INNOVATE@BU ANNUAL REPORT 2019–2020 ACADEMIC YEAR
We envision a world where all BU Terriers are equipped with innovation skills and an entrepreneurial mindset and are prepared to create meaningful impact in their careers and communities.
The BUild Lab IDG Capital Student Innovation Center was established in February 2018 with generous support from Hugo Shong (COM’87, GRS’90) and IDG Capital. 2
CONTENTS Overview 4 Team 5 2019–2020 Programs
6
By the Numbers
7
Key Programs 8-15 Broadening Our Reach
16-27
Our University Partners
28-29
Alumni Innovators 30
Front cover photo by Rachael Dier (COM’20) 3
OVERVIEW In only our second full year, I am thrilled to report that the number of students served by Innovate@BU continues to grow at a rapid pace. Over 230 teams of students from across the University worked diligently this year to form successful start-up companies, nonprofits, and project teams. Their ideas and solutions continue to astound us. They include a women’s workwear line made of sustainable materials and feature functional pockets, a podcast about issues in the American criminal legal system, an airflow seating system to prevent bedsores, and so many more. Before our programs turned virtual in March, more than 6,000 students had already visited the BUild Lab IDG Capital Student Innovation Center. Even after the suspension of on-campus learning, student engagement in our programs continued; remarkably, 360 participants from 16 different countries attended our New Venture Competition finale virtually in April. I have spent considerable time this year trying to understand the underlying causes of this rapid growth. There are many, of course: an energetic and caring staff, a supportive community of like-minded students, and unlimited free coffee, among others. Above all, though, our students understand that they need to prepare themselves to enter a world needing repair. They understand that our core mission —to equip them with innovation and entrepreneurship skills that enable them to make a positive impact on their careers and communities—is more relevant than ever. Our students also know that they may turn to us to help them create opportunities that can no longer be taken for granted. This might mean working on a summer accelerator team in lieu of an internship that was canceled, starting a tech company instead of facing a challenging job market, or finding a community to tackle one of the many societal issues not being effectively addressed today. We are humbled by the opportunity to inspire them to do great things, educate them on the fundamental principles of innovation and entrepreneurship, and connect them with a supportive network.
To help grow our innovative community, we have made some changes. We are pleased to welcome Limin (Li) Liang as managing director of the BUild Lab IDG Capital Student Innovation Center. Li has worked as a consultant, has held leadership positions in two education technology startup companies, and has extensive local and international nonprofit experience. Li replaces Ian Mashiter, who remains with Innovate@BU and has assumed a new role as director of curriculum for our rapidly growing university minor in Innovation and Entrepreneurship. We would not be here without Ian’s leadership, and we are grateful for his continuing contributions. As we prepare for a new and uncertain year, the entire Innovate@BU team remains committed to executing our fundamental promise to the University: We will serve all 17 schools and colleges of Boston University and its undergraduate and graduate students alike. We will continue to provide innovative programs and will find new ways to support underserved populations, including women entrepreneurs and first-generation college students. We will support student start-ups, social ventures, and projects to improve life on campus and in the community. We do not know what the 2020–2021 academic year will look like, but our team will be ready. Our programs will continue unabated, and our students will be able to learn and participate from anywhere. Some programs will undoubtedly be entirely virtual; others may be held in person with a live-streaming option. We will adjust on the fly as the situation merits and remain flexible, responsive, and innovative. Our students deserve nothing less, and they need us now more than ever. Whether it is through financial support or mentoring our students through office hours and workshops, thank you to our community of donors and supporters. Our team and students are deeply grateful, and we all look forward to another impactful year.
Gerry Fine Executive Director
4
STAFF & FACULTY
ADVISORY BOARD
Gerry Fine, Executive Director Li Liang, Managing Director, BUild Lab IDG Capital Student Innovation Center Ian Mashiter, Director of Curriculum Siobhan O’Mahony, Academic Director of Research & Curriculum and Questrom School of Business Feld Family Professor in Innovation & Entrepreneurship Lou Brum, Event Coordinator Rana K. Gupta, Director of Faculty Entrepreneurship Ahlea Isabella, Marketing & Communications Manager Lisa Lavina, Assistant Director of Operations Peter Marton, Director of Entrepreneurship Partnerships Micaelah Morrill, Director of External Relations Blake Sims St. Louis, Program Director, Social Innovation Rachel Spekman, Program Director, Business Ventures Greg Stoller, Affiliated Faculty, Questrom School of Business
Yousif Al Nowais Billy Bloom (CGS’82, Questrom’84) Dr. Beverly Brown Richard Cohen (CGS’67, Questrom’69) Ziad Dalloul (ENG’86) Ryan Roth Gallo (LAW’99) Carol Kaufman (CAS’71) Ranch Kimball Alicia C. Mullen (CAS’83, Parent CAS’19) Kenneth Menges, Jr. (Questrom’79) Allen Questrom (Questrom’64, Hon.’15) Hugo Shong (COM’87, GRS’90) Lou Volpe (Questrom’78) Collin Yip (Questrom’12)
ECOSYSTEM PARTNERS Innovate@BU’s industry and ecosystem partners provide students with important tools to help them succeed as they grow their ideas.
5
2019–2020 PROGRAMS Idea Development
Academic & Skill-Building
Career & Networking
Innovation Pathway Innovate@BU’s signature program, sponsored by Cynthia Cohen (MET), provides a self-paced process, resources, and progress funding to help students and recent alumni launch a new venture or project.
Innovation & Entrepreneurship Minor A University-wide undergraduate minor that helps students build an entrepreneurial mindset and teaches them how to launch ideas that have economic and social impact.
IDEA Conference The premier one-day event for college students in New England to explore innovation and entrepreneurship, sponsored by Lou Volpe (Questrom’78).
New Venture Competition A three-round pitch competition with two tracks, one for tech (forprofit) ideas and one for social impact ideas. The competition awards a total of $64,000 to the top 12 teams.
Starting a Start-Up Cocurricular A weekly course that shows students how to apply the lean canvas to an idea.
Summer Accelerator A 10-week program, sponsored by the Earle Chiles Foundation, that provides BU start-ups with a $10,000 stipend, mentorship, and workshops. Sustainability Seed Grants A program that provides $500 grants to students with ideas that support BU’s climate action goals. Idea Cup A showcase competition that awards a seed grant and faculty mentorship to students who develop novel ideas in classes. Mentorship Innovation Network A network of more than 270 external and alumni experts who serve as mentors, competition judges, and office-hour hosts. Design Challenges Themed challenges that range in format from hackathons to multiround pitches and are co-hosted with a University department or external community organization.
6
Launching a Project Cocurricular A weekly course that walks students through the process of launching ideas like policy recommendations, advocacy programs, community events, and creative content projects. Unlocking the Black Box of Business An innovation skill-building workshop series for postdocs, graduate, and doctoral students.
Hewitt Start-Up Pathfinder Internship Fund A stipend program, sponsored by Bill Hewitt (Questrom’85), to support undergraduates who want to explore careers in start-ups through summer internships. First-Year Innovation Fellowship A program for first-year students who are eager to work on a new idea while participating in innovationfocused professional-development activities. Student Leadership Council A small cohort of undergraduate and graduate students who support Innovate@BU’s programs and create opportunities to share its mission across the University. Catalyst A program that aims to help BU professors explore the market viability of their ideas by pairing them with a team of MBA student consultants.
