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UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA-CHAMPAIGN

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    Community News Research Park

    New MTD Route Expands Bus Frequency to Research Park

    The Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District’s newest year-round route, The Link, launched on Monday, Aug. 16, making transportation by bus more seamless between central campus and the Research Park. This weekday daytime route connects several areas of campus with 15-minute, a dramatic improvement in frequency, and creates a much more direct option for those traveling between most Grainger College of Engineering buildings and Research Park. It also provides direct access from Research Park to the brand new Siebel Center for Design, the new campus hub for design thinking. Other highlighted stops on the 24 Link include: The ARC Siebel Center for Design Main Library ECE Building Beckman Institute Siebel Center for Computer Science Illini Union the new Gather development at Lincoln & University Illinois Street Residence Hall Because Research Park will instead be more consistently served year-round by the new 24 Link route, MTD has changed the 1 Yellow Hopper schedule to run on UI Days only, and it will end at Lot E-14. See the route map and scheduled stops at the MTD website. Expanding transit access and walkability are critical to the Research Park’s strategic plan. Stay tuned for more information about The Link, which was approved and funded by the University of Illinois.

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    EnterpriseWorks Features News Research Park

    “Redefining Human” through Advanced Prosthetics: Innovations @ Research Park Podcast Episode with PSYONIC CEO

    Episode 6 of the Innovations @ Research Park podcast features an interview with  Aadeel Ahktar, CEO and founder of advanced prosthetics startup PSYONIC. Ahktar sheds light on his exhilarating entrepreneurial journey, from winning startup competitions to partnering with U.S. Army sergeants to being selected as a MIT Top 35 Under 35 Innovator. He also dives into ways in which he and his team overcame significant obstacles and where he thinks the prosthetics industry is headed next. The PSYONIC Ability Hand — the world’s fastest and first touch-sensitive bionic hand — will be available to users and clinicians nationwide on September 1, 2021. The Innovations @ Research Park podcast highlights the thriving entrepreneurial and corporate innovation culture in Champaign. It is hosted by University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumnus Tanmay Shah. To listen to the podcast, visit iTunes Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you prefer to download your podcasts. Is there something you want to know about Research Park? Do you have an idea for a guest for the show, or a story we should pursue? Do you want to provide other feedback? Contact Laura Bleill (lwbleill@illinois.edu).

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    EnterpriseWorks Events News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    FrostDefense’s Gabriel Burks Advocates for More Startup Resources During Congressional Testimony

    Dr. Gabriel Burks, vice president and head of research and development of EnterpriseWorks startup FrostDefense Envirotech, recently delivered testimony in front of the United States House of Representatives Small Business Committee to advocate for more federal investment in programs that support innovation and entrepreneurship. “Our major successes as a company have come as a direct result of timely funding and support from several sources, including the university, incubator, private and federal,” Burks said. EnterpriseWorks won funding in 2019 from the Small Business Administration’s Growth Accelerator Fund Competition to support the AWARE Proof of Concept program. The SBA innovation initiative provided $50,000 grants.  FrostDefense applied and received funding from the incubator to support research and development critical to the advancement of the company’s frost prevention and mitigation technology. The award allowed the company to pivot at a critical time in its development. “At the time of the award, our company had recently completed a field trial, where we did not obtain the results that we expected.  What we did discover what we thought would be several key factors moving forward,” Burks said.“AWARE funding allowed us to quickly test our new hypotheses over a three-month time period, and develop a new version of our product that we found to be a success shortly after. “That success would go on to serve as the backbone for our petition for new funding.” FrostDefense subsequently applied for, and received, an SBIR Phase I Award from the National Science Foundation. Late spring frost causes more economic loss to agriculture than any other climate-related hazards, costing growers more than $10 billion annually, Burks said. FrostDefense’s technology minimizes the impact of frost on delicate fruit. Its first target is grapes. Burks’ testimony starts around the 42-minute mark of the session, done remotely via videoconference, and lasts for about five minutes. View the video below or see it here. 

