On Tuesday evening, February 26th, the Pennovation Center was honored to host - for a second time so far this year - Vanessa Chan for Startup Grind! Vanessa is a professor of Practice in Innovation & Entrepreneurship at the University of Pennsylvania, as well as the Undergraduate Chair of the Materials Science Department and a member of the Executive Committee of Penn Health Tech – a new center between the Schools of Medicine and Engineering, where their mission is to develop new transformative medical devices.

Tax Season is right around the corner.  Luckily, on February 13th, PCI Ventures brought in their partner Stephano Slack for a day of tax prep programming at the Pennovation Center. CPAs from Stephano Slack, Sam Wolf and Mike Farren, hosted a lunch and learn where they reviewed necessary items startups need to address as they prepare for 2018 tax filings. Sam and Mike answered tax and accounting questions from six startup companies. Entrepreneur, Joe Devietti said," the open-ended Q&A period, and the handouts they [provided] were both super helpful!"  T

All day Saturday, February 9th, the Pennovation Center was thrilled to host FemmeHacks for the 3rd year running!

On Friday, January 25, the University of Pennsylvania's Graduate Association of Bioengineers (GABE) hosted their annual BETA Day at the Pennovation Center. Middle school students from six Philadelphia Public Schools met and learned from bioengineering graduate students about what it is like to study in STEM fields like robotics and neuroscience. They observed the Ghost Minitaur (from the GRASP Lab on Pennovation's 3rd floor) jump, watched robots operate across the surface of water, built DNA structures, and created slime, among other demonstrations and workshops!

Congratulations to the third cohort of the Penn College of Liberal & Professional Studies' Coding Boot Camp on their Demo Day and graduation!

To kick off the new year, PCI Ventures hosted Pennovation’s first author event on January 23rd! Author Haley Hoffman Smith discussed her new book, Her Big Idea: The Next Generation of Entrepreneurs, with entrepreneur, angel investor, and Penn Engineering professor, Vanessa Chan.  Her Big Idea is about creativity, ideation, failure, and women's empowerment.

We are proud to present the PCI Ventures 2018 Spotlight. This report showcases the inventors, entrepreneurs, and partners who are at the heart of what we do. Inside, you’ll find highlights of our impressive startups, profiles of our dedicated company leaders, and examples of the unique programs and services we provide. Download the PDF here!

PCI promotes Penn’s Industry partnerships and new technologies in San Francisco

Pennovation by the Numbers

158,400+ # of square feet leased at the Works site 

55,000+ # of square feet acquired from property across the street (~1.25 acres)

85# of companies in the Works, including at the Pennovation Center

350# of people working daily within this innovation ecosystem

93% of office and lab space leased at the Pennovation Center

62% of dedicated space leased in the newly renovated Office Building

71# of programs hosted at the Pennovation Center

5,000+# of attendees at events held at the Works

On December 18, the Pennovation community came together and celebrated the holidays over a delicious brunch featuring french toast and a hot chocolate bar. Members participated in a laughter-filled White Elephant gift exchange, watching eagerly as each gift was unwrapped to see which gift they wanted to steal. Board games, a blender, and an aromatherapy diffuser proved to be the most sought-after gifts! Over the course of the week, the community also decorated ornaments to hang on a tree in our lobby, representing each of our member companies.