BY THE NUMBERS
6,334
visitors to the BUild Lab IDG Capital Student Innovation Center
745
attendees at 27 virtual events held between March and July
230
registered student-led companies, nonprofits, and project teams
14
student and alumni ventures accepted to the Summer Accelerator 7
197
events and programs
$216,000
awarded to student and alumni ventures and projects
17
number of BU’s schools and colleges that participated in programs
270+
members of the Mentor Innovation Network served as mentors, judges, and office-hour hosts
27th
BU’s ranking among U.S. News & World Report’s Most Innovative Schools 7
KEY PROGRAMS
8
Fall Idea Cup Features 15 Class Projects from Mental Health Platforms to a Campus Food Pantry The Innovate@BU Idea Cup was established to highlight and recognize ideas of all forms that are developed from BU coursework. On December 5, 2019, student teams representing seven schools and colleges and 15 different courses presented their ideas through showcase tables and a short pitch. Faculty members of the three winning teams committed to continue working with the students and helped them use their cash prizes most effectively. The first-place idea, a plan to address food insecurity among college students, was developed in the course Student Activism and Its Effects, taught by Robert Weintraub and Samantha Myers. The team, pictured right with Blake Sims St. Louis, Melani Zuckerman (CAS’22), Sarah Bickford (CAS’20), and Caroline Stromberg (CAS’22), proposed an on-campus food pantry plan and supporting resources that could be accessible to all BU students. Ishmael Perez (CAS’20), Sarah Shahinpour (CAS’20), and Nick Guadagno (CFA’20) won second place for their mental health management platform, Forget-Me-Not, developed in the course Spark! Production Innovation, taught by Ziba Cranmer and James Grady. The platform includes daily mood logging, journaling, medication information, and selfcare exercises.
Public health master’s students Gregory Kantor (SPH’20), Haley Friedler (SPH’20), Leah Stansky (SPH’20), and Rafik Wahbi (SPH’20) won third place for their collaborative project in Communication Strategies for Public Health, taught by Jacey Greece. Their project proposed a redesigned website for the Community and Law Enforcement Assisted Recovery Program in Winthrop, Mass., that could educate community members who may benefit from the program. The spring semester Idea Cup was canceled due to the remote campus period that began in March 2020.
At the Addiction, Community, and Impact Panel event on October 8, 2019, Rafik Wahbi (SPH’20) spoke about his hip-hop writing class for a local House of Correction. The event was cohosted by the BU Arts Initiative.
9
New Venture Competition Finale Welcomed 350 Global Attendees
“This victory feels like a confirmation that all of the heart and soul—and countless hours—we have poured into Clean Seat have not been wasted,” said Clean Seat founder Kevin Tang (Questrom’22). “It feels absolutely amazing.”
On Friday, April 17, 2020, Innovate@BU awarded over $64,000 to six student and alumni start-ups in the annual New Venture Competition. More than 350 students, faculty, staff, friends, and family logged on virtually from 16 countries for what is usually Innovate@BU’s in-person end-of-year celebration.
Tang said that the prize money will allow their team to dedicate the summer to finishing and testing prototypes and continuing their patent application.
The competition began in October with Pitch & Pizza, where 97 student and alumni ventures presented 60-second pitches. Twenty-two teams moved on to Round 2 and presented 10-minute pitches to a judging panel. Twelve teams advanced to Round 3 and presented their final 10-minute pitches. Final round judges, all senior leaders in their fields, were looking for “committed and skilled teams, solid data-driven ideas, and a clear and well-articulated vision of how their ventures will make a positive impact on others,” said Gerry Fine, executive director of Innovate@BU. During the finale event, each of the 12 finalists presented a 60-second pitch before the following winners were announced in each track: Tech (for-profit) and Social Impact. First place ($18,000) was awarded to: • Tech: Clean Seat, a company that has designed a retrofittable toilet seat that affordably and effectively prevents common toilet messes
10
• Social Impact: Patient First, a digital medical-record platform that connects physicians, patients, and pharmacies, designed for countries in which no affordable system exists
Patient First cofounder Fayzan Shaukat (Questrom’22) said that the competition “has truly made this vision of fixing a broken healthcare system come to life, and I’m sure with the community that surrounds us right here at BU we will be able to save millions of lives.” The team plans to use the prize money for product and partnership development. Second place ($8,000) was awarded to: • Tech: BeagleNet, a network of sensing devices designed to get real-time data about urban environments • Social Impact: Phillinda, an accessibility tool for users to fill out forms in their native language and translate them back into English Third place ($6,000) was awarded to: • Tech: Parkaze, an online shared-economy marketplace where users can host and rent privately owned parking spots • Social Impact: The Mindful Applicant, a software-asa-service platform for high schools to teach socialemotional skills through college and career prep Rachel Spekman, Innovate@BU program director of business ventures, noted “whether it was during the very first round, or watching a team practice just yesterday, one thing is undeniable—everyone put their best efforts forward.”
MABVI and Innovate@BU Launch a $10k Community Transportation Challenge
In the first round, eight teams submitted design proposals. Four finalists were provided with a series of special workshops and mentors from Boston’s transportation, design, and visually impaired communities.
The Massachusetts Association for the Blind & Visually Impaired (MABVI) and Innovate@BU formed a partnership to develop a challenge open to BU students and alumni to solve community transit problems, which will benefit society at large and particularly seniors and the blind and low-vision community.
Finalists include Better Bus Stops, a bus stop–renovation plan in which tactile paving would provide a shoreline on the sidewalk to help visually impaired people locate bus stops; EyeSpace, a wearable device linked to a user’s mobile phone that would provide environmental information; Meero, a mobile app that uses radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags to provide visual and voice guidance at bus stops and stations; and Naviband, a wearable band that assists individuals in navigating public transportation by using GPS, voice navigation, and machine learning.
The design challenge, launched in October 2019, asked BU students and alumni to develop new human-centered tools to improve transportation accessibility for the aging and visually impaired communities for a $10,000 grand prize and a chance to pilot their idea.
The finalists will pitch their ideas at a rescheduled finale in fall 2020.
“We each have a role in creating a more inclusive space for everyone to live and work and thrive,” said Sassy OutwaterWright, executive director of MABVI. “We have the duty to ask tomorrow’s designers, engineers, and social scientists to start thinking about that today and to start building smarter solutions. Accessibility in design today creates a more inclusive future.”