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    Research Park

    Resource: Ceo + Founders Roundtable

    Resource: Ceo + Founders Roundtable The University of Illinois Research Park hosts a CEO + Founders Roundtable open to CEOs/Founders of Champaign-Urbana scientific and tech companies. Currently, the chair is Chinmay Soman, CEO of EarthSense. Typically held 3-4 times per year, the C-U Tech CEO Roundtable provides a peer community and resource-sharing opportunities. Since 2005, the CEO Roundtable has provided a forum for local entrepreneurs and business leaders to engage in discussion and learn from each other. Participants range from early-stage startup founders to leaders of established companies. The event includes dinner, a guest speaker, and networking. The CEO Roundtable is an invitation-only event. If you would like to participate, please contact Laura Appenzeller at lfrerich@illinois.edu. Previous chairs of the CEO Roundtable are CU Aerospace’s David Carroll; Starfire’s Brian Jurczyk; and PhotoniCare’s Ryan Shelton.

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    Community Internships News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    2021 Intern Awards Recognize Top Talent Across Research Park

    The Research Park gathered to celebrate the most outstanding interns across its 120+ companies at the 15th annual Intern Awards, the longest-running event in the Research Park. Fittingly, the ceremony was held on Thursday, July 29, National Intern Day. The students honored as finalists and winners encompass a variety of disciplines, majors, and colleges from across the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, exemplifying the nature of interdisciplinary work that happens at Research Park companies. This summer intern program format has been like no other, with some students working on-site, some completely remote, and some working in a hybrid format. Regardless, these interns formed connections with peers and co-workers and made lasting impressions on their supervisors. These interns have impacted the Research Park and their employers through the countless projects they conceived, worked diligently on, and followed through to completion. Thank you to all the managers who took the time to nominate their students. Thank you to the panel of professionals who judged these awards. Award Categories: Entrepreneurial Leadership in a Startup Most Outstanding Undergraduate Intern Most Outstanding Graduate Intern Best Technical Innovation Award Best Non-Technical Innovation Award Most Competent and Collaborative Team Entrepreneurial Leadership in a Startup Olivia Rentz PSYONIC Mechatronics Intern Undergraduate in Biomedical Engineering “Olivia has demonstrated an extraordinary ability to manage multi-disciplinary tasks on our team. When she started in January 2021, she was tasked with several manufacturing & assembly projects which she quickly mastered. Several weeks into her internship, we were shocked to learn that she had no prior experience with any of the tools she was using to complete these tasks and had nonetheless learned to use them skillfully in a short period. Olivia has exhibited an absolute exemplary work ethic: always giving 100% on every task, eager to take on more responsibilities, and frequently staying late in the evenings to finish important projects or assist the rest of the team with crunch deadlines. She has driven for hours across the midwest to visit patients in person and help them install and troubleshoot their new prosthetic hand. Overall, she fully exemplifies the qualities of an incredible intern who goes above and beyond, and would be an extremely deserving recipient.” Finalists: Daniel Gealow, SimBioSys Computational Biologist Intern Undergraduate in Biomedical Engineering | Grainger College of Engineering Molly Izzi, Ascent Integrated Tech Graphic Design Intern Undergraduate in Graphic Design | College of Fine & Applied Arts   Most Outstanding Undergraduate Intern Daniel Polites, State Farm Actuarial & Modeling Intern Undergraduate in Actuarial Science | College of Liberal Arts and Sciences “Daniel has been taking on a project which will provide the ratemaking guidance from the farm and ranch line of business at State Farm, using a multivariate Generalized Linear Model, to help State Farm better match price to risk. Daniels sets as a great role model of continuously seeking ways of working more effectively and efficiently. The planning efforts of fun activities Daniel leads help shape the RDC philosophy of “the internship is not only about work but also having fun at work”, and to make the internship a very unique experience for our interns. Daniel is considered a strong technical lead on his projects” Finalists: Nicholas (Nico) Lavalle , Actuarial & Modeling Intern Undergraduate in Statistics | College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Xi (Adam) Zhao, Corteva Data Science Intern  Undergraduate in Computer Science | Grainger College of Engineering Neil Kaushikkar COUNTRY Financial Software Developer – Project Manager Undergraduate in Computer Science | Grainger College of Engineering Most Outstanding Graduate Intern Eddie Chapman, AbbVie Library Information Specialist Graduate in Computer Science | Grainger College of Engineering “For the almost four years he has been with us, he has truly been a collaborator on these projects, and he takes full ownership of them, responsibility for them, and pride in them, as he should. Eddie will fix the bugs, meet deadlines, explain clearly why some can’t be met, support a release, and even present his work to customers – all this is true. His development work supporting SimpleTools lets users design or reuse the strategies they want using the power of ontologies, and then a bot can perform repetitive tasks of waiting for results and sending them to the customer on the back end. Another tool, LISToolkit, for which Eddie is responsible for most of the development, allows search team members to perform text and hedge manipulation at the click of a button that in the past had required an open notepad document and knowledge of regular expressions – very error-prone work for a human that Eddie’s tools make so much simpler and consistent.” Finalists: Aadish Naik, Brunswick Perception Engineering Intern Graduate in Electrical and Computer Engineering Anisha Jauhauri, Corteva Software Development Intern Graduate in Information Management Pranay Thangeda, Corteva Summer Research Intern Graduate in Aerospace Engineering   Best Technical Innovation Award Arif Syraj , EarthSense Data Science Intern Undergraduate in Mechanical Engineering | Grainger College of Engineering “Arif has exemplified the top-notch go-getter attitude that a startup employee needs to have to be successful. He has shown great initiative, starting off as a volunteer, and quickly climbing the ranks to be paid intern, and now has a full-time offer from us. The algorithm developed and deployed by Arif has been extensively tested against manual measurements and it has shown a strong correlation. This is a very positive move since our customers typically went with our competition (drone companies) to do the measurement of the height trait, but now our data shows that we are more accurate and reliable than drone measurements.” Finalists: David Liu Yahoo Intern I, Technica Undergraduate in Computer Science | Grainger College of Engineering Aman Khinvasara, AARP Strategic Integration & Talent (ITS) Intern Undergraduate in Computer Engineering | Grainger College of Engineering Gautham Krishnan, Corteva Contracted Student Researcher Graduate in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics Best Non-Technical Innovation Anna Chi, Brunswick i-Jet Industrial Design Intern Undergraduate in Industrial Design | College of Fine & Applied Arts “Anna has worked on a variety of really cool projects revolving

