INNOVATE® Chicago Vol.1

Innovations of the World

INNOVATE® Chicago Vol.1

It’s easy to think that everything there is to know about the Windy City is already out there in the world—Chicago was, after all, the second most-visited US city in 2018 and has remained fertile ground internationally for a variety of industries, from finance to industry to education to transportation and beyond.

But a visit to Chicago is like a canopy tour compared to the root-deep exploration of the city that INNOVATE® Chicago provides. Filled with stories of Chi-Town’s innovators and innovation enablers, this high-end coffee-table book offers an in-depth look into the city’s innovation ecosystem. Every participant—large or small, corporate or nonprofit—is hand-selected for participation in INNOVATE® Chicago. By avoiding a pay-to-play model, we bring you 250+ pages of the authentic, the innovative, the best of Chicago!

In addition to the hardcover coffee-table book, INNOVATE® Chicago is also published as an e-book, with individual stories posted below.

Featured Thought Leaders

Featured Thought Leaders

Featured Innovators

Featured Innovators

THE FORGE ADVENTURE PARKS

THE FORGE ADVENTURE PARKS-GET OUT AND PLAY

GET OUT AND PLAY

Chicagoland is home to one of the world’s most fantastic recreation destinations: The Forge: Lemont Quarries. Since opening in the summer of 2020, the 300-acre park has been named one of the top three new destinations in the United States. The park provides authentic, purpose-driven outdoor experiences for people of...

Sage Corps

Sage Corps- Is An International Internship Program That Sends Students To Work With Startups. We’re Building The Next Gen Global Workforce

Is An International Internship Program That Sends Students To Work With Startups. We’re Building The Next Gen Global Workforce

In 2003, Matt Meltzer graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania. He thought employers would line up to hire him. He was wrong. With zero job offers, Matt flew down to South America with a backpack. After living and working in Buenos Aires for one year, Matt returned...

PHYSIQ

Technology Pioneered To Predict Failure Of Mission-Critical Industrial Equipment Delivers Powerful Platform To Protect The Most Complex “Machine” Of All – The Human Body

A leader in digital medicine, dedicated to generating real-time health insight via physiological data and patented artificial intelligence (AI) analytics, physIQ is on a mission to transform healthcare. The physIQ enterprise-ready cloud platform is designed to continuously collect and process data from any wearable biosensor using an expanding portfolio of...

NETWORK PERCEPTION

NETWORK PERCEPTION-CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE IS DISRUPTED BY CYBER-ATTACKS: NETWORK PERCEPTION DEVELOPS A TECHNOLOGY TO PROACTIVELY VERIFY AND VISUALIZE THEIR CYBER RESILIENCE

CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE IS DISRUPTED BY CYBER-ATTACKS: NETWORK PERCEPTION DEVELOPS A TECHNOLOGY TO PROACTIVELY VERIFY AND VISUALIZE THEIR CYBER RESILIENCE

OUR MISSIONIn cybersecurity, threat actors are often one step ahead and the average cost of a breach routinely goes beyond seven figures. Most security solutions focus on detection and response, taking a reactive approach to cyber-attacks. The pace and acceleration of network changes create new vulnerabilities every day, decreasing the...

SERTIFI

Sertifi- Our Mission Is To Help The World Finalize Business Faster By Removing Friction During The Agreement Process

Our Mission Is To Help The World Finalize Business Faster By Removing Friction During The Agreement Process

Our solution offers a platform that accelerates the process of collaborating on agreements, signing contracts utilizing electronic signatures and providing the easiest, most convenient way to pay. We may have finally replaced the fax machine and are swiftly on our way to automating many of the redundant and repetitive tasks...

TECHNORI

TECHNORI-Since Launching Nearly a Decade Ago

Since Launching Nearly a Decade Ago, Our Mission Has Been Simple; Help Founders More Easily Raise Startup Funds By Building a Community Around Tech And Investing

Before Chicago became a tech hub featuring world-renowned incubators like 1871 and more than a dozen unicorns, there was Technori – a small group of early adopters and startup founders on a mission to turn Chicago into the largest and most diverse tech community in the world. And, what began...

