If the city of Louisville is to become a bastion of research, entrepreneurship and start-up companies, it will take the University of Louisville working with private partners to make it happen. That’s the goal of the UofL Commercialization and Translation Council (CTC).
The CTC was established last year to help UofL faculty get their inventions to market.
At the CTC’s April meeting, four UofL research groups presented their ideas and commercialization plans for feedback and advice from more than a dozen local thought leaders.
The UofL faculty are working in the areas of nanotechnology, cybersecurity, data-driven mobile applications and cancer drugs. They pitched their projects and ideas to a CTC group which included investors, serial entrepreneurs, GLI’s Enterprise Corp, Chrysalis Ventures and others who have successfully found funding and launched or sold their ideas.
UofL Speed School of Engineering faculty members and business partners John Naber and Jim Graham were among the presenters.
“It gave us very good feedback along with questions and ideas we had not considered,” Naber said. “One member brought up a potential application of our technology that we had never thought of before.”
Ted Smith, the city of Louisville’s Chief Innovation Officer, is a member of the council.
“These researchers have made some very compelling discoveries and inventions which can become great companies with the diverse industry experience of the council” Smith said.
The council meets twice a year.
