MSU Innovation Center

MSU Innovation Center The MSU Innovation Center combines technology transfer, startup support, and a portfolio of dedicate

AI is becoming a critical tool for manufacturers, and MSU hosted the inaugural Apple Manufacturing Academy Spring Forum ...
06/01/2026

AI is becoming a critical tool for manufacturers, and MSU hosted the inaugural Apple Manufacturing Academy Spring Forum to explore how the technology is being used — and what challenges remain.

More than 260 participants from 16 states joined Apple engineers, MSU faculty and students to discuss responsible AI adoption, workforce readiness and real‑world applications. Tours of local facilities, including the MSU Facility for Rare Isotope Beams and Block Imaging, showed how AI is already being integrated into manufacturing processes.

MSU leaders emphasized the importance of responsible AI education, interdisciplinary collaboration and preparing students for the changing needs of industry and society. The Apple Manufacturing Academy has already helped more than 150 American businesses since its 2025 launch.

Read the full story: https://innovationcenter.msu.edu/Exploring-AI-in-manufacturing-future/
Interested in partnering with MSU innovators? Contact us: https://innovationcenter.msu.edu/contact

MSU researchers are rethinking how mental health is assessed for autistic adolescents. Faculty in Media and Information ...
05/29/2026

MSU researchers are rethinking how mental health is assessed for autistic adolescents. Faculty in Media and Information are redesigning screening tools to make them more accessible, precise and inclusive.

Led by Celeste Campos‑Castillo and Susan Bonner, the project uses universal design, clearer language, audio recordings, and visual and animated elements to support better understanding. Autistic adolescents help co‑design the tool, contributing visuals, audio and design elements that reflect their lived experiences.

Students from six MSU colleges take part in interviews, data analysis, design and production — including autistic students who help shape the tool’s development.

Read the full story: https://innovationcenter.msu.edu/better-screening-tools-for-autistic-adolescents/
Interested in partnering with MSU innovators? Contact us: https://innovationcenter.msu.edu/contact

Michigan’s research universities are among the state’s strongest economic engines. In 2024, they generated a $51.4 billi...
05/27/2026

Michigan’s research universities are among the state’s strongest economic engines. In 2024, they generated a $51.4 billion economic footprint, with nearly $35.8 billion of that activity directly tied to their work. Their research strength brings Michigan’s tax dollars back home — including $1.85 billion in federal funding for university R&D last year.

The article highlights how this strategy pays off statewide. At MSU, the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams has invested more than $1.7 billion in Michigan businesses and labor. Wayne State’s Karmanos Cancer Institute secures major federal grants that support breakthrough oncology research. Michigan Tech’s Keweenaw Research Center advances vehicle systems through federal and industry partnerships.

Michigan now stands at the doorstep of another major opportunity: a proposed $1.25 billion high‑performance computing facility that would create hundreds of jobs and expand access to world‑class technology across the state.

Read the full story:
https://www.crainsdetroit.com/opinion/commentary/cdb-opinion-university-presidents-research-20260505

Interested in partnering with MSU innovators? Contact us:
https://innovationcenter.msu.edu/contact

Quantum technology is moving quickly, and companies across sectors are working to understand how it will shape their pro...
05/25/2026

Quantum technology is moving quickly, and companies across sectors are working to understand how it will shape their products, supply chains, and competitiveness. In the Midwest, eight research universities have come together to make that path clearer.

The Midwest Quantum Collaboratory (MQC) connects companies with quantum researchers, shared facilities, and talent across MSU, U‑M, Purdue, and five additional institutions. As MSU’s Johannes Pollanen explains, developing future quantum technologies “requires expertise that no one research group, or even one university, has.”

With support from the MSU Innovation Center, MQC is helping companies access the people and resources they need — from sponsored research to workforce pipelines and shared infrastructure.

Read the full story: https://innovationcenter.msu.edu/a-region-unites-around-quantum-msu/
Interested in partnering with MSU innovators? Contact us: https://innovationcenter.msu.edu/contact

As a kid, Nicholas Houghton dreamed of working for NASA. “Throughout my entire life there was one focus… I’m going to wo...
05/21/2026

As a kid, Nicholas Houghton dreamed of working for NASA. “Throughout my entire life there was one focus… I’m going to work for NASA,” he says.

Today, the MSU mechanical engineering alum is an engineer on the Orion Crew Survival System, helping design the suits and equipment that kept the Artemis II astronauts safe during their 10‑day mission around the moon. His team trains astronauts, suits them up on launch day, and supports recovery operations when they return to Earth.

