UF Innovate News - UF Innovate

New College of Engineering Graduate Is on a Mission To Break Barriers to Space Travel for People With Disabilities

Ever since Eric Shear was a child, he has looked up to the sky, watching the stars and wondering “what’s out there.” With a curious brain wired for space exploration and degrees in physics, planetary science and, as of Friday, a master’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Florida, it seems natural that Shear pursues his lifelong dream to travel into space. There’s only one problem. Shear was born profoundly deaf, meaning he can only hear random sounds — like a dog’s loud bark or a jet engine — that are at least 80 decibels, and that bars him from flying to space with NASA or any other space agency, for now. “My ultimate goal is to be an astronaut,” Shear said, “but if I can’t journey into space, I want to be involved from the ground and develop life-support technologies that assist those who do fly.”

From Fighting Shoplifting to Pioneering Gene Therapies, the Startups in This Accelerator Are on the Front Lines of “Super Creativity”

The startups within UF Innovate, as well as the accelerator itself, are vivid examples of what creativity and innovation expert James Taylor, based in Scotland, describes as SuperCreativity—a phenomenon that many business leaders are trying to foster in today’s fast-changing business environment. It is a concept that goes beyond creativity or innovation alone.

UF Innovate Honors Innovators at Fifth Standing InnOvation Celebration

More than 200 innovators and entrepreneurs gathered for UF Innovate | Tech Licensing’s fifth annual Standing InnOvation event to honor and celebrate innovators and their work at the University of Florida in fiscal year 2022.

UF Innovate Hosts First Fast Break Ventures Summit

Investors, innovators, and entrepreneurs convened at the University of Florida Stephen C. O’Connell Center for UF Innovate | Ventures' first-annual Fast Break Ventures Summit. Over 100 attendees met on center court for an afternoon filled with discussion on the state of venture capital in Florida and to hear pitches from six startup companies.

Dr. Barry Byrne Named Innovator of the Year

The annual event honored Dr. Barry Byrne as Innovator of the Year for his contributions to gene therapy and highlighted six teams of inventors for their Inventions of the Year.

Building Inclusive Stem Communities With Dr. Wanda Eugene, Collaboratory for Inclusive Entrepreneurship

You can’t build a diverse innovation community without fostering inclusive entrepreneurship. Underserved and underestimated groups across Florida often lack the resources and tools to get involved and grow their ideas into successful businesses. Dr. Wanda Eugene, director for the Collaboratory for Inclusive Entrepreneurship, has made it her mission to fix this.

To Build Industry Engagement, Faculty Relations Should Be Front and Center

There’s little doubt that faculty members are among of the most critical elements of creating successful U-I partnerships. So, how do corporate relations managers develop strong relationships with these key internal stakeholders, and how do they continue to strengthen them over the years? Leaders agree that effective communications — highlighted by continuous outreach and understanding of faculty challenges — are critical. Jim O'Connell of UF Innovate gives his key insights to help promote positive relationships

New College Ranking of Technology Transfer Has a Surprise Number Two

It seems for every college, there’s a list about colleges – a ranking. This one, from a non-partisan think tank called Heartland Forward, isn’t so much a ranking as it is a research paper scoring how well and how often school take their considerable research prowess and transfer it into markets. It’s a research ranking. the second spot on this list that may raise an eyebrow – The University of Florida. The school reached this lofty post, the paper found, despite having a research budget ranked just 29th.

Leaders in Agriculture and Aerospace Partner To Create Rapid Crop Evaluation for Farmers

SATLANTIS LLC (SATLANTIS) and Agriculture Intelligence, Inc (AgIntel) announced a collaborative initiative with leading industry experts to combine agriculture intelligence and high resolution satellite monitoring with hopes to enhance current crop evaluation techniques for growers significantly. In late May, SATLANTIS successfully launched a satellite from the Cape Canaveral Force Station on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

UF First Among US Public Universities in Tech Transfer for Economic Return

The University of Florida ranks first among public universities and second nationwide in a new report that evaluates which U.S. universities are best at moving new discoveries from the lab and into the real world through research commercialization and STEM graduates.