KU Innovation Park

Uplift Coffee at the Park
2024-11-05 07:30 - 09:00 (America/Chicago) | KS
Stop by the Uplift Coffee Truck at the Park on Tuesday, November 5, from 7:30- 9:00 a.m. Grab a drink and a snack to get your Tuesday started off right.
The Uplift Coffee Truck is usually at the Park on the first Tuesday of every month.

Boo Break with BioKansas
2024-10-30 17:00 - 19:00 | KU Innovation Park Main Facility, 2029 Becker Dr, Lawrence, KS, 66047, United States
This event is organized by BioKansas. Click here to register.
Join BioKansas at KU Innovation Park for this quarter’s Bio Break! Known as Boo Break this month, join BioKansas staff, members of the board, and other folks in the network at the Park on October 30 between 5-7 p.m. The event will be at 2029 Becker Drive – the Park’s main facility – in the Chamber Room.
Register today by clicking here!

Lunch & Learn at the Park: Funding Strategies for Startups
2024-10-24 11:30 - 13:00 | KU Innovation Park Phase III, 2033 Becker Drive, Lawrence, KS
Discover the keys to unlocking essential funding for your startup from founders who have been there and done that. Join a panel of experienced entrepreneurs at the Park’s next Lunch and Learn on Thursday, October 24. The panel will share their insights on the types of capital needed to scale and sustain a startup, offering practical guidance for founders navigating the complexities of funding. Whether it’s generating revenue, securing debt, applying for grants, or pursuing venture capital, this session will give attendees a comprehensive look at the options available to startups at various stages of growth.
The Park’s October Lunch & Learn will be on Thursday, October 24, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Phase III auditorium, 2033 Becker Dr.
This event is free, but registration is required as lunch will be provided. Please register below. This event is open to anyone. You do not have to work for a Park company to attend. If you register and can no longer attend, please let us know. Registration will close on Friday, October 18.
ABOUT THE PANEL

Phil Reynolds, CEO of DevStride
With over 10 years of experience in the insurance industry, Phillip Reynolds is a visionary leader and a passionate innovator. He is the CEO and co-founder of DevStride, a company that is transforming the agile program and portfolio management landscape. He is also the Board Chair at BriteCore, a cloud-based insurance core system that he co-founded in 2008.
Phil is a SAFe SPC, a CPCU, and holds a certificate in Leading Change in Complex Organizations from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He speaks frequently on topics such as agile program management, product management, organizational design, technological innovation, and customer relationship management. He has received multiple honors and awards, including the Governor’s Missouri Entrepreneur of the Year, the Inc. 500, and the Go Magazine 20 under 30.
Phil is also an angel investor who serves as a consultant and board member in a range of portfolio companies. He is driven by the mission of empowering companies to deliver better products and services to their customers and stakeholders.
Taylor Clauson, Managing Partner at Abstraction Capital
Taylor started Abstraction Capital after a few years of teaching himself how to code. Prior to Abstraction, he spent 7 years at a Kansas City-based firm called OpenAir Equity Partners, investing in and building IoT and data companies. His career includes time spent in economic development and a stint at a cleantech startup. He was lucky enough to be in Class ’23 of the Kauffman Fellows Program.
Peter Petillo, Founder & CEO of Design-Zyme LLC

That Gelato & Sorbetto Guy at the Park
2024-10-22 14:00 - 16:00 | KU Innovation Park Main Facility, 2029 Becker Dr, Lawrence, KS, 66047, United States
Craving something cool and delicious for September in Kansas? Mark your calendar for October 22, from 2 to 4 pm, for a special pop-up at KU Innovation Park showcasing some favorite gelato and sorbetto creations!
Indulge in a variety of refreshing flavors, each crafted to perfection. We’re thrilled to introduce some exciting new fall flavors that capture the essence of the season. Imagine rich, creamy gelato infused with the warmth of autumn spices and fruity sorbettos bursting with the fresh taste of seasonal fruits. Whether you prefer the smoothness of gelato or the lightness of sorbetto, there’s something to delight every palate.
But this event is more than just a tasty treat—it’s a full sensory experience. Bring your friends, bring your family, and savor every scoop as you make sweet memories together.

Torched Goodness at the Park
2024-10-17 14:00 - 15:30 | KU Innovation Park Main Facility, 2029 Becker Dr, Lawrence, KS, 66047, United States
Torched Goodness will be at the Park on Thursday, October 17, from 2 to 3:30 p.m., serving creme brulee and iced coffee. Stop by and treat yourself!
Torched Goodness is regularly at the Park every third Thursday of the month.

