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UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA-CHAMPAIGN

Research Park

    Research Park

    News Partnerships & Acquisitions Research Park

    Jay Walsh, Interim Vice President of Economic Development and Innovation, Joins Research Park Board of Managers

    CHAMPAIGN – Jay Walsh,  interim Vice President of Economic Development and Innovation of the University of Illinois System, has joined the University of Illinois Research Park Board of Managers as of its June 8 meeting.  Walsh replaces Ed Seidel, previously the VPEDI, as the designee of President Tim Killeen to the Board of Managers.  Seidel will become president of the University of Wyoming in July. Walsh was previously the Senior Advisor to the President of Research and Science at Northwestern University. The Research Park is governed by the University of Illinois Research Park LLC Board of Managers, and its members are appointed by the University of Illinois Board of Trustees.   Read on about Jay Walsh’s appointment in the University of Illinois System News.

    Jay Walsh, Interim Vice President of Economic Development and Innovation, Joins Research Park Board of Managers Read Post »

    EnterpriseWorks Investments News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    EarthSense Creating Autonomous Disinfecting Robots to Fight COVID-19 Transmission

    EnterpriseWorks startup EarthSense has received accelerated funding from the National Science Foundation to support the development of autonomous sanitizing robots that can help reduce the transmission of COVID-19, the company announced on June 3. By using innovative robotics and machine learning, EarthSense plans to have robots autonomously build maps of hospital rooms and disinfect them with Ultra Violet (UV) light. EarthSense autonomous sanitizing robots can have applications in offices, schools, and other public areas to reduce community transmission and help relax social distancing measures sooner. The $256,000 Phase I Small Business Technology Transfer Award will engage EarthSense as well as other University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign faculty experts in robotics.  Girish Chowdhary, co-founder and CTO of EarthSense, and Donald Biggar, Willet Faculty Fellow at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign said, “We felt driven to respond to this staggering crisis by accelerating our plan to create products beyond agriculture. We are making every effort to rapidly deploy our autonomous COVID sanitizing robots. The accelerated funding from the National Science Foundation is a critical validation of our approach to help manage COVID-19 and future diseases.” EarthSense was recently selected for the Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator and received a Phase II SBIR award. EarthSense was founded in 2016 by Chinmay Soman and Girish Chowdhary. The company develops ultra-compact autonomous robots. TerraSentia, its first robot, is revolutionizing agriculture by improving the quantity, accuracy, cost, and speed of in-field plant trait data collection. Visit EarthSense’s website to learn more.

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    Events News Research Park

    Research Park Board of Managers Meeting Rescheduled for June 8

    The UIRP LLC Board of Managers Meeting  has been rescheduled for Monday, June 8. The UIRP LLC BOM will meet remotely via Zoom on June 8 from 8:30 am to 11 am. The open session is open to the public. The Research Park is governed by the University of Illinois Research Park LLC Board of Managers, and it meets three times per year.  

    Research Park Board of Managers Meeting Rescheduled for June 8 Read Post »

    Community News Research Park

    New Monument Sign on Corner of First and Windsor

    New directional signage welcoming visitors to the south end of the Research Park has been erected at the corner of Windsor and First Streets. “The Research Park has grown significantly over its almost 20-year history,” said Executive Director Laura Frerichs. There are now 120+ companies in the Research Park, with 17 buildings – and three are currently under construction. “Our hope is that this sign will be helpful to visitors and residents alike. The Research Park is a bridge between campus and community, and this sign is another way to indicate that relationship,” Frerichs said. 

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    EnterpriseWorks News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    EarthSense Selected for Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator

    EarthSense, a growing agtech startup at EnterpriseWorks, has been selected by the Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator (IN2) to join the program as a member of IN2’s seventh cohort.  Funded by the Wells Fargo Foundation and co-administered by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), this program will allow the EarthSense team to work with crop geneticists in the Danforth Center. EarthSense’s phenotyping data will be validated and commercialized in order to help crop breeders use the next generation of crop breeding technologies. According to Chinmay Soman, CEO and co-founder of EarthSense, “Working with world leading scientists at the Danforth Center and the entrepreneurial ecosystem put together by Wells Fargo and NREL will help accelerate our impact on agriculture, starting with better seeds for farmers.” The Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St. Louis is where EarthSense will conduct its research and development activities. They have received up to $250,000 in technical assistance with the opportunity for follow-on funding and resources from the Danforth Center, Wells Fargo, NREL, and more IN2 partners. An IN2 Channel Partner was responsible for nominating EarthSense for this program. Other recent accomplishments by EarthSense include receiving Phase II SBIR funding from the National Science Foundation, being selected to participate in John Deere’s 2020 Startup Collaborator program, and being featured in the New York Times. EarthSense was founded in 2016 by Chinmay Soman and Girish Chowdhary. The company develops ultracompact autonomous robots that use machine vision and machine learning to collect and convert field data into useful information. TerraSentia, their first robot, is revolutionizing agriculture. To read on about EarthSense’s accomplishments and their selection for the Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator, visit their company website.

