NE Chamber, University of Nebraska System co-host first statewide innovation and tech summit

​University of Nebraska (NU) President Ted Carter and NE Chamber President Bryan Slone today announced the agenda for “Innovative State”, Nebraska’s first statewide innovation and tech summit co-hosted by the two organizations. The summit is December 16, 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln’s Innovation Campus, 2021 Transformation Drive.    

Business executives, CIOs, operations and systems leaders, developers, researchers, educators and innovators are invited to attend, especially those in agriculture, manufacturing, finance, healthcare, technology and logistics. Tickets for the event are on sale now. For more information, or to register, visit nechamber.com. Conference passes will be available to members of the news media.

Bryan Slone, NE Chamber president, said Nebraska has the potential to be a leader in the technology ecosystem.    
“Global competition in tech and innovation has been heating up for years. The Blueprint Nebraska report identified that tech enablement in our largest sectors is vital to continued economic growth and how Nebraska-made food, goods and services compete globally,” he said. “If we don’t at least keep up, we fall behind. Ideally, though, we lead.”    
The event also includes sessions on:

• The imperative to quickly scale research and development (R&D) and technology investments in core sectors;

• NU’s vision for leveraging research and technology to build Nebraska;

• Accelerating growth in Nebraska’s technology and innovation ecosystem;

• Ag-tech opportunities; and

• Potential public policy solutions by sectors.

“Innovation is a key ingredient to Nebraska’s economic growth,” Carter said. “The University of Nebraska System – consistently ranked among the world’s best in bringing our faculty innovations to the market – is well-positioned to help lead the way. We look forward to gathering together with our partners in business, industry and education to share ideas on how we can do even more to build a vibrant innovation-based economy for Nebraska’s future.”

Joe Kava, Google’s vice president of data centers, will deliver the luncheon keynote address entitled, "Demystifying the Internet: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Where the Internet Lives".
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Event sponsors include Google, Nebraska Public Power District, NextEra Energy, 21st Century Equipment, LLC, Cox Communications, and Hamilton Telecommunications.