SSTI Digest

Groups in the greater Detroit and Pittsburgh regions recently released reports documenting the progress these metros have made over the past few years in building thriving technology economies. Detroit’s Automation Alley found that tech industry employment in the region grew by 15 percent in 2011, outpacing growth in all of the other 14 regions used as benchmarks in the study. A report on Pittsburgh’s investment economy, conducted by Ernst & Young LLP and Innovation Works, shows the region to have grown its per capita venture capital investment levels by 34.6 percent during the 2009-2013 period. Detroit ranks second only to Chicago in tech employment among Midwest cities, according to the Automation Alley report. The researchers estimate the region’s total number of technology jobs exceeds that of San Jose. Detroit’s concentration of tech employment in 2011, the percentage of all jobs that are focused on technology, was the highest in the Midwest. Many of these jobs are associated with the region’s automotive industry, which remains the largest in the country. About 9.7 percent of all advanced automotive employment in the U.S. remains in…

In an effort to help spur economic prosperity, several universities have unveiled new initiatives to connect potential entrepreneurs with university resources and help integrate the entrepreneurs into their region’s innovation ecosystem. In partnership with other organizations, these programs are intended to position each respective university as a driver of regional economic development through the provision of education, training initiatives and other support services. The initiatives include new programs at Clarion University in Pennsylvania, Carroll University in Wisconsin and New York University (NYU).  The Blackstone Charitable Foundation also announced it will expand LaunchPad, a university-led entrepreneurship program, to a partnership that includes three universities in Southern California. As part of the Make It in PA initiative, Gov. Tom Corbett committed $300,000 to support the Clarion Regional Innovation Support Program (CRISP), an initiative aimed at supporting entrepreneurship through a collaborative regional support system. CRISP will be comprised of the Clarion University Center for Applied Research & Intellectual Property Development, the…

John Sider has accepted a position with Pennsylvania State Senator Vincent Hughes and the PA Senate Democratic Caucus to work on economic development policy and projects, effective April 1. Currently, Sider is the managing director of statewide initiatives at Ben Franklin Technology Partners. Vic Nole has joined the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc. as director of business development and entrepreneurial activity. Norris Tolson, who has been the president and CEO of the North Carolina Biotechnology Center since 2007, will retire from the organization on June 30.

Patrick Gallagher has been named the 18th chancellor and chief executive officer of the University of Pittsburgh. Gallagher currently serves as acting deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce and director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Ben Walker has joined the Innovation Center of the Rockies team as the program manager working directly with CSU Ventures. Bryan Toney has been named The University of North Carolina at Greensboro’s associate vice chancellor for Economic Development. Boston Mayor Martin Walsh announced the appointment of John Barros as chief of his Economic Development Cabinet.

Rich Luank, President & CEO of Innovation Works, recently was elected to the State Science and Technology (SSTI) Board of Trustees. Lunak will assist in providing strategic guidance and oversight of SSTI’s operations as the group works to encourage economic growth through science, technology and innovation. “Rich is an accomplished leader who brings policy experience and a technical background to the field,” said Dan Berglund, SSTI president and CEO. “We are honored to have him helping SSTI grow and further its mission.” “I’m excited to join the SSTI Board of Trustees. As a leader of a venture development organization, I know first-hand the important role SSTI performs in identifying and setting best practices, connecting people, and advocating for innovative solutions to regional, statewide and national economic issues related to technology and science. I'm looking forward to helping SSTI and its members improve U.S. competitiveness and innovation,” Lunak said. As part of a statewide network that brings together talent, ideas and technologies to serve as a catalyst for advancing the state’s…

Last week the White House hosted a Google Hangout on the American Maker Movement and highlighted some dynamic programs that are turning the Maker Movement into a legitimate economic development tool for regions across the country. Event speakers highlighted the rapidly shifting industrial climate in the U.S. as a main driver of the Maker Movement. Low-cost energy, low-cost data storage, and an increasingly skilled workforce are supporting the explosive growth of industrial artisan entrepreneurship. Cities across the country are moving to provide the cooperative workspace Makers need to develop, test, and scale their businesses. Public institutions also are being transformed into Makers Spaces. The Pittsburgh Kids Museum serves as a national model for public support of Makers programs, providing public space and outreach events at local libraries for Makers programming. The Maker Corps, highlighted by the White House as a model program for increasing opportunities for STEM education, places Maker mentors in high-need communities across the country. The organization has even recently become a VISTA program, using Americorps funding to place mentors in high-…