    EarthSense Selected for Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator Read Post »

    EnterpriseWorks Graduates Media Mentions News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    Co-founders of Quicket Solutions Recognized as Crain’s 20 In Their Twenties

    The two co-founders of Quicket Solutions, a graduate from the EnterpriseWorks incubator at Research Park, have been recognized as one of Crain’s Chicago Business’s 20 In Their Twenties.  Christiaan Burner graduated from the Gies College of Business and Akshay Singh graduated from The Grainger College of Engineering. The beginnings of their successful data cloud software company began during their tenure in EnterpriseWorks. It has been recognized for its noteworthy accomplishments, innovation, high performance, and the potential to achieve even more in the technological world. Now it is located in downtown Chicago with a team largely consisted of the University of Illinois alumni.  Quicket is cloud-based data software to increase efficiency for handing out tickets, organizing the government data, and document hearings and payments. Through this software, police departments are able to digitize data, reduce ineligibility, and perform duties more efficiently. Transitioning from a paper system to a digital world provides ease and efficiency in the government workloads.  For more information on Quicket Solutions, visit here.

    Co-founders of Quicket Solutions Recognized as Crain’s 20 In Their Twenties Read Post »

    Community News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    Local Inventors and Entrepreneurs Innovating for COVID-19

    In addition to companies seeking support from federal loan programs to help sustain their businesses, local entrepreneurs and inventors are creating new products and technologies to help fight COVID-19. Serionix’s novel material filters toxic particles in space. Soon, its creators will know if it protects against the coronavirus in masks. Serionix co-founders Will Zheng and James Langer and their doctoral advisor James Economy from the University of Illinois Department of Materials Science, spent years developing a self-sterilizing material that can filter harmful particles, which is now being applied to face masks. Serionix was a winner of the Cozad New Venture Challenge and graduated from the EnterpriseWorks incubator, the company is now manufacturing its products in Urbana. Read more here. Three Nick Holonyak Jr., Micro and Nanotechnology Lab (HMNTL) faculty members have received NSF Rapid Response Research (RAPID) program grants, all of which aim to shorten the amount of time it takes to process a COVID-19 test. A team led by Rashid Bashir, Dean of the Grainger College of Engineering, has proposed the development of a point-of-care device that uses nasal fluid samples to detect the presence of COVID-19 within 10 minutes. A team led by Prof. Brian Cunningham combines capturing intact COVID-19 viruses with custom-designed DNA nanostructures so they can be immediately counted with a newly-invented type of biosensor imaging.  A team with Prof. Yi Lu (founder of Glucosentient and Andalyze at the Research Park) is working with Lijun Rong from UIC to develop a biosensor that could detect and differentiate infectious SARS-CoV-2 from the SARS-CoV-2 that have been rendered noninfectious by patient’s antibodies or disinfectants. This would allow patients to receive proper treatment in a timely manner, and would allow people who aren’t infected or contagious to be released from quarantine. The SBIR/STTR Technical Assistance program through EnterpriseWorks and the IL University Incubator Network (IUIN) is providing free 1:1 assistance with companies pursuing federal funding opportunities to address COVID-19 opportunities. Examples of federal funding opportunities can be found here, and from G2G.

    Local Inventors and Entrepreneurs Innovating for COVID-19 Read Post »

    Community News Research Park

    Continued Construction in Research Park

    Research Park is expanding as construction continues for the I-Hotel and Conference Center, 1907 S. Fourth St., and the Greenhouse. I-Hotel and Conference Center The I-Hotel and Illinois Conference Center expansion construction continues, and the walls of the expansion space are going up. The opening of the renovated I-Hotel and Conference Center is set to take place in September of 2020. 1907 S. Fourth Street A new multi-tenant building in Research Park is in the works to enhance the technological efforts in the Research Park community. Walls and floors are set, and now only the finishing touches remain. The development of this building will continue throughout Summer 2020 with an expected completion date this fall. Pre-leasing is available now.  The Greenhouse Construction is progressing on the greenhouse, which will support the RIPE research project. Crews completed the groundwork and began framing for the building. Completion of this project is expected in September 2020.

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    EnterpriseWorks News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    EarthSense Receives Phase II SBIR Award from NSF

    EarthSense, a startup located at the EnterpriseWorks incubator, received Phase II SBIR funding from the National Science Foundation. This award will allow the startup to continue work toward large-scale deployment of TerraSentia for agricultural research and product development. “TerraSentia is helping create a stronger foundation for agriculture by enabling faster and lower cost creation of the next generation of crops that are more productive, sustainable, and resilient,” said EarthSense co-founder and CEO Chinmay Soman. Major agriculture companies, such as KWS, have already piloted TerraSentia since 2018. Currently, there is a lack of data that is slowing the development of sustainable agronomic practices. This two-year grant from NSF will allow EarthSense to accelerate final product development and achieve rapid global deployment of the TerraSentia platform. Other recent accomplishments by EarthSense include being selected to participate in John Deere’s 2020 Startup Collaborator program and being featured in the New York Times. EarthSense was founded in 2016 by Chinmay Soman and Girish Chowdhary. The company develops ultracompact autonomous robots that use machine vision and machine learning to collect and convert field data into useful information. TerraSentia, their first robot, is revolutionizing agriculture. Read on about EarthSense’s accomplishments and this Phase II funding by visiting their company website.

    EarthSense Receives Phase II SBIR Award from NSF Read Post »

    Community Investments News Research Park

    Watch the Research Park Grow: Construction on Three Building Projects Continues

    With the exception of essential workers, Research Park companies are primarily working from home. What hasn’t come to a halt: construction. Below is a video of the walls rising at 1907 S. Fourth Street, the newest building in the Research Park. It is scheduled to open for occupancy in August. In addition to work on 1907 S. Fourth Street, the Illinois Conference Center expansion building walls will go up the week of April 13. The Gates Greenhouse — a very specialized build — will arrive from the plant on April 20. We are grateful to Fox/Atkins Development and all of its subcontractors for their commitment to forward progress on these projects.

    Watch the Research Park Grow: Construction on Three Building Projects Continues Read Post »