Freeborn & Peters LLP

Freeborn & Peters LLP-Is A Chambers-Ranked

Is A Chambers-Ranked, Leading Mid-Size Law Firm With Global Capabilities And A Vast Array Of Practice Areas

Freeborn is proud to deliver sector-specific legal advice that stems from decades of experience and a rich understanding of business and industry perspectives. Along with providing exceptional legal services, each Freeborn attorney embodies the firm’s five Core Values, integrity, caring, effectiveness, teamwork, and commitment, through high standards of client service...

AZUMO

AZUMO-Manufacturer of LCD 2.0

Manufacturer of LCD 2.0, A Breakthrough Display Technology Revolutionizing A $130B Industry

Displays have become ubiquitous in our society. We find them in smartphones, tablets, laptops, TVs, drive through restaurants, ATM machines, thermostats, gas station pumps…the list is endless. Even still, there are notable negative impacts of displays which we have become accustomed to – excessive power consumption, subpar viewability in bright...

HABITNU

HABITNU-Set Small Goals

Set Small Goals, Build Life-Lasting Healthy Habits, And Transform Your Life. HabitNu Is Built On Proven Scientific Research

HabitNu is a digital therapeutic technology company that focuses on preventing and managing chronic diseases by helping individuals build new, healthy habits. HabitNu leverages proven scientific goal-setting research to drive new habit formation for the prevention and management of chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and hypertension. HabitNu’s approach...

CHICAGO HOPES FOR KIDS

CHICAGO HOPES FOR KIDS - IS CHANGING ACADEMIC TRAJECTORIES FOR STUDENTS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS

IS CHANGING ACADEMIC TRAJECTORIES FOR STUDENTS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS

Chicago HOPES for Kids is the only organization in Chicago that provides educational after school and remote learning programs for students experiencing homelessness in grades Kindergarten through 9th, directly to the shelters and communities where they live. It is our mission to provide students with the resources and encouragement they...

LEVEL EX

Playing Is Training: Chicago’s Gaming And Healthcare Legacies Meet At Level Ex

Today, Level Ex has 750,000 medical professionals playing its games to advance their skills and earn Continuing Medical Education (CME). The story of how it changed the way medicine is learned and practiced is as much an ode to Chicago as it is a start-up success story....

ENVOY

ENVOY- MAKES HIRING AND MANAGING AN INTERNATIONAL WORKFORCE A SEAMLESS EXPERIENCE

MAKES HIRING AND MANAGING AN INTERNATIONAL WORKFORCE A SEAMLESS EXPERIENCE

Envoy is a global immigration services provider offering the only immigration management platform that makes it seamless for companies to hire and manage an international workforce. We combine expert legal representation and proprietary technology to bring efficiency and transparency to the immigration process for employers and employees.   At Envoy...

TERA-PRINT

TERA-PRINT -ENABLING INNOVATION THROUGH A DISRUPTIVE NANOFABRICATION TECHNOLOGY

ENABLING INNOVATION THROUGH A DISRUPTIVE NANOFABRICATION TECHNOLOGY

TERA-print is a nanotechnology company that is unlocking the power of ultrahigh precision prototyping with their innovative desktop nanoprinters. This technology is disrupting the way next-generation come to life, such as miniaturized sensors 1/100th the size of your fingernail, highly accurate diagnostic tests for diseases from cancer to Alzheimer’s, and...

SONGFINCH

SONGFINCH - Is a Platform to Discover and Collaborate With Thousands of Musicians to Create Personalized

Is a Platform to Discover and Collaborate With Thousands of Musicians to Create Personalized, One-of-a-Kind Songs

Since launching, Songfinch has grown into the leading creator marketplace for musicians touting some of the most influential names in music and tech as investors, including music icon Quincy Jones, current music superstars Abel ‘The Weeknd’ Tesfaye and Amala ‘Doja Cat’ Dlamini, Atlantic Records CEO Craig Kallman, School of Rock...

BOUNCE CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION

BOUNCE CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION-From Surviving To Thriving

From Surviving To Thriving, The Lives Of Chronically Ill Children, And Their Families, Are Transformed

A HIDDEN EPIDEMIC: Ten-year-old Tyler feels more like a “patient” than a “person.” Despite fourteen surgeries, he remains bright, inquisitive, fun, funny. But, Tyler can’t talk due to a tracheotomy. He travels with a portable suction to keep his lungs open, and never knows when he’ll be back in Intensive...

