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UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA-CHAMPAIGN

Research Park

    Nora Lozar

    Media Gallery

    AgTech Summit 2019

    The Agriculture Innovation Summit 2019 held on March 6, 2019, showcased the AgTech located within the University of Illinois Research Park. Startups such as AirScout, EarthSense, TellTail, and Agrible were highlighted alongside company innovation centers like Bayer Crop Science Innovation Center and John Deere Technology Innovation Center. Mark your calendar for this year’s summit to hear about the continuous AgTech developments at the Research Park. To view clips from the AgTech Summit click here.

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    Community Media Mentions News Recognition & Awards

    Champaign-Urbana Ranked Top Startup City by Silicon Prairie News

    CHAMPAIGN, IL, February 13, 2019 – In a new study measuring the startup ecosystems of an 11-state region it calls “the Silicon Prairie”, Champaign-Urbana ranked Number 2 out of 42 communities analyzed for startup and entrepreneurial activity. Champaign-Urbana ranks above much larger cities including Minneapolis, St. Louis and Kansas City. “We’re thrilled to receive this community ranking which recognizes and celebrates the incredible entrepreneurship culture and resources we have in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois’ fastest-growing city,” said Carly McCrory, Executive Director of the Champaign County EDC. “Breaking this down, the “grade” we are most proud of coming out of this report is the “A” in the community spirit category,” said Research Park director Laura Frerichs. “This reflects our strongest asset as a knowledge city – an engaged community that thrives on true collaboration and strong partnerships.” College towns are a “magnet” for startup and entrepreneurship activity. In addition to Champaign, Madison, Ames, Iowa; Columbia, Missouri; and Iowa City all rank in the top 12. “Champaign, Illinois, home of the University of Illinois, dramatically overperforms expectations based on population – finishing in the Top Five. For example, in 2017 the community had 21 venture fundings for nearly $75 million dollars. There were also 37 SBIR/STTR grants in the region. These elements suggest that early stage companies and research are generating hundreds of jobs in Champaign (between 390- 620).” The study also indicates that Illinois as a state, although expected to be strong due to its size, overperforms its “expected value” when it comes to venture capital. Chicago was the overall No. 1 community measured; Springfield also made it into the top 20. “Venture Capital funding activity in the region increased by 28% from 2016 to 2018 despite the decreasing number of companies receiving funding. Chicago was a significant spur for the region – but other communities such as Lincoln, Nebraska and Champaign, Illinois provided valuable community funding growth,” the report reads. The study was performed by Chapman and Company out of Omaha. The 11 states measured include Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The methodology for the report measured eight specific components: Small business activity Cool jobs Sustaining companies Structure Innovation Venture investment Community spirit Connectivity “Chapman and Company attempted to measure those components using relatively near-term measurements,” says the report. “The challenge in measuring startup activity and entrepreneurship is that there is always a desire for more accuracy – but more accuracy usually occurs at the cost of time or comparables.” The full report is available here: http://siliconprairienews.com/2019/02/spn-special-report-the-2018-state-of-the-silicon-prairie/    

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    EnterpriseWorks News Partnerships & Acquisitions Research Park

    A Vision for “Research Park Commons” and EnterpriseWorks Incubator Expansion

    The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s recently released campus strategic plan includes several references to increasing investments in the University of Illinois Research Park and the EnterpriseWorks incubator with the express goal to grow the entrepreneurial ecosystem and support economic development in the region. The Research Park Master Plan, adopted in September 2018 by the University of Illinois Board of Trustees, aims to double its size and continue attracting more companies, employees, and private development. At Monday’s University of Illinois Research Park LLC Board of Managers meeting, members discussed a vision toward those goals, called the EnterpriseWorks Expansion and Research Park Commons. This vision is a concept for a new building that would address two known factors impacting the future growth of the Research Park: 1) a lack of adequate lab facilities for growth-stage startup companies, in the community and throughout the state of Illinois; and 2) the need for additional Research Park community spaces providing an environment for creative collisions between the companies, employees, and faculty. No formal action was taken by the UIRP LLC Board of Managers. The study was commissioned by the University of Illinois Research Park LLC and completed by Clark Enersen Partners, a firm out of Kansas City that specializes in scientific buildings on college campuses.

