Blog Posts - InnovationNew Jersey

Is NJ Still ‘Hot’ for Life Sciences Innovation?

2/8/2019

From New Jersey Business -- Feb. 8, 2019
Governor Phil Murphy last night reminded an audience of approximately 700 people at BioNJ’s 2019 Annual Dinner Meeting & Innovation Celebration, held at the Hilton East Brunswick, that pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson’s co-founder Robert Wood Johnson once walked down a New Brunswick street to have lunch with none other than Thomas Edison himself. Of such high-powered collaboration, Murphy said, “In a nutshell, this is the type of synergy we are seeking to create, once again, in New Jersey.” Read more here.

Rutgers BLT initiative offers grant and funding access to minority startups

2/8/2019

From NJBIZ
The second annual Black and Latino Tech initiative, a pre-accelerator program sponsored by The Rutgers University Center for Urban Entrepreneurship and Economic Development, is accepting applications for its 2019 cohort. BLT’s mission is to provide black and Latino startup owners and founders with educational training, mentorship, networking and funding access from public and private sources. Read more here.

TechLaunch BullPen Honors Tech Startups

2/8/2019

From New Jersey Business

It was raining talent at the most recent TechLaunch BullPen. A standing-room-only crowd of investors, mentors, academia, students and business people heard investor pitches from a select group of presenting companies representing a broad swath of business models. When the votes in the room were tallied, SiLAS emerged as the clear winner of both the coveted Investor Panel Award and the popular Audience Award, both of which in answer to the question, “Which company is the most fundable?” Read more here.

Report: D.C. is the World’s Top Entrepreneurial Talent Market

2/5/2019

The D.C. metro has moved up the ranks in the annual Global Cities Talent Competitiveness Index, landing the No. 1 spot for the world’s best entrepreneurial talent. It’s a big upgrade from last year, when the region ranked No. 6, with Zurich on top. Read more here.

Rutgers School of Dental Medicine Makes New Sleep Apnea Treatment More Accessible

2/2/2019

New Brunswick, NJ - Rutgers School of Dental Medicine is making a new form of sleep apnea treatment available to Medicaid patients in New Jersey who previously lacked access to the less invasive device. It’s estimated that 22 million Americans suffer from sleep apnea, which can cause high blood pressure and acid reflux disease and increase the risk of stroke. But 80 percent of cases go undiagnosed. For lower-income patients, lack of affordable health care makes it even harder to get the help they need.

Rowan Announces $3+ Million in Funding for Research in Camden

2/2/2019

Glassboro, NJ - Rowan University has announced the first grants of the Camden Health Research Initiative, a $50-million pledge by the University to fund research in and/or impacting the City of Camden during the next 10 years. Rowan awarded the initial grants, totaling $3.06 million, to faculty working on 24 projects in 16 departments/divisions in the Cooper Medical School of Rowan University (CMSRU), School of Osteopathic Medicine, Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering, College of Science & Mathematics, College of Education, College of Communication & Creative Arts, and Cooper University Health Care. All proposals were externally peer reviewed.

Here’s to Your Health: Support Biomedical Innovation in 2019

2/2/2019

Trenton, NJ - According to Debbie Hart, "How many times did you hear, “Here’s to good health” this holiday season? As we age, we become increasingly aware of the importance of “good health.” That’s one reason so many people felt hopeful about a recent announcement by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that the agency approved more than 50 new molecular entities in 2018, including 16 approvals for cancer drugs, as well as drugs for HIV, Hepatitis C and rare diseases. Twenty of the new drugs came from companies with a footprint in New Jersey."

Rutgers I-Corps Site: Applications are open for Cohort 4 which will begin in the spring of 2019

2/2/2019

New Brunswick, NJ - Do you have an idea that you think has commercial potential? Do you want to learn some key concepts helpful in business? Do you dream of starting a company sometime in the future? If your answers are yes, then the Rutgers I-Corps™ Site program may be just what you are looking for. Please read below for additional information and eligibility guidelines.