On September 25, 2019, the BUild Lab hosted Resilience: Stories of Innovative Ideas for Forced Displacement, featuring creative work from student trips to Uganda and Lebanon through BU’s Program for Humanitarian Engineering & Refugee Studies. Pictured are Carrie Preston (left), the Director of Kilachand Honors College, Hailey Hart-Thompson (CAS & COM‘21, middle), and Muhammad Zaman (right), a professor in BU’s Department of Biomedical Engineering. Preston and Zaman are both founders of the Program for Humanitarian Engineering and Refugee Studies. Hart-Thompson curated the exhibit, which included her own photography from Uganda. Photo: Sophie Parker (CAS’20)
11
14 Summer Accelerator Teams Participate from Around the World On June 1, 2020, Innovate@BU kicked off its annual Summer Accelerator program with 14 student teams logging in remotely from around the world. The 10-week program, made possible by support from the Earle Chiles Foundation, provides weekly workshops, paired mentors, in-kind start-up resources, and a $10,000 stipend per team. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s Summer Accelerator program was held virtually with the help of Zoom, Slack, and additional staff support. Alice Nichols joined the team as the Accelerator’s first-ever strategic content director. Nichols is a National Science Foundation I-Corps instructor with extensive experience in creating and executing curriculum for student entrepreneurs. She developed weekly in-depth workshops, assignments, and teaching tools that will extend beyond the summer program. Adding Nichols was part of an ongoing effort to increase the rigor of the program, which started with the application process. Applicants were asked to submit a team video and were required to have at least two team members committed to working on the venture. Despite the challenges of running a virtual accelerator, Rachel Spekman, program director of business ventures at Innovate@BU, said that the situation allowed students to be “laser-focused on their ventures and making progress.” Accelerator participant Sayi Makwaia (Questrom’20) is the founder of Freshi, a supply chain solution that will enable 12
smallholder farmers in Tanzania to reduce postharvest waste. She said that the program helped her team lay the foundations of their business before formally launching in December and that the accelerator gave them a chance to “validate their business . . . and dive deep into an ecosystem that we have very little expertise in.” Previous Summer Accelerator participants have gone on to scale their businesses and participate in larger accelerator programs. Flux Marine, an electric boat–motor company cofounded by Daylin Frantin (CAS’19, Questrom’19), was accepted to MassChallenge and sold its first motor in 2020. CauseEDU, a college crowdfunding and financial literacy platform founded by Shironda White (Questrom’18), was accepted to multiple accelerators including MassChallenge, EforAll, and Founders Gym. Most recently, Holdette, founded by Sarah Greisdorf (CAS’20), raised $28,000 in a crowdfunding campaign to produce its first line of women’s suits that have functional pockets. On August 6, 2020, at the virtual Summer Accelerator closing event, pictured above, each team presented their 10-minute pitch to small panels of industry experts, who could choose to offer 15 minutes of time for a future mentorship call. “We have some truly committed teams exploring diverse problems in everything from medicine to entertainment. There’s a range of experiences, from sophomores to graduate students,” noted Innovate@BU’s executive director Gerry Fine. “I think these teams will end up doing great things.”
SUMMER ACCELERATOR 2020 COHORT Airflow Seating System Technologies (Cooper Shifrin, ENG’22; Matthew Reynolds-Tejeda, ENG’22): The Airflow Seating System will change the way that bedsores are prevented through the use of an array of hexagonal air cells that have embedded pressure sensors. This system will dramatically change the way that pressure ulcers are prevented and give doctors access to metrics they have never had before. BeagleNet (Peter Siegel, CAS’22, ENG’22; Pavel Gromov, ENG’22; Dylan Derose, ENG’22): A mobile environmentsensing platform that will build real-time air quality maps, help cities locate sources of pollution, and inform residents of air quality–related health hazards. Clean Seat (Kevin Tang, Questrom’22; Tai Kang, ENG’20): A retrofittable toilet seat that can be used to affordably and effectively prevent common toilet messes. It ensures that you will never have to use a dirty public toilet seat again. CoStudy (Brock Nelson, ENG’22; Henry Kaufman, CAS’22; Neev Mittal, CAS’22): A mobile application designed to connect students who want to find people and resources based on their own search criteria. VibePass (Juan Zapata Gomez, ENG’20; Ricardo Villarreal, ENG’20): A subscription service that provides members with exclusive access to attend a combination of different nightclubs, music halls, concerts, and venues every month, all at a 60% discount. Freshi (Sayi Makwaia, Questrom’20; Francoise Cattaneo, Sargent’20): A supply chain innovation that enables smallholder farmers to reduce postharvest waste due to unsold produce.
iCareBetter (Saeid Gholami, Questrom’20; Sarah Tsao, COM’20): Endometriosis patients are underdiagnosed and undertreated, and there is no medical or surgical cure available for them. iCareBetter’s mission is to empower these patients to overcome endometriosis. Mojo (Ryan Caracciolo ENG’20; Evan Caracciolo, University of Pennsylvania): A social media platform designed to help college students become better connected to each other and the social scene at their university. Parkaze (Amal Radhakrishnan, MET’19): A hassle-free shared-economy marketplace where users can host and rent privately owned parking spots. Patient First (Fayzan Shaukat, Questrom’22; Fiza Shaukat, ENG’17): A personalized and customizable electronic health system that connects patients, providers, and pharmacies in low-resourced countries. SpecGraphixEDU (Eric Hansen, COM’20): A public afterschool program offering live digital media classes as well as educational Minecraft classes. The program includes an online student portal with video tutorials and more. TrackSore (Ke Xu, MED’23; Junming Hu, ENG’18): A mobile application that works with a customized sticker to improve imaging standardization for better assessment and more-precise healing prediction of wounds and to reduce associated medical costs of wound care. VISTAN Health (Nina Keshavarzi, Questrom’20): An innovative technology that will improve surgical training, enhance clinical decision-making, and increase patient care by using mixed reality.
Go Off! (Glo Robinson, COM’22): A social platform that has reengineered the way to have a conversation online. This app allows users to have text message–like conversations next to trending media that presents issues of interest and to connect with others in local proximity.
47
14
$140k
6
6
applications
teams accepted
total awarded to teams
teams led by Class of 2020 graduates
teams led by current undergrads 13
Annual Community Awards
Janice Ozguc (GRS’81, ENG’84), formerly with IBM, Toshiba, and Mitsubishi and cofounder of Artware and Octalica, received the Henry Morgan Award for her dedication to mentoring students in Innovate@BU’s programs, especially the Innovation Pathway and Summer Accelerator.
Sarah Greisdorf (CAS’20), founder of Holdette women’s clothing brand, received the Student of the Year Award. Greisdorf has been an active member of the community since 2018 and has been a champion for women entrepreneurs both on- and offcampus.
Jenna Crawford (STH’21) also received the Student of the Year Award. Crawford served as an Innovate@BU student intern for more than two years and played an integral role in launching the project track for Innovate@BU’s signature program, the Innovation Pathway.
Indoor Cannabis-Growing System Wins Cannabis Start-Up Competition On November 7, 2019, more than 120 BU and Boston community members attended the Third Annual Cannabis Start-Up Competition, sponsored by Green Lion Partners, which is owned by Jeff Zucker (Questrom’10, pictured far right) and Mike Bologna (Questrom’10, pictured at left). During the finale, Zucker said that “with this competition, we aim to show that cannabis offers a true professional career opportunity for anyone. We hope that this sends that message, and having BU’s support is a big part of that.” Photo: Maddie Malhotra (COM'19)
The competition invites current students and alumni to pitch their ancillary business ideas for the cannabis industry. Businesses that grow or sell cannabis products are not eligible to compete. Each year, the event continues to expand in numbers of both applicants and finale attendees. Twenty-seven applicants were narrowed down to five finalists, including this year’s winner, Trella Technologies, an automated horizontal plant-training system aimed at easing the process of indoor cannabis production. The company includes cofounders Aja Atwood (pictured center) and Andres “Dre” Chamorro III and BU alums Nina Hrebenko (CAS’13, GRS’17) and Angela Pitter (ENG’86).