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    Media Mentions News Research Park

    Campus Prioritizes Entrepreneurship, Innovation in “The Next 150”

    Entrepreneurship and innovation are central to the new five-year strategic plan unveiled by University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign on Friday in a town hall at the Illini Union. Called “The Next 150,” the strategic plan renews the campus commitment to four goals, including Fostering scholarship, discovery and innovation Providing transformative learning experiences Making a significant and visible societal impact Stewarding current resources and generating additional resources for strategic initiatives The Next 150 twice references the university’s commitment to invest more resources in the Research Park, specifically as they relate to entrepreneurship and innovation. The first mention comes under the first goal, “fostering scholarship, discovery and innovation.” A pillar of that goal is “Develop a strong infrastructure, policies, and practices to support scholarship, innovation, public engagement, and entrepreneurship across disciplinary lines.” The plan states the university will “grow our entrepreneurial ecosystem, research translation, and new venture creation through investments in EnterpriseWorks, Research Park, and Carle Illinois College of Medicine.” The other specific mention is under the goal, “making a significant and visible societal impact,” where the report states that the campus will “accelerate the growth of the Illinois entrepreneurial ecosystem to establish Champaign-Urbana as the best university-based entrepreneurship and innovation hub in the Midwest.” The plan states the university will “invest in new facilities in the Research Park to grow our resources and services in support of new business creation, economic development, and prosperity in the region, across the state, and beyond.” “The Next 150 really lays out our collective vision and our bold goals for the future,” Chancellor Robert Jones said. “It’s the framework for how we will continue to serve the 21st-century needs of our community, our state, our nation and our world. We’ve been transforming the way the world lives, thinks and learns since 1867. This plan positions us to do that for the next 150 years.” To read the entire strategic plan, go here. To read the Illinois News Bureau’s article on the plan, go here.

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    EnterpriseWorks Media Mentions News

    EarthSense One of 8 Ag Tech Start-ups Worth Watching in 2019

    EarthSense, a company that develops ultra-compact autonomous robots for crop breeders, agronomists, and growers, has been featured in Successful Farming’s 8 Ag Tech start-ups worth watching in 2019. The company was founded by University of Illinois entrepreneurs, Chinmay Soman and Girish Chowdhary. Their headlining agricultural robot, TerraSentia, provides field phenotyping from the ground level up. The creation of TerraSentia was inspired by the recognition of the fact that most of the important events on a field start under the canopy. The start-up sold out of its 2018 Early Adopter Program, where they sold 25 robots. In the feature, Soman talks about the three key problems that EarthSense aims to tackle, which include promoting the creation of the more sustainable next generation crop varieties and resolving issues posed by herbicide-resistant weeds with the use of robots performing mechanical weeding. Read more on the feature here.  

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    EnterpriseWorks Graduates News Recognition & Awards

    EnterpriseWorks Graduate Runtime Verification Thrives in Urbana

    It’s not rare for a University of Illinois deep-tech startup to fly under the radar. One such startup — founded by a University of Illinois computer science faculty member and a graduate of the EnterpriseWorks incubator –received a bit of notoriety from online tech magazine Chicago Inno. Runtime Verification is now located in downtown Urbana, and has grown to have 30+ employees. Founded by Grigiore Rosu, uses runtime verification-based techniques to improve the safety, reliability, and correctness of software systems. “Runtime Verification, based in Urbana, has developed tools to improve the safety and reliability of software systems. Its technology can automatically detect bugs that are lurking in a company’s software, and identify problems before a program crashes. Runtime’s customers include a handful of high-profile clients—such as Boeing, NASA, Toyota and the National Science Foundation—who use the startup to make sure their code is error free.” For the entire article, please visit Chicago Inno.

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    Media Mentions News Research Park

    Agrinews Reviews AgTech at the Research Park

    Agrinews wrote all about the University of Illinois Research Park in one of their latest articles. The agriculturally-focused site covered all of the aspects of the Research Park, from the growing number of industries it houses to the increasing workforce of full-time and student employees. They reviewed the park’s history, from its time as farmland to what it is now–a tech hub housing startups and corporate centers that create innovative products every day. Research Park Associate Director Laura Bleill was quoted with some words about agricultural tech at the park, saying “Corporations are located at the research park because they have access to student talent of kids who have grown up on farms and are familiar with farm tech […] they are doing projects related to data analytics, mobile app developments or augmented reality.” The Association of University Research Parks caught wind of the story by Agrinews and also shared it on their platforms. If you want to read about the AURP and see who is included in their network, click here. If you want to see the original story by Agrinews, click here.

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