Explores innovative initiatives and ideas in our region
Upcoming Huddle:
Next Huddle is Energy-Industrial; June 12, 2025 From 9:00AM to 11:00AM Central
November 2025 Food &AgTech • February 2026, Human Health • April 2026, Digital Tech • November 2026, Energy-Industrial
Next Huddle is Energy-Industrial; June 12, 2025 From 9:00AM to 11:00AM Central
November 2025 Food &AgTech • February 2026, Human Health • April 2026, Digital Tech • November 2026, Energy-Industrial
The Huddle is an invitation-only virtual program where Midwest/Great Lakes region research organizations, companies and public agencies explore technologies that will attract big money and outstanding talent to the region to create innovative businesses that become category kings in rapidly developing markets.
Target Audience: Regional leaders interested in benefitting from big ideas by developing partnerships that leverage the resources of research universities, corporations, and public agencies to commercialize them.
Programming:
9am to noon CST
Chats: Discussions with leading thinkers about technologies, trends, innovative programs and ideas, ways to enhance business growth in the region, and other topics in the highlighted vertical.
Ecosystem Spotlight: Highlights accelerators/innovation programs that support company formation and growth and other regional resources.
Networking: Participants are randomly assigned to moderated discussion groups.
Past Presenters:
Computing:
Hack OHI/O: Cal King, Program Director, OHI/0, The Ohio State University; NuVention: AI: David Zaretsky, instructor (also Chief Scientist and Founder, Snips Media; Assistant Chair and Associate Professor of ECE at Northwestern University); High Alpha Innovation. Matthew Brady, Managing Director; Super.tech Labs: Pranav Gokhale, CEO and Co-Founder; Midwest Quantum Collaboratory: Mack Kira, Director (also Professor of Electrical Engineering, University of Michigan) • Chicago Quantum Exchange: Kate Waimey Timmerman, Executive Director;
Energy-Industrial:
ClearFlame Engine Technologies: BJ Johnson, Co-founder and CEO; Nomadic Venture Partners: Batchimeg Ganbaatar, Managing Partner; University of Wisconsin - Stout: Seth Hudson, Executive Director, Corporate Relations and Economic Engagement, UW-Stout Discovery Center; Aaron Bialzik, Director, UW-Stout Manufacturing Outreach Center (MOC); MxD: Jela Trask, Senior Director, Product Strategy; Realta Fusion: Kieran Furlong, CEO; Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E): Sam Wurzel, Technology to Market Advisor, Fusion Energy Programs; University of Illinois: Kiruba Haran, Engineering/CS Professor (also NSF POETS ERC Center Director, and Hinetics LLC Founder/CTO); Galvin Center for Electricity Innovation Zuyi Li, Associate Director (also Illinois Institute of Technology Engineering Professor); Evergreen Climate Innovations. Allie Gross, Program Manager; International Academy of Automation Engineering: Mary Bunzel, Executive Director (also Intel Manufacturing IOT Council Leader); Rockwell Automation: Kyle Crum, Director, Advanced Technology; Wichita State: Tonya Witherspoon, Associate Vice President, Industry Engagement and Applied Learning • Deloitte: Michael Schlotterbeck, Smart Factory Senior Manager, for the Smart Factory @ Wichita collaboration; Whirlpool Corp: Leonel Leal, Director, Global Advanced Manufacturing Engineering
Food & Ag Tech:
Yield Lab Institute: Larry Taylor, Board Member at Yield Lab Institute and Managing Partner at Yield Lab Asia Pacific; Plug and Play Tech Center: Mark McAllister, Venture Associate, AgTech and Animal Health; Carrot Ventures: Jim Hardin, Managing Partner; AgVentures Alliance: Spencer Stensrude, Chief Executive Officer; AgLaunch: Sarah Varble, Director of Entrepreneurship; Grand Farm: Brian Carroll, Director; Ag Startup Engine: Kevin Kimle, Co-Director (also Rastetter Chair of Agricultural Entrepreneurship at Iowa State University); DIAL (Digital Innovation in Agri-Food Systems) Ventures: Allan Gray, Executive Director; Illinois AgTech Accelerator: Jack Marck, Managing Director
Human Health:
Novy: Eric Engelmann, Partner; Recode Edge: Tom Denison, COO, and CEO Smart Health Catalyzer; Equalize Startups: Nichole Mercier, Co-Founder; AyrFlo Innovation Labs: Guelay Bilen-Rosas, Founder, CEO; OSF Healthcare: Kip McCoy, Vice President, Innovation Studio; Medical Alley: Filip Kostal, Startup Principal; Portal Innovations: E.J. Reedy, Director, Platform and Ecosystem; Creative Destruction Lab Health and Wellness: Shabaka Gibson, Director; SmartHealth Catalyzer: Tom Denison, Co-founder, CEO; Center for Biomedical Informatics, University of Missouri Columbia: Peter Tonellato, Director; Epic Cosmos: Jackie Gerhart, Vice President, Clinical Informatics; Phil Lindemann, Vice President, Data and Research.
