{"580161":{"#nid":"580161","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Innovation Thrives in Tech Square","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EWhen Georgia Tech opened Technology Square in 2003, one of the guiding principles was to foster a better connection with the business community. Fast forward to today and evidence of those successful connections can be found in the more than one dozen corporate innovation centers clustered in the area.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhile these centers represent a diverse range of industries, they all have the common goal of tapping into the area\u2019s culture of collaboration thanks to the vibrant network of students, faculty, researchers and startup entrepreneurs.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech President G.P. \u201cBud\u201d Peterson hosted a roundtable discussion Tuesday morning with a handful of corporate executives from companies that opened innovation centers in Tech Square.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThis is a very exciting time for the innovation ecosystem that exists here in Atlanta, and in particular in Tech Square,\u201d Peterson said during the event held in Tech Square. \u201cThe strategy is to try to provide an opportunity for large corporations to create an innovation space and access the talent and the technologies that exist here at Georgia Tech.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe panelists included Tom Gebhardt, chief operating officer of Panasonic Automotive Systems Company of America, whose innovation center opened in 2012, making the company an early adaptor. The program has grown tenfold over the past four years, he said.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGebhardt\u0026nbsp;explained the benefits of working outside a traditional corporate environment.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThe ideas that are generated in this center versus what we\u2019d get in our corporate environment are unmatched,\u201d he said. \u201cThe mix, the demographic, the diversity, it\u2019s not possible.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EUCB, the global biopharmaceutical company, is one of the newest innovation centers, having just opened the UCB Solution Accelerator this week. Its goal is to drive collaboration between the company and Georgia Tech to develop solutions to help those living with severe diseases.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EJeff Wren, head of UCB\u2019s Neurology Patient Value Unit, explained how the centers demonstrate that problems cannot be solved just by the research and development units typically found at a company\u2019s corporate headquarters.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe have to go beyond our own walls,\u201d Wren said. \u201cWe need to see transformation, but no single entity can create that transformation on their own. So if we want to see this transformation take place we have to be networked, and that is one of the reasons we are here.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe centers do more than just help the companies. They engage with startups, providing them with access to markets and fostering relationships through mentorships, said Blake Patton, a technology entrepreneur and investor who is a managing partner with Tech Square Ventures, a seed and early-stage venture capital fund located in Tech Square.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe innovation centers are investors for the startups by becoming customers and partners, and providing platforms to help them to succeed, said Patton, a past general manager of Georgia Tech\u2019s Advanced Technology Development Center, a statewide startup technology business incubator.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EATDC\u2019s current general manager, Jennifer Bonnett, moderated the discussion, which included questions from reporters who attended in person and those who watched the event through a live web stream.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOne reporter asked for examples of products or solutions that came out of the innovation centers.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe first innovation created by the Anthem center allowed for what officials call a dynamic video, said Tom Miller, the chief information officer for the Fortune 50 health benefits company.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe company previously used a generic video to welcome new members who signed up for health care. Now a personalized video is dynamically generated that brings together attributes of a new client\u2019s family, their situation and their health plan. The video is generated as soon as the client registers. While this information is currently incorporated in a welcome video, it will have additional uses as well, Miller said.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMiller said the innovation center has bred a new hope across the whole company, especially as the health care industry undergoes a major transformation.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cAs a large company, you wonder if you\u2019re going to be a part of it or if it\u2019s going to happen to you,\u201d he said. \u201cFor the first time in years, if you have a great idea you have somewhere to take it.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMore companies may soon have the same experience.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPeterson said the Institute is seeing more growth around Tech Square and is constantly talking with companies about different ways to engage in the area.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe\u2019re very excited about what\u2019s going on and we\u2019re very excited to see how it continues to grow and evolve,\u201d Peterson said. \u201cFive years from now it will look different than it does today, but I hope it retains this vibrancy, this energy and this innovative sprit.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EPresident Peterson and corporate executives discuss the rapid growth of innovation centers in Tech Square and the collaboration and success fueling Georgia Tech\u2019s innovation ecosystem.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"President Peterson, corporate executives discuss  the collaboration and success fueling Georgia Tech\u2019s innovation ecosystem"}],"uid":"27918","created_gmt":"2016-09-21 08:38:43","changed_gmt":"2022-05-26 17:09:36","author":"Laura Diamond","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2016-09-21T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2016-09-21T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"580121":{"id":"580121","type":"image","title":"Panelists discuss Georgia Tech\u0027s innovation ecosystem","body":null,"created":"1474406022","gmt_created":"2016-09-20 21:13:42","changed":"1475895391","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:56:31","alt":"Panelists discuss Georgia Tech\u0027s innovation ecosystem","file":{"fid":"207331","name":"17c10303-p5-012.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/17c10303-p5-012.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/17c10303-p5-012.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1398479,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/17c10303-p5-012.jpg?itok=Eo_7uWhT"}}},"media_ids":["580121"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.gatech.edu\/innovation-ecosystem","title":"Innovation Ecosystem fueled by Georgia Tech"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"},{"id":"131","name":"Economic Development and Policy"},{"id":"132","name":"Institute Leadership"}],"keywords":[{"id":"815","name":"economic development"},{"id":"3472","name":"entrepreneurship"},{"id":"170298","name":"Innovation Centers"},{"id":"77221","name":"innovation ecosystem"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39441","name":"Bioengineering and Bioscience"},{"id":"39431","name":"Data Engineering and Science"},{"id":"39451","name":"Electronics and Nanotechnology"},{"id":"39531","name":"Energy and Sustainable Infrastructure"}],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"106361","name":"Business and Economic Development"},{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"},{"id":"71881","name":"Science and Technology"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ELaura Diamond - Media Relations\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["laura.diamond@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}