Dr. Valerie Taylor, senior associate dean for academic affairs and the Royce E. Wisenbaker professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, is a co-PI on a National Science Foundation (NSF) project establishing an I-Corps Node focused on promoting innovation in the Southwest region of the United States.
The Southwest Alliance for Entrepreneurial Innovation Node (SAEIN) will leverage the combined entrepreneurial experience and extensive research capabilities of The University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M University and Rice University.
The three universities received a three-year, $3.75 million grant from NSF to become a regional innovation hub that translates academic research into useful technologies with commercial applications.
The SAEIN will be based at UT-Austin, which is the grant’s principal investigator.
In addition to Taylor, Dr. Richard Lester, clinical associate professor and executive director of the Center for New Ventures and Entrepreneurship at Texas A&M’s Mays Business School, will serve as a co-PI.