From an Innov8x problem champion, Alan Lindsay:

Our company Vesmir came to the innovate X program with an idea that needed to be reduced to practice. We had a concept, a novel approach for tops picking, a technique used by oil companies, but we needed a way to actually show that it could be done. So that's what this program did for us. Students developed software. They put together test data sets. We now can say, yeah, this absolutely works and is better than other approaches on the market today. Now, in addition to that, the Innov8x program focused us on the key business questions and developing good relationships with our oil and gas partners. Having that focus helped us have a clear next step where we can go and test this product with those companies to take the next big steps.

My favorite moment with this project was when I was shown for the first-time results of a test that showed that the system worked. It was remarkable because we thought we were going to have to do lots of special adjustments. But now, right out of the gate, the system worked and it did so better than expected.

Educators of entrepreneurship must strive to practice what they preach. For example, we teach students how to set objectives and key metrics to track their progress. To deliver high quality programs, every educator must keep an eye on funding ( to acquire resources to support student programs), promotion (to get the word out), and content synthesis.

Most educators are savvy and creative enough to raise funds and promote their program. When it comes to curating and synthesizing useful content, the task is daunting. There's so much entrepreneurship content available. However, much of it is not practically useful for educating curious minds. Instead of relying on a popular book or method, we should bring more practical problems into our classrooms and allocate more time to learning-by-doing.

We are in the process of completing the construction to two new buildings, The Labriola Innovation Complex and the Beck Venture Center. The Labriola InnHub will be the largest making space in the western United States. As such, it will provide a multitude of opportunities for students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members to collaborate on innovation projects.

The Beck Venture Center will house our new venture program with the aim of accelerating the growth trajectory of scalable and investible startups.

Both of these building complement a teaching classroom building, McNeil Hall, which is in use already. Taken together, the three buildings form the space for a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem. In addition, we are in the process of seeking Graduate Council approval for a new interdisciplinary graduate degree program focused on innovation.