Other Accelerators and Investors:
Foothill Ventures: Eric Rosenblum, Managing Partner; gener8tor: Troy Vosseller, Co-Founder Cantos VC: Andrew Kirima, Analyst; Argonne National Laboratory Chain Reaction Innovations: Dick Co, Director; Mason Wells: Asif Naseem, Executive Operating Partner (also M+ Vision Visiting Fellow, MIT; Adjunct Professor, Michigan State University); HG Ventures: Ginger Rothrock, Senior Director; Ironspring Ventures: Ty Findley, Managing Partner; The Heritage Group Accelerator. Nida Ansari, Managing Director; Hub88: Kenn Miller, Founding Chairman; AlphaLab Gear: Matt Virlinich, Senior Program Manager, Manufacturing Programs; Creative Destruction Lab: Matthew Platt, Global Venture Recruitment Lead; Carnegie Mellon: Reed McManigle, Mentor in Residence; Senior Manager, Business Development and Licensing; IndieBio: Alex Kopelyan, Senior Director and Partner; Activate Anywhere: Calvin Cupini, Senior Investment Manager, Activate; Impact Science Ventures: Robert Ethier, Co-founder and Managing Partner; Newlab Detroit: Carlos Trevino, Vice President, Products and Programs, Newlab; Chain Reaction Innovations at Argonne National Lab: Dick Co, Director
More:
Midwest Startup City Rankings: Victor Gutwein, Founder and Managing Partner, M25; Block Center for Technology and Society: Steve Wray, Executive Director; Columbus Dispatch: Mark Williams, Business Reporter; University at Buffalo: Richard Kim, Director of Startup Ventures; Mentors in Tech (MinT). Kevin Wang, Founder; Michigan State: Rich Chylla, Past Chair, AUTM and Executive Director MSU Technologies
Target Audience: Regional leaders interested in benefitting from big ideas by developing partnerships that leverage the resources of research universities, corporations, and public agencies to commercialize them.
Programming:
9am to noon CST
Chats: Discussions with leading thinkers about technologies, trends, innovative programs and ideas, ways to enhance business growth in the region, and other topics in the highlighted vertical.
Ecosystem Spotlight: Highlights accelerators/innovation programs that support company formation and growth and other regional resources.
Networking: Participants are randomly assigned to moderated discussion groups.
Past Presenters:
Computing:
Hack OHI/O: Cal King, Program Director, OHI/0, The Ohio State University; NuVention: AI: David Zaretsky, instructor (also Chief Scientist and Founder, Snips Media; Assistant Chair and Associate Professor of ECE at Northwestern University); High Alpha Innovation. Matthew Brady, Managing Director; Super.tech Labs: Pranav Gokhale, CEO and Co-Founder; Midwest Quantum Collaboratory: Mack Kira, Director (also Professor of Electrical Engineering, University of Michigan) • Chicago Quantum Exchange: Kate Waimey Timmerman, Executive Director;
Energy-Industrial:
ClearFlame Engine Technologies: BJ Johnson, Co-founder and CEO; Nomadic Venture Partners: Batchimeg Ganbaatar, Managing Partner; University of Wisconsin - Stout: Seth Hudson, Executive Director, Corporate Relations and Economic Engagement, UW-Stout Discovery Center; Aaron Bialzik, Director, UW-Stout Manufacturing Outreach Center (MOC); MxD: Jela Trask, Senior Director, Product Strategy; Realta Fusion: Kieran Furlong, CEO; Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E): Sam Wurzel, Technology to Market Advisor, Fusion Energy Programs; University of Illinois: Kiruba Haran, Engineering/CS Professor (also NSF POETS ERC Center Director, and Hinetics LLC Founder/CTO); Galvin Center for Electricity Innovation Zuyi Li, Associate Director (also Illinois Institute of Technology Engineering Professor); Evergreen Climate Innovations. Allie Gross, Program Manager; International Academy of Automation Engineering: Mary Bunzel, Executive Director (also Intel Manufacturing IOT Council Leader); Rockwell Automation: Kyle Crum, Director, Advanced Technology; Wichita State: Tonya Witherspoon, Associate Vice President, Industry Engagement and Applied Learning • Deloitte: Michael Schlotterbeck, Smart Factory Senior Manager, for the Smart Factory @ Wichita collaboration; Whirlpool Corp: Leonel Leal, Director, Global Advanced Manufacturing Engineering