Empowerment Expo
2024-10-10 08:30 - 15:00 | Burge Union, 1565 Irving Hill Rd, Lawrence, Kansas, 66044
This event is organized by the Chamber of Lawrence, Kansas. Click here to register on the Chamber’s website.
Looking to grow your side business to a full-time career but needing support?
Are you a large business interested in programs to support small, local businesses?
Wanting to learn more on marketing your business in-person and online?
What are the best practices for cyber security?
If so, The Chamber invites you to attend our first-ever Empowerment Expo! Our mission: create an inclusive space to learn, connect, and build together a powerful business community strengthened by the invaluable connections and knowledge gained.
The Empowerment Expo will be held on October 10 from 8:30am-3pm at Burge Union on KU Campus. This event will be comprised of 2 breakout sessions – each with 3 various topics, a panel discussion during hosted lunch, and an afternoon of networking with fellow attendees and our event partners (see below).
Tickets now on sale!
For just $25 per person, enjoy the event’s programming, refreshments throughout the day, hosted lunch, swag bag, networking, as well as the knowledge and connections made.
This event is open to the public!
**The Chamber has invested in complimentary Bluetooth earbuds and will gladly provide them to those utilizing the English-to-Spanish translation services in breakout rooms and panel discussions.
***If you need accommodations due to dietary needs, etc. please contact Jared Martin, Director of Events, at JMartin@LawrenceChamber.com prior to October 3.
Topics to be presented on include

Resources available to businesses of all sizes
Cybersecurity
Marketing and pitching your business to investors and clients
Start-Up and Entrepreneur guidance
Opportunities for large businesses to grow while supporting local, small businesses
Certifications for woman, veteran, and minority-owned entities

Presenters of breakout presentations include

NetWork Kansas
KU Small Business Development Center
Small Business Administration
Kansas Department of Commerce
KU Innovation Park
MCubed Technologies

Coretoberfest 2024
2024-10-09 15:30 - 17:30 | Burge Union, 1565 Irving Hill Rd, Lawrence, Kansas, 66044
This event is organized by the KU Office of Research.
How well do you know University of Kansas core labs? Come to Coretoberfest to learn how these facilities and the experts who lead them can support your KU research. Door prizes. Networking. Appetizers + drinks.
🗓️ Wednesday, Oct. 9
🕞 3:30 – 5:30
📍Burge Union, Forum C
Learn about KU’s range of core labs here.
Click here to RSVP to Coretoberfest.

Douglas County CORE: Launchpad
2024-10-04 - 2024-10-06 | KU Innovation Park Phase III, 2033 Becker Drive, Lawrence, KS
This event is being organized by Douglas County CORE. Register for this event by clicking here.
Introducing Launchpad – A Startup Weekend & Hackathon
Join us for a weekend-long ideation and prototyping event for aspiring and current entrepreneurs, designers, developers, and anyone wanting to learn more about the startup process. This event will be at KU Innovation Park, 2033 Becker Drive.
Check out the agenda for this exclusive event:
Friday, October 4th
3-4 p.m.: Training – high-level startup stages, how to find a business concept and create a pitch deck
4-5 p.m.: Training – how to create a basic prototype (UX/UI)
5-8 p.m.: Happy Hour & Team Formation – an opportunity to meet other attendees, talk more about your business issue, and recruit a team to help solve it! Or vice versa…get recruited by an entrepreneur building a team.
Saturday, October 5th
8-10 a.m.: Welcome – registration, refreshments, and rules
10 a.m.: START – Teams have 24 hours to develop pitch decks or prototypes
Sunday, October 6th
12-3 p.m.: Presentations – 7 min pitch and/or demo + 3 min Q&A
3-4 p.m.: Reception & AWARDS!!
This event is being organized by Douglas County CORE. Register for this event by clicking here.

Uplift Coffee at the Park
2024-10-01 07:30 - 09:00 | KS
Stop by the Uplift Coffee Truck at the Park on Tuesday, October 1, from 7:30- 9:00 a.m. Grab a drink and a snack to get your Tuesday started off right.
The Uplift Coffee Truck is usually at the Park on the first Tuesday of every month.

That Gelato & Sorbetto Guy at the Park
2024-09-25 14:00 - 15:00 | KU Innovation Park Main Facility, 2029 Becker Dr, Lawrence, KS, 66047, United States
Craving something cool and delicious for September in Kansas? Mark your calendar for September 25th, from 2 to 3 pm, for a special pop-up at KU Innovation Park showcasing some favorite gelato and sorbetto creations!