Rowan’s 3+1 Engineering Programs Look to Meet Industry Demand

2/2/2019

Mt. Laurel, NJ - Rowan University and Rowan College at Burlington County (RCBC) have announced two new 3+1 programs in engineering technology to meet the great demand for workers who are experts in the practical application of science and engineering concepts in the workplace. These new degrees, Electrical Engineering Technology and Mechanical Engineering Technology, will be offered exclusively at RCBC’s Mount Laurel Campus as part of Rowan University’s Engineering Technology Department, which was recently created in the University’s Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering.

Princeton Review Ranks NJIT Among Top "Schools With Exceptional ROI for Your Tuition Investment"

2/2/2019

Newark, NJ - New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) is one of the nation’s best colleges for students seeking a superb education with great career preparation and at an affordable price, according to The Princeton Review®.

One Way to Finance Tech Startups Outside of Superstar Cities

2/2/2019

Cambridge, MA - According to Edward Jung, "Is anyone really surprised by Amazon’s announcement that it will build its new headquarters in two large, affluent East Coast metropolitan areas? Amazon’s decision is yet another data point in the increasing concentration of wealth in big multinational companies and large urban centers. Meanwhile, in smaller cities and middle-income regions across the globe, even the best ideas and most promising new businesses can die on the vine for lack of access to markets and capital. Those regions need new forms of innovation financing to prosper in an age of globalized commerce. With the right funding, many communities across the U.S. can — and should — build their own locally-sourced innovation economies. A new type of financial instrument, local innovation bonds, would establish a pool of debt financing for tech startups that stay locally owned and managed as they grow."

Recent Research: Identifying peer states for technology-based economic development

2/2/2019

Columbus, OH - According to Jonathan Dworin, "While competition between states over business incentives and headquarters attraction is often derided, new research published in the Journal of Technology in Society suggests that competition in technology-based economic development is hardly a zero-sum game. In Persistent peers and the rhetoric of state economic competition, author David Schwarzkopf from Bentley University uses cluster analysis to track state progress across 53 TBED measures published by the NSF through its Science & Engineering Indicators series. Over a 12-year study period, Schwarzkopf finds that all 50 states improved on more than half of the variables used, with more than 60 percent of the states moving in the same direction on 80 percent of the measures. He argues that although states clearly compete, more focus is needed on how each state is making progress while also working to improve on their deficiencies."

Useful Stats: NSF SBIR Success Rates by State (2008-2017)

2/2/2019

Columbus, OH - According to Jonathan Dworin, "The National Science Foundation (NSF), the fifth largest distributor of SBIR awards among federal agencies, received more than 20,000 proposals over the decade long period from 2008 to 2017, approving more than 3,600 (16.8 percent), according to an SSTI analysis of NSF data. NSF SBIR awards are the least concentrated of all federal agencies, as measured by share of awards going to firms with more than 10+ awards. An SSTI analysis found that New Hampshire (28 percent success rate), Wisconsin (26.7 percent success rate), and Louisiana (24.7 percent) were the most likely to convert their NSF SBIR applications into awards."

How Big Companies Can Innovate Like Small Startups

2/2/2019

Philadelphia, PA - Gary Pisano, professor of business administration at Harvard, rejects the narrative that only scrappy startups are nimble enough to innovate. He believes large, established firms can adapt and evolve, but they have to go about it differently than their small-sized competitors. In his new book, Creative Construction: The DNA of Sustained Innovation, Pisano offers a three-pronged approach for innovation based on more than three decades of research and consulting with companies that stayed a step ahead. He recently joined the Knowledge@Wharton radio show on SiriusXM to talk about his book and explain why innovation for big firms isn’t as simple as “be like Uber.”

Governor Murphy Announces Grants to Advance “Computer Science for All” Initiative

2/2/2019

Belleville, NJ - As part of Governor Phil Murphy’s “Computer Science for All” initiative to advance STEM education, the Governor and the New Jersey Department of Education today announced that the State will award $2 million in Advanced Computer Science Grants to 29 schools across New Jersey. The funding expansion marks the first time that New Jersey has specifically funded an expansion of computer science education and will give 900 additional high school students access to computer science coursework.