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    EnterpriseWorks Investments News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    EnterpriseWorks Startup Reconstruct Secures $17.3 Million in Series B Funding

    Reconstruct, a startup that provides progress tracking and quality control solutions to construction project stakeholders, has announced $17.3 million in Series B funding. The company entered EnterpriseWorks in 2016 and maintains its core office in Champaign. The Reconstruct team developed a web-based platform that gathers analytics about productivity and risk for delays. The software can be used to influence decisions reguarding time and budget on construction sites. The founders of Reconstruct are both affiliated with the Univeristy of Illinois. CSO, Derek Hoiem is a Professor of Computer Science and CTO, Mani Golparvar is a professor of Civil Engineering and Computer Science. Reconstruct has experianced great success including a mention in Crunchbase’s 50 Hot Tech Compaines in 2019 and a feature on CNET for the Chicago Underground Mapping Project. The infusion of capital is led by the Nemetschek Group, a leader in construction and infrastructure services. Nemetshek Executive Board Member Jon Elliot gave the following statement to the BusinessWire “[Reconstruct is] tackling some of the industry’s biggest challenges and we are excited to fuel the company’s growth through this investment and by connecting them with our open partner ecosystems of Bluebeam and other Nemetschek brands”. Chamapign-based Serra Ventures is among the list of investors. “[The funding] will facilitate rapid acquisition of new customers in the enormous market segments of commercial development, tenant improvements, and industrial engineering,” said Reconstruct’s CEO, Zak MacRunnels. Reconstruct has experienced continual success with a growth rate of 300% over the past 2 years. The company provides software to a wide range of customers including Pfizer and McDonalds. Read more here.

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    Community EnterpriseWorks Graduates News Research Park

    Innovations @ Research Park Podcast Episode 5: Insights from a Startup Journey & Empowering Other Entrepreneurs

    The University of Illinois Research Park launched a new episode of the Innovations @ Research Park podcast featuring Gerald Wilson, President and CEO of the Research Park startup Autonomic Materials. Wilson joined the show to describe the evolution of the company and offer advice to other entrepreneurs. Autonomic Materials products utilize self-healing technology for improved corrosion resistance. The startup graduated from the EnterpriseWorks Incubator in 2012. Wilson described the resources at EnterpriseWorks as “absolutely critical for getting us to this point”. He noted the seed funding and lab space as exceptionally helpful resources. Wilson remains connected to Research Park through the Entrepreneur-in-Residenece program. He talks about his involvement in the program during the episode. Later in the episode, Wilson describes important lessons that he’s learned during his involvement in startup building. Listen to the full episode to learn more about entrepreneurship and Autonomic Materials. Episode 4 of the podcast can be accessed here. Is there something you want to know about Research Park? Do you have an idea for a guest for the show, or a story we should pursue? Do you want to provide other feedback? Contact Laura Bleill (lwbleill@illinois.edu). To listen to the podcast, visit iTunes Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you prefer to download your podcasts.