14
“The judges are highly respected in this space, so to have their input, to have their feedback, really helps legitimize our ideas,” said Atwood. “It’s the very beginning step—this will help us move on to the next stage.”
The other finalists were Boundless Robotics, which created an automated hydroponics machine to simplify home growing, founded by Carl Palmer (ENG’04, Questrom’12); PhenoXpress, a cannabis genetic-testing company that provides sex testing, chemotype determination, and plantpathogen screening, founded by Wendell Orphe (MET’19); SMART (Student Marijuana Alliance for Research and Transparency), which aims to build a national college cannabis network, cofounded by Mariah Brooks (CAS’21); and Waev, an intermediary smoking device that eliminates odors and the negative effects of combustion, cofounded Kendall Humphrey (COM’19) and Nicholas Lai (ENG’21).
One study of seven entrepreneurial firms pioneering new hardware in the energy and cleantech sector was published this year in Strategic Management Journal. This research shows that entrepreneurial firms did not pivot their strategies in one decision but that pivots accumulated over time as the product of many decisions. Often this was in response to emerging opportunities and problems. “No company that we studied actually made a pivot with one strategic decision. That was the part that was surprising,” said O’Mahony.
Innovation Research Projects This year, research led by Siobhan O’Mahony, academic director curriculum & research at Innovate@BU and Questrom School of Business professor of innovation and strategy, pictured above, investigated corporate innovation, new venture development, and how healthcare professionals on the frontlines are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Corporate Innovation Over the past 10 years, many corporations throughout Boston have launched innovation centers and labs to shift toward more entrepreneurial and fast-paced innovation processes such as design thinking, lean start-up, and rapid prototyping. However, many of these frameworks were developed for nimble start-ups rather than mature organizations. “How can corporations bridge the ideas generated in the labs of tomorrow with current operations?” asked O’Mahony. She and her team have been exploring how corporations foster innovation and the methods and practices that are making a difference for firms big and small. The research team conducted over a dozen interviews with corporate innovation center leaders in New England to better understand the challenges of innovating within large firms. The findings from these interviews are being used to deepen the University’s ties to corporate innovation leaders and to inform the design of a corporate innovation class that will prepare BU students to support new corporate roles. Venture Lab With a team of four doctoral students, O’Mahony has also been researching how early-stage entrepreneurial firms make progress on new venture development.
A second study of 28 entrepreneurial firms in digital health tech shows that entrepreneurs that engaged in transactional or confirmatory approaches to engaging with customers and stakeholders were less likely to gain market traction than those pursuing a diagnostic, collaborative, and problemsolving approach. O’Mahony explained that “the trick is to figure out as quickly as you can how to engage with what you and the customer do not know together so you can both put skin in the game and learn how a new innovation is going to work in practice.” A third study examined how 12 entrepreneurs in the health and agriculture industry responded to external advice. Firms that received external advice without contextualizing their business to outsiders were more likely to consider external advice to be irrelevant and to stick closely to their existing strategies. Entrepreneurs who coproduced advice by working to make their business understood to others were more likely to test new aspects of their strategy. While both types of entrepreneurs conducted experiments, only entrepreneurs who coproduced external advice tested new elements that broadened their strategic scope. “We found that the role of external advice is not to tell entrepreneurs what to do but to open the firm’s aperture to test more-varied hypotheses,” said O’Mahony. The Frontline Project Most recently, the research team embarked on The Frontline Project, which is supported in part by Innovate@BU and the University of Pennsylvania to understand how COVID-19 is changing the way healthcare professionals utilize technology, innovate, share ideas, solve problems, and conduct their work. The goal of the project is to better understand engagement with new technologies; changes in organizational policies and procedures; new ways of learning; innovations developed to address scarce resources; and new methods of testing, treatment, and patient care. The research team has interviewed over 30 healthcare professionals thus far and will be conducting interviews with over 100 frontline healthcare workers through 2020. 15
BROADENING OUR REACH
16
After testing a variety of programs in its first 18 months, Innovate@BU spent this year focused on expanding its resources to engage more students and industries through the following programs. The First-Year Innovation Fellowship created an opportunity for freshmen and transfer students to easily plug into innovation and entrepreneurship resources during their first semester. A partnership with BU Sustainability attracted 15 new student teams to Innovate@BU programs. Postdocs and doctoral students now have a set of dedicated workshops and resources. The IDEA Conference continues to grow every year, with student attendees from all of BU’s schools and colleges and more than 20 schools across New England. And the addition of a project track in the Innovation Pathway helped 21 student teams begin work on communitycentered events, programs, performances, and multimedia creations. For the upcoming year, Innovate@BU plans to continue expanding its resources, including specific programs for women founders and first-generation college students.
In the fall semester, Arielle Kimbarovsky (COM’21) tested out the BUild Lab’s new dry-erase walls by creating a celestial-themed mural that reads, “There is always space for new ideas.”
6 17
Innovate@BU 1717
At IDEA Conference 2020, the BU Cleantech Club introduced the beta version of its student carpooling service. Photo: Rachael Dier (COM’20)
Seed Grants Helped 15 Student Teams Launch Sustainability Ideas for Campus For two years, Innovate@BU’s seed grant program has served as an entry point for students across the University to test the waters of innovation and idea development. In the fall, a partnership between Innovate@BU and BU sustainability granted 15 student teams with $500 seed grants each to kick-start an idea that addressed one of BU’s climate action goals. Ideas included conscious-clothing swap events, an oncampus zero-waste convenience store, and a plan to implement more-sustainable practices through the School of Theatre’s stage productions. Since then, the teams have used the funding and a variety of Innovate@BU programs to continue their work. Six teams have joined the Innovation Pathway, a self-paced accelerator for student-led ventures and projects. Of the finalists, SeaGreen Co., a zero-waste campus store that aims to make sustainability more accessible to students, best capitalized on BU’s resources for student innovators to develop both its idea and team. The team of four met through Innovate@BU’s First-Year Innovation Fellowship, a special cohort of incoming students who are eager to begin work on a new idea. 18
The funding made it possible to host four pop-up events on campus, where they sold metal straws, utensil sets, reusable food storage products, and waste-free toiletries. “The seed grant really came at a crucial time for us,” said Emily Hardy (CAS’22). “It allowed us to see that our concept had value and to take the initial steps to serve our community. The grant really allowed us to put our idea into action on BU’s campus.” Since then, they have pitched in the New Venture Competition and joined the Innovation Pathway. Student clubs used the funds to launch new campus initiatives, too. BU STEAM, a group that bridges the gap between STEM topics and the arts, used its grant to create Earth Beats, a project that transforms environmental data into evocative music. The BU Cleantech Club used the funding to launch a beta version of Rhett’s Rides, a carpooling service specifically for BU students. The seed grant program began in 2018 as a pilot with the College of Fine Arts and the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies and has since provided over $12,000 to more than 25 student projects.
