Innovation Fest to expand scope at UChicago and beyond

UChicago News

Throughout the month of May, members of the University of Chicago community and the public will get a unique look at the programs and individuals responsible for the ideas, ventures and science that may someday change the lives of millions.UChicago Innovation Fest 2017, a global celebration of entrepreneurship and discovery, will bring together the brightest minds in science, tech, the arts and business during a monthlong series of workshops, discussions, speaker events and competitions.

Scheduled from May 2 through June 1, this year’s fest has expanded its scope and influence beyond the UChicago campus. Events in Boston, San Francisco and the first international Innovation Fest event—a pitch event cohosted by the Chicago Angels Network and the Booth Alumni Club of the UK in London—are on the docket. On-campus events range from a presentation on the evolving state of alternative finance in the Americas to a daylong event hosted by the Smart Museum on how sites of culture can function as spaces of belonging.

“The diversity and range of this year’s Innovation Fest lineup really illustrates the vastness of ideas and research that are emerging from the University of Chicago today,” said John Flavin, associate vice president of entrepreneurship and innovation and head of the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

Launched in the spring of 2014 by the Polsky Center, UChicago Innovation Fest initially began as Innovation Week, a weeklong solution to connect the various finals competitions of the Edward L. Kaplan, ’71, New Venture Challenge.

“Innovation Fest was born out of a strategic need to provide cohesion to our various NVC finals at the end of the year and grow the celebratory atmosphere around entrepreneurship,” said Starr Marcello, executive director of the Polsky Center. “To see how much it has grown in such a short period of time to include so many more disciplines and perspectives of the University ...

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