INSTASHIELD

INSTASHIELD-Invention and Entrepreneurship Run in the Family

Invention and Entrepreneurship Run in the Family

INSTASHIELD FILLS PPE SHORTAGE, DONATES 1 MILLION SHIELDS TO PEOPLE IN NEED InstaShield™ is a new kind of face shield that ships flat and is folded to fit over a cap or visor. The company was founded in March 2020 by Dan Brown Jr. to help fill the nation’s PPE...

SPRINGFOUR

How A Social Impact Fintech Is Improving The Financial Health For Millions

When a financial institution’s customers are financially healthy, everyone wins. SpringFour, an award-winning social impact fintech and a Certified B Corporation, connects financial institutions’ customers with resources that help them make their payments and get back on their feet. With a digital-based platform of more than 20,000 vetted financial resources,...

ADA PRACTICE TRANSITIONS

ADA PRACTICE TRANSITIONS-AMERICAN DENTAL ASSOCIATION SUPPORTS THE FUTURE OF DENTISTRY

AMERICAN DENTAL ASSOCIATION SUPPORTS THE FUTURE OF DENTISTRY

ADA Business Innovation Group (ADABIG) is a subsidiary of the American Dental Association (ADA), formed in 2018 to help dentists solve the industry’s most pressing challenges. In 2019, ADABIG launched its first service: ADA Practice TransitionsTM (ADAPT), a state-of-the-art online platform designed to help dentists navigate career transitions. Today ADAPT...

TERRADEPTH

Terradepth- Is composed of a team of ocean enthusiasts

Is composed of a team of ocean enthusiasts, technologists, problem solvers, and makers dedicated to advancing ocean exploration

We exist to empower humanity with full access and visibility of deep sea data that enables a deeper understanding and accountability of impact to drive better decision making.   We believe that a deeper understanding of the oceans is achievable through technological advancements in robotic autonomy and data visualization —...

ORBIT MEDIA STUDIOS

ORBIT MEDIA STUDIOS-Web Design

Web Design, Development and Optimization with Deep Roots in the City of Chicago

They both grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and met in high school. When Barrett Lombardo and Andy Crestodina graduated, they headed off to the University of Iowa together.   They shared a dorm room and one of those boxy Macintosh computers. It was the early 1990s. Most people...

CSC CORPTAX

CSC CORPTAX — MORE THAN 45 YEARS OF TAX TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION

MORE THAN 45 YEARS OF TAX TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION

CSC Corptax® provides technology-based tax solutions to corporate tax departments worldwide. We transform tax reporting for clients through software, business process expertise, and award-winning support, helping them achieve breakthrough performance using the first and only single system on the market for end-to-end tax. Our unmatched automation aligns tax processes, enhances...

Devbridge

Devbridge- Is A Digital Product And Technology Consultancy Focused On Enterprise Transformation And Custom Software Development

Is A Digital Product And Technology Consultancy Focused On Enterprise Transformation And Custom Software Development

WHO WE AREDevbridge is a technology partner for forward-thinking Global 2000 companies looking to shift to a product-centric operating model. We build extraordinary custom software that delivers measurable results for our clients and their customers.   Using our proven methodology, data-informed strategy, and proprietary Devbridge Apollo toolkit, we not only...

ACTIVECAMPAIGN

ACTIVECAMPAIGN-We Help Businesses Grow and Build Better Customer Experiences

We Help Businesses Grow and Build Better Customer Experiences

ActiveCampaign is the leader in Customer Experience Automation (CXA), helping businesses across the world meaningfully engage with their customers. Our platform gives businesses of all sizes access to 820+ prebuilt automations that combine email marketing, marketing automation and CRM for powerful segmentation and personalization across social, email, messaging, chat and...

NUTRISENSE

NUTRISENSE-Our Mission Is To Help Anyone Reach Their Health Potential.

Our Mission Is To Help Anyone Reach Their Health Potential

Already a successful tech entrepreneur, Alex Skryl had not intended to take on another similar venture. However, Alex was deeply moved by the growing epidemic of chronic disease in the United States. He felt that it was time to put his entrepreneurial mindset towards giving back to the community. Thus,...

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The Publisher

Glen Edwards

Glen Edwards was born and raised in Philadelphia. He graduated from Pennsylvania State University and served in the United States Marine Corps Services. For the next 10 years, Glen worked as a Juvenile Probation Officer in Philadelphia, counseling underprivileged children in North and West Philadelphia. In 1983, Glen left the court and went to work... click to read more

Other Ecosystems