Champaign-Urbana AgTech Week
5th Annual Champaign-Urbana AgTech Week: March 4-8, 2024
Champaign-Urbana has long been a hub for technology as well as agriculture. In the past decade, those two paths have converged, paving the way for the community to become an “epicenter for AgTech.” Learn more about AgTech in Champaign-Urbana at https://makeitcu.com/agtech/.
Champaign-Urbana AgTech Week celebrates Champaign-Urbana’s robust AgTech ecosystem, including the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign, Parkland College, corporate innovation partners, startups, state-of-the-art facilities, student organizations, local ag companies, the Illinois AgTech Accelerator, iFAB Tech Hub, and more.
Champaign-Urbana AgTech Week is presented by the Champaign County Economic Development Corporation, University of Illinois Research Park, and Make It Champaign-Urbana.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:
Monday, March 4, 2024
University of Illinois Research Park Tours
@ EnterpriseWorks: 60 Hazelwood Drive, Champaign, IL 61820
Monday, March 4, 2024
2-4 PM
Guests are invited to join us on Monday, March 4 from 2-4 PM for a walking tour of the University of Illinois Research Park. Join us to visit with startup companies in the EnterpriseWorks incubator and corporations throughout the Research Park. Tours start at EnterpriseWorks. Learn more + RSVP: https://forms.illinois.edu/sec/890007729
CU AgTech Week Happy Hour, sponsored by GDM Seeds
@ EnterpriseWorks: 60 Hazelwood Drive, Champaign, IL 61820
Monday, March 4, 2024
4-6 PM
Join us for Happy Hour to kick off Champaign-Urbana AgTech Week! GDM is dedicated to innovative research and development, which has been the beacon of its brand across the globe for over 40 years. They take great pride in investing 25% of their revenue into research and development. That prioritization is why over 45% of soybean acres in the world contain GDM genetics. Join the GDM team at AgTech Happy Hour to mix and mingle with the local AgTech community and learn more about GDM‘s U.S. Research & Development in Illinois, Iowa, Arkansas, and Minnesota. Learn more at https://www.gdmseeds.com/?lang=en. No RSVP is required to attend.
Tuesday, March 5, 2024
2024 AgTech Summit
@ Illinois Conference Center: 111 St. Mary’s Road, Champaign, IL 61820
Tuesday, March 5, 2024
7:30 AM – 4 PM
Join us to explore how technology solutions are addressing some of the most significant challenges facing agriculture today – and learn about what is on the horizon. This interactive conference offers participants the opportunity to learn and share knowledge about the current state of AgTech and look into the future through dynamic panels, inspiring keynote presentations, and networking opportunities. The ninth annual summit will be held at the Illinois Conference Center in Champaign, IL. True to our land grant mission, this event remains free thanks to the generosity of our sponsors. Learn more + RSVP: https://researchpark.illinois.edu/all-events/agtechsummit/
AgTech Showcase & Networking Reception
@ Illinois Conference Center: 111 St. Mary’s Road, Champaign, IL 61820
Tuesday, March 5, 2024
4 PM
Join us for the AgTech Showcase & Networking event immediately following the AgTech Summit at the Illinois Conference Center. The AgTech Showcase is an opportunity to connect with other attendees and see what innovations companies are working on. Snacks and beverages will be provided. Learn more: https://researchpark.illinois.edu/all-events/agtechsummit/
Wednesday, March 6, 2024
Center for Digital Ag Conference – The Future of Digital Agriculture
@ Illinois Conference Center: 111 St. Mary’s Road, Champaign, IL 61820
Wednesday, March 6, 2024
8 AM – 7 PM
The Center for Digital Agriculture is hosting our annual conference on March 6, 2024. Join us to celebrate the Center’s 5-year anniversary and to explore topics centered around the theme: Future of Digital Agriculture. The conference will bring together an interdisciplinary group of individuals from academia, industry, and government to explore the future of digital agriculture. Learn more + RSVP: https://digitalag.illinois.edu/center-for-digital-agriculture-conference-2024/
Integrated Bioprocessing Research Laboratory (IBRL) Tour
@ IBRL: 1300 W. Pennsylvania Avenue, Urbana, IL 61801
Wednesday, March 6, 2024
8:30 – 9:30 AM
The Integrated Bioprocessing Research Laboratory (IBRL) is a bioprocessing product research and development facility that bridges the gap from basic discovery to commercialization of bioproducts. The facility serves as an invaluable asset to bioenergy and bioprocessing companies by partnering them with the human and equipment capabilities of the university. Faculty and researchers affiliated with IBRL have the expertise needed to improve efficiencies, reduce water usage, and increase biofuel production in the corn ethanol industry. IBRL provides a lab and pilot plant for innovative research to market application and commercial products for industry partners.
