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Pittsburgh, PA – June 08, 2023 – Innovation Works announces the appointment of Kevin Dowling as interim lead of the Robotics Factory. Dowling, a tech leader who was involved with three IW companies and a founding member and board chair of the Pittsburgh Robotics Network, brings with him an impressive repertoire of experience and leadership to helm the Robotics Factory program.
“We are excited to have Kevin on board,” said Ven Raju, President & CEO of Innovation Works. “Kevin brings deep domain experience to our ongoing Robotics Factory initiative. With his distinguished academic background coupled with his industry experience, he is exceptionally positioned to advance our Robotics Factory programs. Kevin will lead our highly talented team and further our efforts to create, accelerate and scale robotics startups in the region.”
Kevin’s career highlights include a 17-year tenure as Scientist and Senior Engineer at Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute and holding the position of CEO at Kaarta. He has also worked in technology leadership roles at PRI Automation, Color Kinetics (acquired by Philips), and MC10. Kevin’s unique blend of technical knowledge and business acumen will be invaluable in driving the development of the Robotics Factory.
Launched in partnership with the Pittsburgh Robotics Network and other regional partners, the Robotics Factory is a part of a $63 million grant awarded by the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) to the Southwestern Pennsylvania New Economy Collaborative as part of their Build Back Better Regional Challenge. The initiative aims to create, accelerate, and scale robotics startups in the Pittsburgh region, further cementing the area’s global recognition in the robotics and autonomy sector.
The Robotics Factory, under the leadership of Innovation Works and with four-year support from the EDA, will operate a series of inter-related programs. These are designed to stimulate the development and growth of startups in the robotics sector, focusing on creating solutions for industry-identified challenges, accelerating startups, and scaling up manufacturing.
“I am honored to join the exceptional team at Innovation Works,” said Kevin Dowling. “The Robotics Factory represents a major step forward in the growth and prominence of Pittsburgh’s robotics ecosystem. Drawing from my experiences from both academia and industry, I’m eager to contribute to our mission to create, accelerate, and scale robotics startups in the region, securing Pittsburgh’s position as a global robotics leader.”
CONTACT:
Jane Joseph, Digital & Community Engagement Manager
412-722-8474 (mobile)
Terri Glueck, VP Communications Innovation Works
tglueck@innovationworks.org
412-818-8191 (mobile)
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About Innovation Works
Innovation Works (IW) is the Pittsburgh region’s most active investor in and supporter of early-stage companies developing hardware, software and life sciences technologies. Though focused exclusively on helping startups in the southwest PA region, IW’s level of investment activity makes it one of the most active investors in the U.S. Innovation Works is part of the statewide Ben Franklin Technology Partners, a network of four centers developed to help diversify PA’s economy and retain the state’s high caliber innovations that are invented and incubated here. The Ben Franklin Technology Partners are partially funded by the Commonwealth of PA and overseen by the Department of Community and Economic Development. To date, IW has financially supported over 700 companies that have brought in an additional $3.3 billion in outside funding to Southwest PA, making it one of the most productive uses of state dollars.
