than 30 years of experience in global business development, where he has helped organizations scale to new levels of growth and innovation. He is a visionary and passionate leader with a proven track record of executing successful sales and marketing campaigns, developing strategic partnerships, and raising capital across diverse and competitive industries. He is a serial entrepreneur who has founded, grown, and exited several ventures, raising over $95M from global institutional investors and signing over $15M in joint-venture deals.

Jason Capodanno is the Managing Director of Avanti with a degree in BioEngineering from the University of California at San Diego. His background in class II and III medical devices started in 1998 with Gerald McMorrow at Diagnostic Ultrasound (later Verathon) as a Manufacturing Engineer on the very successful BVI3000 Product. He then spent 6 years as a Microfluidics Design Engineer currently holding 16 patents in that field. Next he spent a decade with Philips Medical as a Design Engineer, Procurement Engineer and Supplychain/Operations. The various disciplines of Jason’s experience and leadership fits Avanti’s needs well in building a team to take a low volume/high cost product and transforming it into a high volume/low cost one.