Collaboration with the Office of Technology Development Establishes New Resources for Postdoc and Doctoral Innovators The majority of Innovate@BU’s programs are intended for undergraduates and traditional graduate students, but that changed this year when Director of Faculty Entrepreneurship Rana K. Gupta created a series of programs specifically serving BU’s postdocs, doctoral students, and researchfocused graduate students. “When it comes to commercializing and launching new ideas, this population of students has a very different experience than undergrads or traditional grad students,” said Gupta. Doctoral students and postdocs have agreements with the University to establish their roles, including doing research for faculty principal investigators (PIs) and teaching; unlike other students, any intellectual property they develop using BU resources belongs to the University. In the fall of 2019, Gupta launched a series of workshops and programs to support students in this population who were eager to translate their research into a commercialized idea or venture. At the foundation of these resources is the Unlocking the Black Box of Business Workshop Series, led by Gupta and Alice Nichols, a National Science Foundation nationally accredited I-Corps instructor.
Gupta said that the goal of the workshops was to equip students with new analytic business skills, tools for building a business idea, and perspective regarding the world of business, as well as to highlight the many paths into the business world. Held every other week in the fall and spring semesters (in person at first and ultimately online when the campus closed in March), each session welcomed 10 to 20 students. Another resource, the Catalyst program, is the result of a joint effort between the Office of Technology Development (OTD), Innovate@BU, the Graduate Entrepreneurship Club, and the Consulting Club. The program aims to help BU professors explore the market viability of their ideas by pairing them with a team of MBA student consultants. In its first year, the Catalyst program ran over the fall and spring semesters and paired MBA teams with two PIs. “This partnership helps the faculty understand the value of customer interviews and potential first target markets for their technology that they might not have otherwise considered,” explained Gupta. “In turn, the MBA students get real-world experience with customer discovery and present valuable results that they can put on their résumés.” Gupta plans to continue the workshop series and Catalyst program in the 2020–2021 academic year.
The Innovate@BU Student Leadership Council is charged with spreading the mission and resources of Innovate@BU across the University while developing and supporting the growth of BUild Lab programming. 19
19
Hewitt Pathfinder Internship Fund Supports Undergrads in Start-Up Roles
The Hewitt Pathfinder Start-Up Internship Fund was established by Bill Hewitt (Questrom’85) in spring 2020 to make it possible for current undergraduate students to accept unpaid internships at US-based start-ups and growing companies. After an open application process, three undergraduates, Dennis Karpovitch (Questrom’21), Jerica Xu (Questrom’22), and Zach Bodi (CAS’22), were awarded up to $8,000 stipends to support summer internships at Boston-area companies. Karpovitch, a finance and IT major, was a business development intern at Adaviv, a hardware-enabled, predictive-analytics company that supports indoor and sustainable farming. While interning, he worked on new marketing strategies and developed a sales pipeline to onboard new customers. “I admire the vision behind the company and want to be a resource that can help them grow. In the future, I hope I can continue working directly with clients in agriculture, energy, or real estate to uncover inefficiencies and develop longterm solutions that improve quality of life and business,” said Karpovitch. Bodi, a computer science major with a minor in deaf studies, was an automation engineering intern at UptimeHealth, a web application that assists healthcare facilities with tracking compliance tasks. In his role, he tested new features and their impact on the web application.
In October 2019, more than 100 students stopped by the BUild Lab’s fall festival where they learned about Innovate@BU’s resources and met student entrepreneurs.
20
“I have always been really interested in entrepreneurship and innovation. I think the challenge and discovery process of it all is really exciting.” Jerica Xu (Questrom’22) “I want to gain a deeper understanding of software development processes and the ways in which software can affect human behavior. One day, I hope to apply the skills I have learned to starting a technology venture aimed at supporting the deaf community,” said Bodi. “I have dreamed of being a software developer since I was a kid, and this is the first real development role I have acquired. Without the Hewitt Fund, I would have had to pass up this role that will be pivotal to my career.” Xu, a marketing and information systems major with a minor in innovation and entrepreneurship, was a campus marketing strategist for Settlyt, a peer-to-peer platform that creates a simple way to settle “bets” and challenges between friends through a mobile app. “The past two summers I had internships at small startups and I loved the fast-paced, hands-on, adaptable work environment, so I was even more motivated to find entrepreneurial internship experiences this summer. As a marketing and information systems concentrator, this digital marketing role at a tech start-up will hopefully allow me to gain valuable experience that will support my overall career goals in the future,” said Xu.
Cohort events ranged from brainstorming workshops to a networking dinner with alumni and University leaders. Photo: Hailey Hart-Thompson (COM’21, CAS’21)
First-Year Innovation Fellowship Helps 24 New Students Launch Projects Launched in the 2019–2020 academic year, the First-Year Innovation Fellowship (FYIF) is a special program for firstyear students to work on a passion project or venture in a dedicated community of peers. Participants may apply with a concept already in the works or with a new idea. Students are encouraged to work in teams with other FYIF participants, other BU Terriers, or friends from home. In the fellowship’s inaugural year, 24 students participated in exclusive workshops and networking events, and received seed grants to help them launch or grow their ideas, which included a zero-waste campus convenience store, an athletic clothing company, and an external device to support those who are paraplegic and quadriplegic. “It’s definitely given me a new network of people that I wouldn’t have interacted with before,” said Sum Yue Guan (CFA’23). “It’s nice to meet up with people who are likeminded and really want to push things to the limit, on top of being a student. It’s crazy that we have this chance as undergraduates.” Guan teamed up with fellow FYIF members Kreiver Zhou Peng (ENG’23) and Kaye Chin (Wheelock’23) to launch the Youth Media Initiative, a program that provides youth with social media management skills and professional job training and then pairs them with a nonprofit internship.
Other students worked on their own for the first year, including Junia Janvier (CAS’24), who is building Age of Advocacy, a mentoring program for middle-school girls of color in Rhode Island and Boston. She was inspired to start this program when she was in high school and was attending the Women’s Summit at Bryant University, where she met Girls Who Code founder Reshma Saujani, who provided advice for building a mentoring community. While COVID-19 has made it difficult to launch a new cohort, Janvier has expanded her team and is still on a mission to “uplift young girls of color to rise to the occasion of being impactful and empowered individuals, equipped with the ability to excel in higher education and in their communities.” As well as giving students an opportunity to explore new ideas during their first year at BU, the FYIF provides education for students who were not exposed to entrepreneurship in high school. In their program feedback report, one student said that “many students come from academic and social backgrounds that may be unable to support ambitious goals. The First-Year Innovation Fellowship provides that vital support and, most important, networking opportunities within the large BU community to help grow what students may once have thought was an impossible dream.” The next cohort will begin in fall 2020.
