Aston University and Bruntwood SciTech have showcased the benefits that Birmingham Innovation Quarter (B-IQ) will create for the region and beyond.
The “Birmingham Innovation Quarter: Innovation for Inclusive Growth” event held at Enterprise Wharf was part of last month’s Birmingham Tech Week.
It brought together industry leaders, investors, academics, innovators and policymakers as part of the annual five-day event. Birmingham Tech Week is the UK’s largest regional tech festival and conference, of which Aston University is a patron.
B-IQ has been established to be a leading innovation cluster, focused on science, technology and enterprise, with particular emphasis on Health Tech, Green Tech and Financial / Professional Services. It is a strategic partnership between Aston University, Bruntwood SciTech and Birmingham City Council. As well as playing a crucial role in unlocking the city’s economic growth through place-based innovation BI-Q has been designed to create new opportunities to connect some of Birmingham’s most deprived wards to the city’s innovation ecosystem.
Speaking at the event Aston University’s Pro Vice-Chancellor, Research and Enterprise, Professor Mike Caine, highlighted the University’s research strengths, including its University Research Institutes and Research Centres which underpin the vision for the BI-Q.
He said “Birmingham Innovation Quarter is an important, bold initiative that will elevate and regenerate this part of the city and the wider West Midlands region.
“It will translate into impact the research Aston University produces, which in turn will improve lives regionally, nationally and internationally. It embodies our 2030 strategy, driving the University’s ambition to deliver socio-economic benefit through partnership, based on excellent, impactful research and enterprise activity, delivered at scale.”
The event which took place on 22 October also included a talk from the regional director of Bruntwood SciTech, Rob Valentine, who emphasised that Birmingham Innovation Quarter will focus on enhancing the local area, attracting investment and tenants to the company’s newest development.
The University’s Chief Commercial Officer Professor Gurpreet Singh Jagpal said: “Our goal is to align our research and enterprise with strategic partners, feeding their R&D pipeline in a sustainable, commercially viable way. Together, we aim to make Birmingham and the West Midlands the first choice for global organisations seeking growth opportunities in pioneering sectors, aligned with the modern digital economy.”