Houghton calls Artemis II a powerful milestone: “We watched our piece of the puzzle come together with the rest of NASA to launch this beautiful rocket with these four amazing individuals around the moon.”

Read the full story: https://innovationcenter.msu.edu/this-spartan-engineer-helped-the-artemis-ii-crew-get-to-the-moon/
Partner with MSU innovators: innovationcenter.msu.edu/contact

Public health protects entire communities — and MSU’s Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health is showing what’s...
05/19/2026

Public health protects entire communities — and MSU’s Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health is showing what’s possible when research and community leadership work hand‑in‑hand. “Public health is essential infrastructure,” says founding chair Jennifer E. Johnson.

Built with and for the people of Flint, MSU Public Health has helped secure more than $482M in new funding and created 300+ jobs since 2015. Its programs are transforming maternal health, nutrition, cancer prevention, and health equity — including Rx Kids, Michigan’s first Fruit and Vegetable Prescription Program, and a new national coordinating role in the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s HERA initiative.

Read the full story: https://innovationcenter.msu.edu/Public-health-through-community-power/
Partner with MSU innovators: innovationcenter.msu.edu/contact

Childhood‑onset lupus can bring extreme fatigue, pain, and emotional strain — but new MSU research shows that support do...
05/18/2026

Childhood‑onset lupus can bring extreme fatigue, pain, and emotional strain — but new MSU research shows that support doesn’t always require more medicine. A six‑session remote therapy program called TEACH helps young lupus patients manage symptoms through cognitive behavioral therapy and mindfulness.

Created by MSU psychologist Natoshia Cunningham, TEACH gives kids tools to cope with stress, fatigue, and depression. One participant shared, “TEACH made a meaningful difference in my life… I started sleeping better, thinking more clearly and feeling more in control of my health.”

A recent study found that TEACH participants functioned better day‑to‑day, with improvements in sleep, mood, and routines. The program is now expanding to clinics across the U.S. and Canada.

Read the full story: https://innovationcenter.msu.edu/Program-for-kids-with-lupus-changes-lives/
Partner with MSU innovators: innovationcenter.msu.edu/contact

Adrenaline Interactive is the winner of the 2026 PitchMI Championship, earning a $1 million investment after an exciting...
05/18/2026

Adrenaline Interactive is the winner of the 2026 PitchMI Championship, earning a $1 million investment after an exciting “Shark Tank”‑style finale in Lansing. “Winning feels surreal… I feel so lucky to share the stage with all of them,” said founder Max Albert.

PitchMI is one of the nation’s largest founder‑focused startup competitions, highlighting Michigan’s commitment to supporting high‑growth companies. Governor Whitmer praised the finalists, saying Michigan is “creating the jobs of the future” by investing in homegrown entrepreneurs.

Adrenaline Interactive specializes in dynamic in‑game advertising, helping brands reach Gen Z through authentic, scalable product placement.

Learn more:
michiganbusiness.org
msufoundation.org

Read the story here: https://innovationcenter.msu.edu/mi-startup-wins-1-million-investment/

MSU researchers have developed five new potato varieties to help strengthen the U.S. chip supply. “The potatoes behind A...
05/16/2026

MSU researchers have developed five new potato varieties to help strengthen the U.S. chip supply. “The potatoes behind America’s potato chips are getting an upgrade,” the article explains.

The new varieties — Manistee, Mackinaw, Petoskey, Huron Chipper, and Blackberry — offer improved disease resistance, better long‑term storage, and reliable chip quality throughout the year. With roughly 70% of Michigan’s potato crop destined for chip processing, these innovations support growers, processors, and consumers nationwide.

Read the full story: https://innovationcenter.msu.edu/five-new-potato-varieties-for-us-chips/
Partner with MSU innovators: innovationcenter.msu.edu/contact

05/15/2026

MSU researchers have developed five new potato varieties designed to help strengthen the U.S. chip supply by improving disease resistance, long-term storage and processing reliability.

Michigan is widely recognized as the nation’s leading producer of potatoes grown specifically for potato chips. About one in four bags of potato chips eaten in the U.S. contains Michigan-grown potatoes.

The new varieties — Manistee, Mackinaw, Petoskey, Huron Chipper and Blackberry — are the result of more than two decades of breeding research led by MSU potato breeder David Douches.

“As a public university breeding program, our mission is to support the entire industry,” Douches says. “Success means growers can stay competitive and consumers can rely on a consistent product.”

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