Food & Ag Tech:
Yield Lab Institute: Larry Taylor, Board Member at Yield Lab Institute and Managing Partner at Yield Lab Asia Pacific; Plug and Play Tech Center: Mark McAllister, Venture Associate, AgTech and Animal Health; Carrot Ventures: Jim Hardin, Managing Partner; AgVentures Alliance: Spencer Stensrude, Chief Executive Officer; AgLaunch: Sarah Varble, Director of Entrepreneurship; Grand Farm: Brian Carroll, Director; Ag Startup Engine: Kevin Kimle, Co-Director (also Rastetter Chair of Agricultural Entrepreneurship at Iowa State University); DIAL (Digital Innovation in Agri-Food Systems) Ventures: Allan Gray, Executive Director; Illinois AgTech Accelerator: Jack Marck, Managing Director
Human Health:
Novy: Eric Engelmann, Partner; Recode Edge: Tom Denison, COO, and CEO Smart Health Catalyzer; Equalize Startups: Nichole Mercier, Co-Founder; AyrFlo Innovation Labs: Guelay Bilen-Rosas, Founder, CEO; OSF Healthcare: Kip McCoy, Vice President, Innovation Studio; Medical Alley: Filip Kostal, Startup Principal; Portal Innovations: E.J. Reedy, Director, Platform and Ecosystem; Creative Destruction Lab Health and Wellness: Shabaka Gibson, Director; SmartHealth Catalyzer: Tom Denison, Co-founder, CEO; Center for Biomedical Informatics, University of Missouri Columbia: Peter Tonellato, Director; Epic Cosmos: Jackie Gerhart, Vice President, Clinical Informatics; Phil Lindemann, Vice President, Data and Research.
Other Accelerators and Investors:
Foothill Ventures: Eric Rosenblum, Managing Partner; gener8tor: Troy Vosseller, Co-Founder Cantos VC: Andrew Kirima, Analyst; Argonne National Laboratory Chain Reaction Innovations: Dick Co, Director; Mason Wells: Asif Naseem, Executive Operating Partner (also M+ Vision Visiting Fellow, MIT; Adjunct Professor, Michigan State University); HG Ventures: Ginger Rothrock, Senior Director; Ironspring Ventures: Ty Findley, Managing Partner; The Heritage Group Accelerator. Nida Ansari, Managing Director; Hub88: Kenn Miller, Founding Chairman; AlphaLab Gear: Matt Virlinich, Senior Program Manager, Manufacturing Programs; Creative Destruction Lab: Matthew Platt, Global Venture Recruitment Lead; Carnegie Mellon: Reed McManigle, Mentor in Residence; Senior Manager, Business Development and Licensing; IndieBio: Alex Kopelyan, Senior Director and Partner; Activate Anywhere: Calvin Cupini, Senior Investment Manager, Activate; Impact Science Ventures: Robert Ethier, Co-founder and Managing Partner; Newlab Detroit: Carlos Trevino, Vice President, Products and Programs, Newlab; Chain Reaction Innovations at Argonne National Lab: Dick Co, Director
More:
Midwest Startup City Rankings: Victor Gutwein, Founder and Managing Partner, M25; Block Center for Technology and Society: Steve Wray, Executive Director; Columbus Dispatch: Mark Williams, Business Reporter; University at Buffalo: Richard Kim, Director of Startup Ventures; Mentors in Tech (MinT). Kevin Wang, Founder; Michigan State: Rich Chylla, Past Chair, AUTM and Executive Director MSU Technologies
For more information, or to discuss an invitation to attend, contact:
Kathleen Gallagher, 5 Lakes Institute Executive Director: [email protected]
Tim Honaker, Midwest University Research Network (MRUN) President: [email protected]
Kathleen Gallagher, 5 Lakes Institute Executive Director: [email protected]
Tim Honaker, Midwest University Research Network (MRUN) President: [email protected]