21
In December, Sarah Greisdorf (CAS’20) pitched her start-up Holdette at BU Spark! Demo Day. Photo: Sahana Sreeprakash (ENG’22)
Innovation Pathway Participation Doubles and Adds Track for Projects “For the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by doing them.” —Aristotle “You don't learn to walk by following rules. You learn by doing, and by falling over.” —Richard Branson From Greek philosophers to modern-day moguls, it’s often said that we learn by doing. This principle is at the core of Innovate@BU’s offerings, and it coalesces in its keystone experiential program, the Innovation Pathway. The Innovation Pathway provides students with a self-paced process to launch a new venture or project while guiding them toward necessary resources like funding, leadership skill building, and mentoring. In the 2019–2020 academic
22
year, 230 student teams participated in the program and more than $53,000 was awarded in progress funding., The program is generously sponsored by University Overseer and founder of IMPACT 2040 Cynthia Cohen (MET), who also provides mentorship and office hour sessions to dozens of student teams. Sarah Greisdorf (CAS’20), pictured above, founder of Holdette, a clothing line that designs women’s workwear with real pockets, has participated in the program since spring 2019. Last year, she and her team advanced to the Run stage, described in the graphic below, and earned a $2,000 seed grant. The funding and mentorship helped her to conduct market research that ultimately led the team to its final clothing-line concept. Greisdorf bolstered her Innovation Pathway experience by participating in the Innovate@BU Summer Accelerator, competing in the New Venture Competition, and completing the Innovation & Entrepreneurship minor. In June, Holdette finished its first crowdfunding campaign, raising $28,000 to produce its first line of women’s suits.
Get Inspired
Walk
Run
Fly
Explore an idea.
Validate the idea.
Launch the idea.
Scale the idea.
During the IDEA Conference, Innovation Pathway participants shared their tips for using the Innovation Pathway. From left to right: program intern Jenna Crawford (STH’21); founder of Criminalized podcast Sarika Ram (CAS’21); founder of campus delivery service Stoovy Jack Claxton (Questrom’20); Kiana Ghamarifard (Sargent’21) and Michael Eschmann (CAS’21), cofounders of Kahila waterresistance cases for Apple Watches; and Program Director of Social Innovation, Blake Sims St. Louis. Photo: Rachael Dier (COM’20)
Since launching in spring 2019, the program has continued to evolve to best support students and recent alumni, including the following changes:
1
Tracks Model: Two tracks were established to provide support for students working on a venture or a project. The venture track is for ideas supported by a sustainable and scalable for-profit or nonprofit business model. The project track is for ideas aimed at creating positive impact on- or off-campus (events, media campaigns, advocacy, creative content, etc.).
2
Alumni Participation: Alumni who have graduated within one year can participate in the program.
3
4
5
Coaches: Faculty coaches from across the University are assigned to teams throughout their Innovation Pathway journey and provide guidance and mentorship. Orientation: A monthly orientation session is held to introduce students to the program, guide them in their next steps, and connect them with peers.
Twenty-one teams utilized the new project track to work on ideas ranging from a conference for public health students to a podcast that examines issues in the American criminal legal system through the lenses of the formerly incarcerated. Andrew Chiao (Pardee’19, SPH’20) and his team of BU, Harvard University, and Brown University public health master’s students came together to create the New England Public Health Conference, a formal networking and learning opportunity for public health students. The team took advantage of staff and industry expert office hours to work through event-planning best practices and to build strategies for scaling the event next year. In spring 2020, the team advanced to the Run stage and earned a $3,000 seed grant that will be used for event marketing and day-of-event needs. The conference was originally scheduled for March 27, 2020 but due to COVID-19 it was postponed. In the coming year, further improvements will be made to the Innovation Pathway, including additional coaches and mentors, resources for more-advanced teams, and updated milestones to help teams make more-meaningful progress.
Feedback Forum: A feedback forum is held monthly and serves as the milestone activity between the Get Inspired and Walk stages. Students are asked to share their venture or project idea in a casual setting with peers to receive initial feedback.
230
51
$53k+
65%
35%
registered teams
teams moved at least one stage
awarded in progress funding
undergrad teams
graduate teams
*Data as of June 2020
23
Joel Nkounkou, University of New Hampshire alumni and cofounder of EcoText, answered audience questions during the IGNITE session. Photo: Rachael Dier (COM’20)
Photo: Rachael Dier (COM’20)
363 Students from 21 Schools Attended the Third Annual IDEA Conference At the heart of innovation and entrepreneurship is change— changing old systems, adapting to new ways of life, or finding better and more equitable ways of solving problems. At the “IDEA Conference 2020: Embrace Your Impact”, held on Saturday, February 15, 2020, at BU’s Rafik B. Hariri Building, the concept of change ran through every aspect of the event, from heightened sustainability efforts to arts integration to the words of the keynote speaker, Annie Leonard, executive director of Greenpeace USA and founder of The Story of Stuff Project. The IDEA Conference, generously sponsored by managing partner of Kodiak Venture Partners Lou Volpe (Questrom’78) since 2018, is a one-day event for college students in New England to explore innovation and entrepreneurship skills and resources that can help launch ideas of any kind. Since the first IDEA Conference in 2018, attendance has grown every year. This year, a record-setting 363 students from 21 schools attended the conference, many for the first time. “This is my first time. I’m just really excited to meet new people who have new ideas,” said Victoria González Canalle (ENG’23), founder of Marmelaad, a company that raises funds for teachers in Venezuela through the sale of smallbatch apple jam. The day began with short IGNITE Talks from five entrepreneurs who are alumni from BU, University of New Hampshire, Emerson College, and Tufts University. 24
Kat Francois, an Emerson graduate and cofounder of the Geaux Network, kicked off the session and shared her playbook for success, which centers on three rules: pay attention to your dreams; work on your skill set; and it’s all about the hustle. “You can have dreams, you can have skills, but if you have no hustle, you have nothing,” said Francois. “Add [these rules] to your formula of success, and you are on your way.” Daylin Frantin (CAS’19, Questrom’19), cofounder of Flux Marine, followed with his own set of tips, including his “one more try” rule. Flux Marine builds electric boat motors that aims to replace gas motors, which emit millions of gallons of unburned gasoline into the environment. A few years ago, his team was preparing to demo its prototype at a conference and competition in Maryland. After spending countless all-nighters building the motor, when they arrived at the event the motor wouldn’t start. “Collect yourself, take a deep breath, and give it one more shot,” said Frantin. The following year, Flux Marine returned to the conference with a new prototype and won first place, beating its existing commercial competitors. IDEA Conference workshops ranged from annual favorites like “Networking Like a Boss” and “Pitch Perfect” to new offerings geared toward creative and social impact ideas, like “Pursuing Your Passion While Paying Your Rent” and “Funding Your Nonprofit.” This year, Innovate@BU’s Student Leadership Council helped transform the building’s atrium, the event’s central meeting
Sustainability Stats
50
total pounds of waste produced during the event
.38
pounds of waste produced per attendee
4.4
daily average pounds of waste produced in the United States per person
85%
percent of the event’s waste that was diverted from going to a landfill
Statistics were measured by Spare-It, a start-up in the Boston area that tracks office and waste streams in real time. place, into a creative hub. Vivian Luo, better known as Violinviiv in the Greater Boston area, welcomed guests with her electric violin covers of Top 40 hits. Throughout the day, alumni artist Max Bard (CFA’19, pictured center) created a one-of-a-kind sculpture using found objects, trash, and recycled materials and shared his experience as a creative entrepreneur during the “Pursuing Your Passion While Paying Your Rent” workshop. This year’s conference also paid special attention to sustainability and climate action. “Leadership in Climate Action: Entrepreneurs, Universities, and Cities” was added to the workshop lineup and used Boston’s Carbon Free by 2050 plan as a case study. Copresenters Cutler J. Cleveland, associate director of BU’s Institute for Sustainable Energy, and Lisa Tornatore, director of BU Sustainability, highlighted how students can help achieve this goal. The conference also served as a testing ground for moresustainable event practices. A mobile event app replaced printed programs. Porcelain china and reusable utensils replaced nonrecyclable serveware. Attendees were given personal sets of bamboo utensils and notebooks made from recycled paper. To measure the day’s efforts, local start-up Spare-it was on-site to track waste produced and diverted by attendees. Keynote speaker Annie Leonard, pictured right, executive director of Greenpeace USA and founder of The Story of Stuff Project, capped off the day by sharing her 10 tips for being an effective innovator and for developing big, impactful ideas.
