Issue 61 – December 2017
As 2017 comes to a close, the Florida Institute wishes to thank all of our partners and friends, with best wishes for a happy and healthy Holiday Season and a prosperous New Year.
Altavian Awarded GSA Schedule Contract
Altavian, Inc., a leading manufacturer of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) systems and components, was awarded the General Services Administration (GSA) Schedule contract. This contract facilitates agencies of the U.S. government to acquire Altavian’s UAV products. Altavian is the first U.S.-based UAV hardware manufacturer awarded a GSA Schedule contract. More details may be found here.
Florida Institute Supports the 8th Annual Florida Americas Competitiveness Exchange (ACXchange) on Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Dr. Jackson Streeter, CEO, and Dr. Lawrence Tinker, Entrepreneur-in-Residence, each spoke at the ACXchange, a six-day high-level tour of Orlando, Melbourne, Cape Canaveral, Palm Coast, St. Augustine, Gainesville, and Tallahassee for global senior leadership (pictured above). The goal of the tour was to showcase successful examples of entrepreneurship, innovation, strategic investments, and public-private partnerships that contribute to economic development at the local, national, and regional levels. Dr. Streeter spoke at Santa Fe Community College in Gainesville on December 7th about the importance of seed funds for emerging innovation companies, and the significant impacts of Institute programs on Florida’s economy. Dr. Tinker participated as a panelist at Florida State University’s National High Magnetic Field Laboratory on December 8th in Tallahassee, and highlighted the successes of several Institute portfolio companies.
NASA Program Showcases Partnership Opportunities with Private Industry
The Research Park at FAU hosted a presentation on the NASA Technology Transfer Program on December 6th in Boca Raton. Michael Lester, Research and Technology Partnership Manager of Kennedy Space Center (pictured above), spoke about NASA’s patent portfolio and the benefits that companies can achieve through licensing available technologies. Jane Teague, COO, and Heather Thompson, Marketing Coordinator, attended the meeting. More details may be viewed here.
Last Chance to Apply for the 2018 Florida Venture Capital Conference
Application Deadline is Wednesday, December 20, 2017
The Florida Venture Forum is accepting applications to present at the 2018 conference. The deadline to submit is December 20, 2017. These applications will be reviewed by a selection committee comprised of venture capitalists and private equity investors. If selected, presenting companies will be charged $599 for their first conference attendee and a $50 exhibit fee. To ensure optimum coverage, there is a discounted fee of $399 per additional attendee from the presenting company. More details and the application may be viewed here.
BioFlorida’s Day at the Capitol
BioFlorida will be hosting Day at the Capitol, a unique opportunity for the community to educate and advocate to advance the industry in the state. This members-only event will be held in Tallahassee on January 16 – 17 at the TCC Center for Innovation. More details and registration may be viewed here.
About Us
Formed by the Florida Legislature in 2007, the Florida Institute for the Commercialization of Public Research is a non-profit organization that works collaboratively with the technology licensing and commercialization offices of Florida’s state universities and private research institutions to leverage a $2.5B+ research base and form investable companies that create clean jobs in new industries that are driving the global economy. The Institute provides company building services, and seed funding through the Florida Technology Seed Capital Fund, to promising Florida startups. Seventy-two companies have been funded to date, and the Institute’s economic impact through June 30, 2017 was $970 million, with an annual return on investment of 26 times to the State of Florida.