Fun facts about IBRL:
- Since opening in 2018, IBRL has supported pilot testing for 90+ companies and trained 450+ students and industry members.
- Their fermenters range from 16L to 1200L.
- IBRL is the lead agency of the Illinois Fermentation and Agriculture Biomanufacturing (iFAB) Tech Hub: https://ifabtechhub.research.illinois.edu/.
A few notes for the tour:
- The tour will include a short presentation about IBRL, followed by a facility tour.
- The tour is limited to 20 participants.
- Participants must wear sturdy closed-toe and closed-heel shoes – no flip-flops, clogs, or high heels. Tennis shoes are acceptable.
- Safety glasses will be required and provided.
- No photos allowed.
RSVP: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0A4DA5AF28A2FB6-46984888-integrated#/
Thursday, March 7, 2024
Parkland College AgTech Showcase
@ Parkland College
Thursday, March 7, 2024
9 AM – 2 PM
This year, each program area will have 1-hour sessions that will showcase a 4-H drone competition, construction equipment simulators, precision ag equipment testing, tractor pull challenge, commodity marketing activities, and more! Industry professionals will be a part of each session to provide career exploration experiences and assist students with future employment questions.
AgTech Community Highlights, March 2022 – March 2023
- Bill & Melinda Gates Agricultural Innovations awarded a grant of $34 million to the Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency (RIPE) project, an international research effort led by scientists at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign that are engineering crops to be more productive by improving photosynthesis.
- The Illinois AgTech Accelerator, powered by Serra Ventures, supported six companies in the Champaign-Urbana area, facilitated over a dozen commercial engagement discussions with portfolio companies and Champaign-Urbana area businesses and organizations, and its cohort teams now have customers in 30 countries.
- University of Illinois Research Park celebrated four company expansions: the AGCO Acceleration Center, which employs undergraduate and graduate students from a variety of backgrounds and talents to focus on developing new-to-market solutions and advanced technologies; Genective’s Phase 2 expansion increased its lab space by 30 percent to continue its focus on the research, development, and commercialization of transgenic traits, focusing on insect-resistant corn; the new ADM Science and Technology Center quadrupled ADM’s footprint at the University of Illinois Research Park and reflects a significant expansion of its capabilities: a new portfolio of human nutrition research and development, wet chemistry, sensory science, data science, computational fluid dynamics, and customer interface and applications; and the John Deere Technology Innovation Center expanded its physical footprint in July 2022, adding a new soil science lab and continue to expand their operations with both students and full-time team members. John Deere’s full time-team was born in eight countries, has a dozen different undergraduate majors, and 20+ advanced degrees; their student team comprises 15 majors from five different colleges at the University.
- Community partners hosted gener8tor’s 2022 OnRamp Agriculture Conference, welcoming 300+ attendees from around the world, including Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Ireland, and Ukraine. There were 600+ startup track applicants, 165+ meetings between startups and investors, and 25 speakers.
- Kaiyu Guan, co-founder of EnterpriseWorks startup HabiTerre and the Blue Waters associate professor in ecohydrology and remote sensing, was honored as the Illinois Innovation Network’s Innovator of the Year in the Computing & Data category.
- AgTools, a dashboard platform for agribusiness operators, was proclaimed a winner of the Radicle Inclusion Challenge Presented by Nutrien, and received a $250,000 investment.
- Parkland College continues to expand its technical training programs for the ag industry as part of its Midwest Center for Precision Agriculture. This week, Parkland announced a $5 million gift from AGCO Corporation, a global leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of agricultural machinery and precision ag technology, to build a national AGCO training center on its campus to meet demand for future diesel technicians and upskill current technicians within the AGCO dealer network.
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced funding for a new collaboration between two institutes and a research center at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign that will create an integrated farm of the future in the U.S. Midwest – I-FARM: Illinois Farming and Regenerative Management. This $3.9 million, three-year project is funded through the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), and allows the Illinois-led study to develop an 80-acre agricultural testbed, where commodity crops and livestock are farmed using synergistic and sustainable practices.
2023 CU AgTech Week – Photos & Videos:
How to Get Involved in the Illinois AgTech Accelerator – A Session for Future Mentors and Advisors (Video)
2023 CU AgTech Week – Press:
Champaign-Urbana AgTech Week Returns for Fourth Year
Parkland AgTech Showcase, March 9
AgTech Week back for fourth year
AGCO Announces Agriculture Service Technician AAS Degree Program at Parkland College
Ag company investing $5 million in Parkland training facility
Parkland College announces new facility, program for ag training
2023 UI Research Park AgTech Summit Attracts Global Audience, Speakers
Farmers Risk Awarded 2023 Edwin Moore Family Agriculture Innovation Prize
Eric Miller Awarded 2023 Glen “GB” Brandt Prize for Ag Entrepreneurism