Photo: Rachael Dier (COM’20)
“The more of an expert you become, the more you need to develop a beginner’s mind,” said Leonard. “There’s a point at which [innovation] and [expertise] verge, and your expertise can actually squelch innovation. You need to not just be an expert but to be an explorer, and you can cultivate that by going into places and situations that you’re not familiar with.” During the question and answer portion, students asked Leonard about climate change and how to be more sustainable consumers, but the most resounding theme was about how they can make a difference in the world while maintaining work-life balance and paying bills. “When you love what you’re doing, this sort of work-life dichotomy is less relevant, because it’s about joy. There are push periods in any entrepreneurial venture or campaign . . . but you can’t sustain that long-term. Figure out the things you need,” advised Leonard, who said she makes time for eight hours of sleep, a walk in the woods with her dog twice per month, and a green apple every day. Leonard also advised job-searching students to “look for a place where you can learn a ton and try different things. Network and meet a ton of people. Your professional and social networks will really help you succeed,” and finally, to “let go of this desire to be as rich as Jeff Bezos . . . because you can absolutely make a decent living while helping the world.” IDEA Conference 2021 is currently scheduled for Saturday, February 27, 2021.
25
Rebecca Ayers (CAS’20) and her Ideas2Impact project teammate interview a resident in Easton, Mass., for their class project.
Participation in Innovation and Entrepreneurship Curriculum Continues to Soar Among Undergrads Between the launch of the Innovation & Entrepreneurship (I&E) minor and Innovate@BU Hub cocurriculars, undergraduates have dozens of new academic opportunities to build an entrepreneurial mindset and collaborate with students and disciplines across the University. The I&E minor enables students pursuing any undergraduate major at BU to develop new ideas, regardless of their field of expertise, and create tangible economic or social impact. Since launching in fall 2019, student interest has skyrocketed. Fifty-one students have declared the minor, and 245 students have taken or are enrolled in Ideas2Impact, the minor’s required course. “We expected the student response to be strong, but the uptake was quicker than we anticipated and has led to us having to quickly add sections of the core class,” said Ian Mashiter, Innovate@BU’s director of curriculum and a senior lecturer in Questrom’s Strategy and Innovation department.
26
After learning about the minor, Rebecca Ayers (CAS’20) jumped at the opportunity to add courses to her fall schedule, including Ideas2Impact, making it possible to complete the minor before graduating in January. “There’s a huge variety [of courses], and exposing yourself to different topics, students, and teachers is an experience that will be really useful throughout life,” said Ayers. As an economics major, Ayers was used to large lecturestyle classes focused on data and structured problemsolving. Ideas2Impact was a completely new learning experience. The course exposes students to innovation frameworks and the process of transforming any idea from conception to execution. Ayers noted that “it’s very different from any other class I’ve taken. It’s refreshing to have a class where we stand up, move around, and brainstorm in groups—it’s very interactive. In [Ideas2Impact], I’m the only person from my major and have learned that diverse teams are more likely to create a successful product or idea.” “As an educator and entrepreneur, it is very exciting to see students from different disciplines collaborating on a project together, sometimes for the first time in their university life,” said Mashiter, who also teaches a section of Ideas2Impact.
51
245
8
93%
71%
students have formally declared the minor
students have taken or are enrolled in Ideas2Impact (I2I)
BU schools and colleges are represented in I2I enrollment
of I2I enrolled students are rising juniors and seniors
of I2I enrolled students are CAS and COM students
As a guest speaker in Starting a Startup, Ciarán Mahon (Questrom’20) shared tips he learned from launching his own tech start-up, Rilla.
Last fall, students in the class worked in partnership with the town of Easton, Mass., to tackle challenges facing the elderly. In October 2019, Ayers and her group, made up of students from the College of Communication, College of Arts & Sciences, and the College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences: Sargent College, interviewed residents about their pain points when it came to engaging with town programs. “We’ve found that they’re interested in programs that the town offers, like yoga classes, but the biggest barrier is how those opportunities are communicated with them,” explained Ayers. “They prefer printed fliers or calendars to get this information instead of using technology and online registration. The problem is that [the town] can’t immediately communicate with them when there are schedule changes or important announcements.” Ayers is excited to use these newfound innovation skills and entrepreneurial mindset to fuel her career search. “Now I understand the process of creating new ideas and feel like it gives me an advantage in my career,” said Ayers. “Economics is very broad. Now that I have these additional skills, I feel like I have a lot of career tracks to choose from.” Looking ahead, Mashiter hopes to add more variety to the types of classes students can take in the minor and also plans to work with faculty to design courses that can count toward the minor. Innovate@BU also offers two Hub cocurriculars that provide students with a way to earn a Hub unit outside of the classroom (Hub units are part of BU’s undergraduate general education curriculum, known as the BU HUB).
At the New Venture Competition, cocurricular student Diána Hughes (Pardee 15’,‘21) pitched her idea for a research organization that works to understand youth radicalization.
how to apply the lean canvas to an idea. Student and alumni entrepreneurs supplemented the lessons by providing their personal experience and best practices for launching a startup. In the spring semester, 14 students worked in teams to develop ideas ranging from a research organization that works to understand radicalization of young people online to an app that shows users how to creatively use leftover groceries to cut down food waste. How to Launch a Project, taught by Program Director of Social Innovation Blake Sims St. Louis, is a weekly course that teaches the process of launching ideas like policy recommendations, advocacy programs, community events, or creative content. Students were introduced to the impact gaps canvas and lessons in budgeting, operations, and marketing before spending the last half of the semester crafting a launch plan for their own idea. Projects included a health and wellness podcast for college students, a proposal for a research project investigating college students’ use of “study drugs,” an initiative to make BU’s Charles River Campus more accessible for those with physical disabilities, and a proposal for reinvigorating the peer tutoring program at BU’s Educational Resource Center. The cocurriculars were also available as weekly drop-in workshops for students who were not enrolled in the courses but were interested in specific innovation topics. Launching a Project will be offered again in fall 2020, and enrollment has already doubled over last year.