Indulge in a variety of refreshing flavors, each crafted to perfection. We’re thrilled to introduce some exciting new fall flavors that capture the essence of the season. Imagine rich, creamy gelato infused with the warmth of autumn spices and fruity sorbettos bursting with the fresh taste of seasonal fruits. Whether you prefer the smoothness of gelato or the lightness of sorbetto, there’s something to delight every palate.
But this event is more than just a tasty treat—it’s a full sensory experience. Bring your friends, bring your family, and savor every scoop as you make sweet memories together.

Lunch & Learn at the Park: Navigating the Future of AI
2024-09-25 11:30 - 13:00 | KU Innovation Park Phase III, 2033 Becker Drive, Lawrence, KS
As artificial intelligence continues to reshape industries and redefine the future of business, entrepreneurs and innovators must stay ahead of the curve. Join Ancestry.com founder Paul Allen at the Park for an insightful event that delves into the rapidly evolving world of AI technologies and their impact on the entrepreneurial landscape.
The Park’s September Lunch & Learn will be on Wednesday, September 25, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Phase III auditorium, 2033 Becker Dr.
This event is free, but registration is required as lunch will be provided. Please register below. This event is open to anyone. You do not have to work for a Park company to attend. If you register and can no longer attend, please let us know. Registration will close on Friday, September 20.
About Paul
Paul Allen is a visionary tech entrepreneur and evangelist driven by a desire to help individuals live their best lives.

Paul has founded eight companies. He calls himself a “platform entrepreneur” since his products are usually built on top of the latest tech platform or wave, such as CD-ROM, the World Wide Web, mp3 audio, or Facebook. For the past several years, Paul’s focus has been using machine learning and artificial intelligence to help individuals and organizations reach their full potential.
In 1990, Paul founded Infobases, whose mission was to digitize and publish the world’s most important books on CD ROM with a full-text search engine. This endeavor led directly to Ancestry.com—Paul’s best-known company—which sought to gather and publish the world’s genealogy records, family trees, and memories on the internet to enable everyone to discover their heritage. Over 100 million people have learned about their family history at Ancestry.com.
Paul’s most recent creation is Soar.com, a company whose mission—once again—is to uplift humanity. Paul is a strong advocate for using AI in positive ways, specifically to enable individuals to become the best version of themselves. When excellent training is paired with AI-generated feedback on actual performance, leaders, managers, founders, and individual contributors can achieve excellence faster than ever before.
Soar is an AI Studio that will form more than fifteen separate corporations to bring PURE AI (Personalized Uplifting Responsible Ethical AI) to many fields, including education, faith, government, health, finance, medicine, law, family history, and the workplace. Eventually, Soar will enable people to build and customize their own AI assistant (think of Jarvis from Iron Man or Janet from The Good Place) to help them learn, grow, make better decisions, and maximize their time on Earth.

Uplift Coffee at the Park
2024-09-03 07:30 - 09:00 | KS
Stop by the Uplift Coffee Truck at the Park on Tuesday, September 3, from 7:30- 9:00 a.m. Grab a drink and a snack to get back in the swing of things after a holiday weekend!
The Uplift Coffee Truck is usually at the Park on the first Tuesday of every month.

KU Season Opener: Play STATSdraft at Johnny's North
2024-08-29 18:30 - 21:00 | Johnny’s North, 401 N. 2nd St, Lawrence, KS, United States
The KU football season begins on Thursday, August 29 and we’re ready to celebrate!

Join STATSdraft at Johnny’s North to watch the Jayhawks take on Lindenwood. Sign up and play for STATSdraft, plus check out game-day and in-app specials from Johnny’s. Come support our team, our app, and the Johnny’s vibe!

STATSdraft drafts begin 30 minutes before game time.