At the close of many recent legislative sessions, states across the country moved to strengthen their high-tech workforce while supporting industry cluster development. In Washington state, the Working Washington Agenda has received bipartisan support to strengthen the state’s economic foundations on a wide range of fronts. The final bill provides funding for STEM education, improves workforce training programs, and assists with the growth of key industries. One highlight of legislation supporting cluster development is the creation of a Joint Center for Aerospace Technology Innovation, backed by $1.5 million in state funding, which is being used to fund 18 research projects across the state. Each grant connects an in-state aerospace company with public university partners to support the commercialization of new technologies. Currently, the University of Washington, Washington State, and Western Washington are participating. The program is designed to assist aerospace companies of all sizes, and includes $300,000 in grants for 12 high schools to adopt aerospace assembly programs. The Working Washington Agenda also directs $40 million toward the creation of…

According to the Philadelphia Business Journal, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett has signed off on the creation of a new program, InnovatePA, which will auction off $100 million in tax credits to generate state revenue that will be invested in the funding of tech and biotech startups. The state auction will sell off deferred insurance-premium tax credits to insurance companies that pay Pennsylvania's insurance-premium tax. The sale is expected to generate at least $75 million in funds, with credits not being sold below 70 percent of their face value. Insurance companies that purchase the credits would be able to claim up to $20 million annually beginning in 2017, with unused credits expiring in 2026. The annual cap will limit state spending while making up-front investments in high-tech businesses that create jobs and boost regional economic development. Of these auction proceeds, $37.5 million, or roughly 50 percent, would go towards funding Ben Franklin Technology Partners, which provides funding and support for tech and biotech companies across the state. Another $33.75 million, or roughly 45 percent, would support the Ben Franklin Technology…

While public debate rages over the role of surveillance in our society, one particularly infamous government surveillance technology, drones, is being prepared for private sector deployment in the U.S. Drone-related technologies are predicted to revolutionize commerce in the U.S., with industry projections valuing their initial deployment as an $82 billion boost to the national economy. In preparation for Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rollout of drone-use regulations in 2015, entrepreneurs, multinational corporations and state governments are scrambling to be in a competitive position to benefit. While drones have been scrutinized in the press for their extensive use in overseas counter-terrorism operations, entrepreneurs at universities and startups across the country are experimenting with hundreds of potential civilian uses for the technology. State-by-state projections for the economic impacts of drone technology are widespread and robust. California is expected to win big because of its drone manufacturing base while Midwestern states like Kansas are expected to capitalize from the industry's agricultural applications. One of the key selling…

Ben Franklin Technology Partners (BFTP), Pennsylvania's tech-based economic development program, released a joint study by the independent Pennsylvania Economy League and KLIOS Consulting, which determined the economic impact of the organization between 2007-2011. These numbers aggregate the impact of the four regional Ben Franklin Technology Partners. In total, the activities of the organizations have resulted in 7,485 new jobs in client firms and an additional 12,715 indirect jobs as a result of these clients' activities, for a total of 20,200 jobs. The activities of BFTP increased the Gross State Product by $6.6 billion. The client companies directly returned $358 million in additional state taxes and a further $144 million in state taxes was received from related client services. In total, $502 million in state tax revenue was received, which represents a 3.6:1 tax return to the state on $137.7 million in state investments during the five year period.

In the January 2011 edition of the Harvard Business Review, Michael Porter and Mark Kramer called for a redesign of the existing business model and their role within society. Instead of simply embracing corporate responsibility and corporate giving, businesses should work to create shared value within their community by helping to support local clusters and institutions to address societal needs and issues. In the face of great uncertainty for the overall venture capital industry, it seems that some corporations might be heeding their advice. Over the last few years, there has been a rapid rise in the number of corporate-backed venture capital funds with long-term acquisition and absorption as the driving force. However, the lack of early stage capital in regions across the country also may be ushering in an era of public-private partnerships to create industry-led, locally focused venture capital funds. In the last three years almost 182 corporate venture funds (CVCs) have been launched and in 2012, 16 percent of all companies acquired had CVC backing, according to a recent article from Forbes magazine. Many multinationals headquartered in tech hubs (e.g., New York,…

Recent research on the evolving role of universities finds the emergence of an entrepreneurial society has contributed to a broader and more fundamental role for universities — that is to provide thinking, leadership and activity to enhance entrepreneurship capital. University-based entrepreneurship programs and initiatives seem to have gained steam following the recession with federal support for programs to enhance entrepreneurial efforts in states and regions and increased interest from students and out-of-work individuals. Freestanding entrepreneurship schools and creative programming to encourage risk taking are two recent examples of the evolving role of universities in the knowledge-driven economy. In From the Entrepreneurial University to the University for the Entrepreneurial Society, author David B. Audretsch argues that what distinguishes the entrepreneurial university from the role of the university in the entrepreneurial society is the scope of its mission. While the role of the entrepreneurial university is to create new businesses, ventures and commercialization where it previously did not exist, or to increase the amount of tech transfer from the…