News
April 26
2022
Penn State alumnus Sean Black, co-founder of Trulia, focuses energy on Knock.com
Penn State alumnus Sean Black, 1996, entered the real estate world as a high school student – first working for his brother who was a contractor and then becoming fully immersed when he moved to New York after earning his master’s degree. Soon after moving to New York City in 2001, he happened to cross paths with New York City real estate mogul and future Shark Tank star Barbara Corcoran, who offered to take him under her wing as vice president at The Corcoran Group.
April 26
2022
4 startups graduate from Happy Valley LaunchBox FastTrack Accelerator
Four startups founded by Penn State students and community entrepreneurs graduated from the Happy Valley LaunchBox powered by PNC Bank FastTrack Accelerator this April. FastTrack Accelerator, a 15-week program, helps early-stage startups refine and test their target markets and build actionable plans to acquire customers or expand their businesses.
April 25
2022
Tuft & Needle co-founder JT Marino featured on 'Dare to Disrupt' podcast
In the sixth episode of Invent Penn State’s “Dare to Disrupt” podcast, host Ryan Newman interviews JT Marino, who studied math and computer science at Penn State. Marino describes how he and his co-founder determined all the pain points of buying a mattress to create their customer-first, mattress-in-a-box solution called Tuft & Needle, which they grew to more than $250 million in sales.
April 22
2022
Venture & IP Conference to showcase Penn State research innovations
The Invent Penn State Venture & IP Conference, one of the largest tech startup conferences in the Mid-Atlantic, will take place April 28-29 at the Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center. The conference will highlight innovations from high-growth and emerging markets, showcase disruptive technologies and early-stage companies born from Penn State research, and feature two special keynote events.
April 22
2022
Students explored innovation, entrepreneurship during Startup Week
Penn State Startup Week powered by PNC, which took place from April 4-8, inspired students across the commonwealth with a wide array of events showcasing and celebrating innovation and entrepreneurship, from expert panels and keynote speakers to workshops and networking opportunities.
April 21
2022
Lehigh Valley LaunchBox creates $145,000 endowment for long-term sustainability
Eight Advisory Board members from Lehigh Valley LaunchBox powered by Penn State have created a $145,000 endowment to sustain the business accelerator’s long-term efforts. The board members contributed $72,500 to the fund, which was matched by Penn State.
April 21
2022
Lehigh Valley LaunchBox creates $135,000 endowment for long-term sustainability
Seven Advisory Board members from Lehigh Valley LaunchBox powered by Penn State have created a $135,000 endowment to sustain the business accelerator’s long-term efforts. The board members contributed $67,500 to the fund, which was matched by Penn State.
April 15
2022
Winners honored at Startup Week powered by PNC student competition
Penn State Startup Week powered by PNC culminated with a celebration of student innovation and entrepreneurship at the Student Recognition and Networking Reception, which took place on April 7 at the Penn State Innovation Hub.
April 15
2022
Two Penn State student startups win $15,000 each in Inc.U Competition
CarToCamp and MarRosa’s Old World Cuisine each won $15,000 in funding, splitting the $30,000 overall prize, in the 2022 Invent Penn State Inc.U Competition. Both Penn State student startups were among six finalist student teams that competed in “The Investment,” a “Shark Tank”-like WPSU production and culminating event of the competition that livestreamed on April 9 as part of Penn State Startup Week powered by PNC.
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