Starting a Start-up, taught by director of business ventures Rachel Spekman, is a weekly course that shows students 27
OUR UNIVERSITY PARTNERS
ENGINEERING PRODUCT INNOVATION CENTER (EPIC) EPIC is a 15,000-square-foot-makerspace that includes a machine and wood shop, design and collaboration studios, a materials characterization laboratory, and a metals foundry. The center works closely with industry partners at the forefront of advanced product design and manufacturing innovation in the region to provide students with the skills required to prosper in the innovation economy. EPIC serves as a resource for classes throughout the University and for student entrepreneurs who need to prototype their hardware ideas. 2019–2020 Highlights: • Jeff Costello joined the staff as Lab Supervisor, which enabled regular cocurricular programming on the use of design software and basic machine operation. • A grant from PTC, a Boston-based digital technology company, enabled EPIC to add augmented reality and virtual reality design tools to the makerspace. • Additional capabilities were added to the machine shop, including six new 3D printers and an upgrade to its computer-aided design capabilities. • Amazon Robotics joined its Industrial Advisory Board. 28
BU ARTS INITIATIVE
BU SUSTAINABILITY
The BU Arts Initiative supports programming and research that advance the role of arts at the University. This year, it held a total of 44 events attended by students from every school and college.
The mission of BU Sustainability is to lead the University in a more sustainable direction and integrate sustainability into the culture and structure of BU, while implementing a Climate Action Plan (CAP).
2019–2020 Highlights:
2019–2020 Highlights:
• The first full-semester residency was launched with computational artist Francisco Alarcon. • The BU Public Art program website was launched and hosted the University’s first temporary public art installation with FDA Spoon, by artist Domenic Esposito. • The second annual BU Global Music Festival drew 1,000 attendees and was recognized as one of the top 10 global music festivals in the world. • Through a residency, theater artist and activist Rhodessa Jones brought her work to the BU Medical Campus and partnered with the School of Public Health Activist Lab. • $37,000 was distributed to BU students, faculty, and staff for arts programming and research. • $19,000 was distributed to students, faculty, and staff for 20 interdisciplinary arts projects, including three research projects.
• BU Wind, a power purchase agreement designed to match 100 percent of the University’s electricity demand, began construction in South Dakota. • Boston Mayor Martin Walsh recognized BU’s vision and climate leadership at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Center for Computing & Data Sciences. The center will use the thermal mass of the earth as a source for heat exchange, enabling the building to source its energy from BU Wind and be carbon free. • BU Sustainability collaborated with Innovate@BU and an external vendor to plan and implement zero-waste efforts for the IDEA Conference, including real-time technology-based waste tracking. • In the spring, the Campus Climate Lab was launched to provide funding for student research projects that use BU campuses as living laboratories to advance sustainability practices and implementation of the CAP.
BU LAW CLINICS
BU SPARK!
The BU Start-up Law Clinic and Technology Law Clinic provide invaluable pro bono advice and legal services to student entrepreneurs. Services are provided by BU School of Law students, under attorney supervision. Since Innovate@BU’s launch, the clinics have become a toprecommended resource.
Housed by the Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences (CDS), BU Spark! is a technology incubator and experiential learning lab for computer science and engineering projects that aims to help students realize their potential and passion. Since its launch in 2017, BU Spark! has engaged more than 1,045 students who have completed 292 semester-long projects.
2019–2020 Highlights: • The Start-up Law Clinic, made up of 3 faculty and 22 Law students, served 99 student clients. Its services include intellectual property advice and strategy, trademark and copyright registration, entity selection and formation, equity allocation advice, and contract drafting and review. • The Technology Law Clinic, made up of 2 faculty and 14 law students, worked with 15 student clients. Its services include regulatory compliance, media law review, computer crimes and torts, data privacy law, digital civil liberties, and more. • The clinics also hosted 11 startup seminars at the BUild Lab, including 10 Legal Pitfalls for Startups, Nonprofit Basics, How to Hire a Lawyer, and Understanding Early Stage Start-up Financing.
2019–2020 Highlights: • The 9-week Resiliency Challenge recruited 733 participants at BU and across the globe to work on challenges posed to communities and colleges in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. • The Freshman Mini-Hack served as a first touch point for many students who are interested in computing at BU. The aim of the mini-hack was to inspire inclusion in STEM at BU and beyond. • Launching in January 2021, in support of research, projects, and the publication of data sets focused on issues of equity BU Spark! will endeavor upon building a leadership development program for students to work on equity and antiracism computing initiatives. As part of the Equity Data Science Lab, Spark! and CDS will partner with BU’s new Center for Antiracist Research to support their Race Data Lab.
BIOENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY & ENTREPRENEURSHIP CENTER In fall 2020, BU’s Department of Biomedical Engineering will open the Bioengineering Technology & Entrepreneurship Center (BTEC), a new facility designed to transform education and innovation for bioengineering students through hands-on learning. • The center aims to advance cutting-edge technologies identified in partnership with industry, from gene editing to biosensors to digital medicine. BTEC is anticipated to prepare the next generation of the societal bioengineers with the skills most needed to enhance human health and benefit society. • The 5,000-square-foot facility will include a Molecular, Cellular, and Tissue Engineering Suite, a Biosensors and Instrumentation Suite, and a Digital and Predictive Medicine Design Suite. • Diane Joseph-McCarthy has been appointed executive director of the center. She brings with her more than 20 years’ experience in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector. Previously, she was senior vice president of Discovery & Early development at EnBiotix, a BU spinout bioengineering company.
29
ALUMNI INNOVATORS Innovate@BU was established in 2018, but BU students and alumni were launching new ventures long before that. With help from JD Wang (Questrom’20), Bersabeh Mamo (Sargent’20), Malav Sukhadia (Questrom’21), and the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program, Innovate@ BU was able to dive into BU’s entrepreneurial history.
Wang, Mamo, and Sukhadia analyzed data from Boston University, Pitchbook, and Crunchbase. While this data does not include nonprofits or ventures that did not require external funding, the results show a rich 30-year history of alumni entrepreneurs across industries.
1,210
$27.16 billion
ventures were founded or cofounded by BU alumni in the last 30 years
US dollars was raised by these ventures.
Founders by BU School & College
College of Fine Arts, 1%
College of Arts & Sciences
59%
41%
were founded by undergrad alumni
were founded by graduate alumni
26%
School of Medicine and School of Public Health, 3% Metropolitan College, 2%
Questrom School of Business
School of Law, 3%
25%
College of Communication, 8%
College of Engineering 13%
1992:
2003
2007:
$2.48 billion was raised by 32 companies founded by 1992 graduates
$4.1 billion was raised by 29 companies founded by 2003 graduates
44 companies were founded by 2007 graduates
Notable Companies 30
• Auris
• GreatPoint Energy
• Cape Wind
• Harmless Harvest
• ClassPass
• MasterClass
• Credit Karma
• Mevion Medical Systems
• CyberArk Software
• Prysm
• Equinix
• Puma Biotechnology
• Evernote
• Shopify
• fuboTV
• Vacasa
• GO-JEK
• WildBlue
In July 2020, Sam Weinberger (CFA’21) installed a new mural at the BUild Lab’s entrance. “As a space for innovation, I wanted to play with the powerful central shape of a simple lightbulb. It has a solid outer shape and abstract inside. That abstraction can also be found in the Boston skyline and makes a connection with the inner portions of the light bulb. This mural is commenting on the possibilities found within a city like Boston. It’s the abstract moments in life which are typically overlooked that create innovation,” said Weinberger. 31
730 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215 bu.edu/innovate | @Innovate_BU