STATSdraft is a fantasy-style sports gaming app from a new Lawrence start-up. Support, join, and play today: https://buff.ly/3QcLEvu

Lunch & Learn at the Park: Customer-Centric Strategies
2024-08-28 11:30 - 13:00 | KU Innovation Park Phase III, 2033 Becker Drive, Lawrence, KS
HOW TO VALIDATE AND LEARN…FAST
Customer discovery is vital to a startup’s ability to provide value, and not just for the early problem-validation stage. Ongoing success is dependent on a consistent loop of learning from, building with and serving customers. Whether you’re a seasoned entrepreneur or just starting out, customer discovery is vital to a startup’s success. It can help define the persona of your ideal customer and determine problems that need solutions. It can test your assumptions and realign your strategies with your customers’ needs.
Join the Park on August 28 to hear best practices for customer discovery to learn and iterate quickly. Serial entrepreneur, two-time startup founder, and startup consultant Jaime Gassmann will share tangible tools and approaches, like the art of asking questions and lean experimentation in pursuit of problem and business model validation.
This event is free, but registration is required as lunch will be provided. Please register below. This event is open to anyone. You do not have to work for a Park company to attend. If you register and can no longer attend, please let us know. Registration will close on Friday, August 23.
about Jaime

Jaime Gassmann is a two-time startup founder and former e-commerce entrepreneur. Her expertise as a startup consultant (under her All Innovate brand and also with her former startup Fluent) has helped dozens of companies de-risk their business models as they grow.

Torched Goodness at the Park
2024-08-15 14:00 - 15:00 | KU Innovation Park Main Facility, 2029 Becker Dr, Lawrence, KS, 66047, United States
Torched Goodness will be at the Park on Thursday, August 15, from 2 to 3 p.m., serving creme brulee and iced coffee. Stop by and treat yourself!

KU Innovation Park x 1 Million Cups
2024-07-24 09:00 - 10:00 | KU Innovation Park Main Facility, 2029 Becker Dr, Lawrence, KS, 66047, United States
On Wednesday, July 24, KU Innovation Park will present at 1 Million Cups Lawrence. 1MC provides a supportive, inclusive space for entrepreneurs and their communities to gather and connect, where they can work through business challenges and identify opportunities.
1MC Lawrence meets at the Park every Wednesday at 9 a.m. Follow the organization’s Facebook page to find out who is presenting each week.
Grab a cup of coffee, network with other local entrepreneurs and learn about KU Innovation Park!

Torched Goodness at the Park
2024-07-18 14:00 - 15:00 | KU Innovation Park Main Facility, 2029 Becker Dr, Lawrence, KS, 66047, United States
Torched Goodness will be at the Park on Thursday, July 17, from 2-3 p.m. with creme brulee and fresh juice. Stop by and treat yourself!

Lunch & Learn at the Park - An Intro to Growth Marketing
2024-07-17 11:30 - 13:00 | KU Innovation Park Phase III, 2033 Becker Drive, Lawrence, KS
Unlocking Digital Advertising Strategies
Join KU Innovation Park on July 17 for an informative session over lunch on growth marketing. Connor Borrego, the founder of playhaus, will share practical insights.
If you don’t have a big budget for generating leads and sales and have questions about recent changes to consumer privacy laws, this is the session for you. Get a brief history of the ads ecosystem and how it’s responding to those changes. You’ll also learn proactive steps to take with you to set your business up for success. With just $50 and some elbow grease, Connor will share his strategies for growth campaigns, along with growth hacking campaigns, first-party data warehousing, measurement and attribution basics, and the replacement of cookies.
This event is free, but a ticket is required. Please register below. If you register and can no longer attend, please let us know as soon as you’re able. This event is open to anyone. You do not have to work for a Park company to attend.
About Conner

Connor Borrego is the Founder and CEO of Playhaus, a growth and technology support agency that helps businesses harness the full power of their digital assets to support brand and business growth.
Connor holds a Master’s degree from Syracuse University and a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan, with formal training in Business Intelligence, Data Warehousing, Communications, and Entrepreneurship. This solid educational foundation underpins his decade of experience in operating and growing software-oriented businesses.
Connor’s career began as an early team member of AdAdapted, an Ann Arbor-based advertising technology company, where he helped grow demand for grocery retailers and consumer packaged goods brands. He then moved on to Google, where he served as a technical consultant for high-value technology startups, assisting them in leveraging Google’s advertising platform for growth. At Google, Connor was a top-performing consultant and a resident expert in AI and Machine Learning strategies for automated growth.
As a Midwest-based technology entrepreneur, Connor is committed to using web3 technologies to provide better options for small businesses and aspiring content creators, helping them stay competitive against large technology companies that dominate their industries and margins.

Uplift Coffee Truck at the Park
2024-07-16 07:30 - 09:00 | KU Innovation Park Main Facility, 2029 Becker Dr, Lawrence, KS, 66047, United States
Start your day with a treat from the Uplift Coffee Truck! Drinks and pastries will be available on Tuesday, July 16, between 7:30 and 9 a.m.
