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University of Utah Hosts Speed Teching Event for Investors, Technology Managers From Multiple Utah Universities

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The Story

University of Utah Hosts Speed Teching Event for Investors, Technology Managers From Multiple Utah Universities

– Investors and Entrepreneurs Invited to Learn about Available Technologies at Utah Universities for Potential Partnerships –

Salt Lake City, Utah – May 7, 2013 – The University of Utah is calling it “speed teching” (pronounced teck-ing) – and it’s a lot like speed dating.

Today the state’s leading research institution welcomed investors, entrepreneurs, executives and other leading universities to its second annual University Innovators Speed Teching Showcase. The event, held at Zions Bank, is a lot like speed dating—university representatives get two minutes to pitch a technology to a table of investors, entrepreneurs and executives. When the buzzer rings, they must move to the next table.

The purpose of this event is to present as many technologies as possible to potential business partners. Most university technologies are early and need significant development before they are ready for the market. “The investment community provides all-important gap financing for university technologies,” says Mike Alder, director of BYU’s Technology Transfer Office. “This funding is used to take early-stage technologies from their initial phases and transform them into something commercializable.”

The event’s format was designed to make the event a win-win opportunity for both universities and investors. “Investors and university technology managers are busy people,” says Bryan Ritchie, director of the U’s Technology Commercialization Office (TCO). “This event allows universities to present technologies to 50+ investors at one time and it allows these same investors to hear about multiple great opportunities for investment in a short period of time.”

The event was also a great opportunity for universities to gain rapport with Utah’s investment community. “The Utah Innovators Showcase is an effective and quick way to get the word out to the investment community in Utah about our university’s promising technologies,” says Kent Millington, director of UVU’s Technology Commercialization Center.

The event was also an opportunity for most of the state’s universities to come together for the benefit of Utah’s economy. “The Utah Innovators Showcase is an effort to build the entire ecosystem of technology development in Utah, not just technology development at the University of Utah, BYU, Utah Valley University or at Weber State,” says Ritchie. “This event is a tremendous opportunity for all of us to come together and show our joint commitment to entrepreneurship, innovation and technology development in Utah.”

Individuals Available for Interviews:

University of Utah: Bryan Ritchie, Director, Technology Commercialization Office, 801-581-4701, bkritchie@tco.utah.edu.

Brigham Young University: Mike Alder, Director, Technology Transfer Office, 801-422-6266, malder@byu.edu.

Utah Valley University: Kent Millington, Director, Technology Commercialization Center, 801-863-2720, milliken@uvu.edu

Weber State University: James Taylor, Director, Office of Sponsored Projects and Technology Commercialization, (801) 626-6055, jamestaylor8@weber.edu.

Media:
Nick Swisher
P: 801-587-0510 (o) 801-518-0837 (m)
nick.swisher@tco.utah.edu

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