Innovation That Matters
Our Initiative
Every firm, organization, and investor is trying to navigate the changes that are occurring in the world today. What will be the new consumer behaviors and new business demands? What role will technology play? How will innovation and R&D change in the new environment?
We started this initiative to focus our teaching and labs on Innovation that Matters in order to answer the pressing questions that arrive in light of these economic, technological, and societal changes. We are using our first set of industry roundtables as mini-advisory boards to understand how Berkeley and Berkeley students can best engage in the topics of Innovation that Matter today, as well as how to best collaborate with industry partners in the process.
To help industry adapt at this critical time, we created the Innovation X Network and Program focused on Innovation that Matters. How can companies innovate to create the biggest impact for industry and society now and in the future? Some current areas of interest include:
- the work at home economy
- the future of work
- re-evaluating supply chain
- healthcare disruptions
- entertainment post-COVID
- the future of the travel industry
- education reset
- social media as a news source
- touchless society
- the future of payments
The Innovation X Program is beginning in summer of 2020 with a series of industry roundtables to innovate in these topic areas. Discovery Projects will emerge from these initial discussion, where we will leverage the resources of UC Berkeley faculty and students to create innovative solutions in collaboration with Network members that will guide the future of industry.
Innovation X Roundtables
There are not currently any upcoming Roundtables. Please check back later and see previous Roundtables below.
Featured Course
Innovation X: Future of Industry Startup Lab
Advanced Topics in Entrepreneurship & Innovation
INDENG 190E/290 (3 Units)
Innovation X is an advanced venture project course based on the Innovation Engineering framework, a first-of-its-kind method for guiding innovation projects. Students will learn about the future of key industries and emerging technologies with project tracks in mobile network applications, 5G and Artificial Intelligence, Future of Work, Reimagining Education, Future of Entertainment, Re-Evaluating the Supply Chain, Advanced Manufacturing 4.0 and other topics from the Berkeley Innovation X initiative.
Instructors
Ikhlaq Sidhu
Aleks Gollu
Roundtable Archive
Spring 2022
Fall 2021
Spring 2021
Fall 2020
Summer 2020
Innovation X Network & Program
- Bi-weekly Innovation that Matters Roundtables with guest speakers and a limited audience that probe the topic of innovation across various industries.
- An Open Platform to share best practices, industry data, and results.
- Opportunities to propose Discovery Projects for UC Berkeley students in Data Science, Blockchain, and other emerging areas.
- Opportunities to enroll in new Sutardja Center Professional Programs like Up-Skilling@Berkeley: Data/AI and the Fall Engineering Leadership program.
- Access to leading edge materials for technical insight and innovation culture including training materials in Applied Data Science, Berkeley Method of Entrepreneurship, and Innovation Engineering.
News
Innovation X Learning Opportunities for Professionals
Interested in deeper engagement? Our professional programs help executives and industry leaders learn about the latest trends in technology innovation and how to make their companies more innovative.
- Engineering Leadership Professional Program - This program builds on the core skills of technical managers, engineers, and scientists. It is focused on technology firm situations and is condensed into only 4 1/2 months. video
- Silicon Valley Innovation Leadership Week - Responsible for leading your company's innovation? This program guides leaders to transform their organizations with new insights on strategy, disruptive technologies and creating innovative cultures. video
- UpSkilling @ UC Berkeley: Data-X Global -Today's companies require employees with the latest data science skills to gain insight on their customers, operations, and growth through their data. Join our instructor-led, professional-only track, guided by Berkeley faculty and industry experts. video
Innovation X Roundtables
Topics include Work at Home Economy, Future of Work, Re-evaluating Supply Chain, Healthcare Disruptions, Entertainment Post-COVID, Future of the Travel Industry, Education Reset, Social Media as a News Source, Touchless Society, and Future of Payments
Open Platform
Participate in our open platform to share best practices, industry data, and results.
Discovery Projects
Work directly with UC Berkeley students in areas such as Data Science, Blockchain, Data Business Models, and other X-Lab Courses.
Who's Involved
The Berkeley Innovation X Network is a collaboration between industry professionals, academics, and companies all seeking to innovate in ways that will have the biggest impact for society.
Spotlighted Members
Ting Chuk, Board Member, Sutardja Center
Peter Cnudde, Industry Fellow, Sutardja Center
Keval Desai, General Partner, InterWest Partners
Charles Fan, Founder and CEO, MemVerge
Shomit Ghose, General Partner, Onset Ventures
Charlie Giancarlo, CEO, Pure Storage
Aleks Gollu, CEO, 11Sight
Stefan Heuser, Former Vice President, Samsung
Christine Ho, CEO & Co-Founder, Imprint Energy
Andrew Laffoon, CEO & Co-Founder, Mixbook
Nir Merry, Vice President, Applied Materials
Cosmos Nicolaou, Principal, CloudEng LLC
Mike Olson, Former CSO, Cloudera; Chairman of the Board, Berkeleyside
Kim Polese, Chairman, CrowdSmart
In Sik Rhee, General Partner, Vertex Ventures
Ori Sasson, General Partner, Primera Capital
Ikhlaq Sidhu, Chief Scientist & Faculty Director, Sutardja Center
Pantas Sutardja, CEO, LatticeWork
Marc Tarpenning, Co-Founder, Tesla Motors
By the Numbers
Network Members
Network Members represent firms that want to focus on Innovation That Matters to adapt their innovation practices by working with UC Berkeley faculty and students.
Students
In the 2019-2020 academic year, the Sutardja Center for Entrepreneurship & Technology at the University of California, Berkeley educated nearly 2,000 students at UC Berkeley in innovation, technology, and entrepreneurship, representing diverse majors from business to social science to engineering.
Venture Projects
UC Berkeley students and professionals developed more than 300 projects this academic year in emerging technology areas such as blockchain, data science, sustainability, meat alternatives, internet of things, and other areas.
About Us
Since 2005, SCET has created the foundation of Berkeley’s entrepreneurship ecosystem which includes SkyDeck, the Fung Institute, the Engineering Leadership Professional Program, Global Venture Lab, and an extensive ecosystem of Silicon Valley and Global partners.
The Center is also known for developing the Berkeley Method, an internationally recognized approach to teaching technology entrepreneurship to undergraduates, innovation to Ph.D. students, and technology firm leadership to professionals and executives. As part of the Berkeley innovation ecosystem, the Sutardja Center also collaborates closely with the Jacob’s Institute for Design, the Haas Business School, and the CITRIS Foundry.
If you are interested in new ventures or innovation on the Berkeley campus or beyond, SCET is the place to be. The Center is located within the College of Engineering of UC Berkeley, specifically the Department Industrial Engineering & Operations Research.