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    EnterpriseWorks Features Media Mentions News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    PSYONIC CEO Named to MIT Technology Review’s 35 Under 35

    Aadeel Akhtar, CEO of EnterpriseWorks startup PSYONIC, was named to the MIT Technology Review’s list of 35 Innovators Under 35 for 2021. The MIT Technology Review recognized Akhtar as a humanitarian for his innovative approach to designing prosthetics. PSYONIC’s premiere product, the Ability Hand, was released in 2019. The Ability Hand was the first commercially available prosthetic hand to include multitouch sensory feedback. The device utilizes electrical currents to stimulate nerves allowing users to “feel”  what the prosthetic touches. Akhtar launched PSYONIC in 2015 and the company moved into EnterpriseWorks in 2018. PSYONIC has experienced great success since the company launch. Their accomplishments include, winning the Illinois Innovation Prize in 2016, a mention in the Forbes list of 30 under 30, and first place at the 8VC Social Innovation Cup in 2019. Each year the MIT Technology Review publishes a list of 35 Innovators Under 35; more than 500 people are nominated to be included annually. The work of the nominated individuals is then evaluated by a prestigious panel of judges who select the final list. MIT Technology Review acknowledged Akhtar’s commitment to both functionality and affordability. PSYONIC products are inexpensive enough to be covered by Medicare which makes them available to 75 percent of individuals in the US who need them. The prosthetics are also built to withstand the stresses of everyday life without cracking. Akhtar received his PhD in Neuroscience and MS in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Illinois. Read more about Akhtar and PSYONIC in 35 Innovators Under 35 here: https://bit.ly/3xkF8bm

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    Internships News Research Park

    Caterpillar Innovation Center Intern Makes an Impact

    Abhi Kapoor, a Data Analytics Intern at the Champaign Caterpillar Innovation Center, shares how interns make an impact at Caterpillar. Kapoor talks about his experience as an intern, “What’s crazy is that what I do as an intern plays a significant role for CAT Digital and our customer base. — I know that everything I code eventually will be utilized by Caterpillar employees, manufacturers, and customers around the world. “ At Caterpillar, student interns can feel confident that their work will be put to good use. Both Research Park and Caterpillar recognize that innovative ideas come from the young and talented minds of the University of Illinois students. That is why intern programs like Caterpillar’s are at Research Park. In this program, students have the chance to participate in impactful Caterpillar projects while pursuing their degrees. These projects include virtual product development, digital application creation, and various optimization projects. While the internship centers heavily around technical skills, this position allows the development of soft skills as well. If this sounds like the type of environment you would like to work in, Caterpillar posts jobs for freshman to graduate students on the Research Park job board. Caterpillar has had a facility at Research Park since 1999 and is the most tenured corporate partner in Research Park. In addition, it is a longstanding strategic partner of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in research, student engagement, and philanthropy. It is also the first site to have an intern program in Research Park. Read the full article here.

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    EnterpriseWorks Graduates Investments News Research Park

    EnterpriseWorks Graduate Runtime Verification Raises $5.3 Million to Advance Blockchain Security

    EnterpriseWorks graduate Runtime Verification, a startup that uses runtime verification-based techniques to conduct security audits on virtual machines and smart contracts, has raised $5.3 million in funding to advance blockchain security. These funds raised will be used to accelerate the development of tooling intended to enhance the safety, reliability, and correctness of computing systems for blockchain and embedded systems, as well as to expand Runtime Verification’s global presence. “I am very pleased that our investors have embraced our unique language-parametric approach, built over more than 20 years within the K Framework. The generality of our approach allows our tools to be easily configured to work with different programming languages and different blockchains,” said the company’s founder Grigore Rosu. “The fact that five blockchains joined our investment round through their funds, based on research from their development teams who witnessed our technology, is a testament to the universality and strength of our K-powered technology.” Runtime Verification expects to grow its team significantly over the course of the next year, with plans to release new security tools and products. Read more here.

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