Singularity Impact Report (2014)

positively impact illions of lives

Impact Report 2014

109+b

About Singularity University

Singularity University (SU) is a benefit corporation (see page 38) headquartered at NASA Research Park in Silicon Valley. SU provides educational programs, innovative partnerships and a startup accelerator to help individuals, businesses, institutions, investors, NGOs and governments understand cutting-edge technologies and how to utilize these technologies to positively impact billions of people. From our inception in 2008, SU has empowered individuals from more than 85 countries to apply exponentially growing technologiesartificial intelligence & robotics, biotechnology, nanotechnology & digital fabrication, networks & computing systems and medicine & neuroscienceto address humanitys grand challenges: education, energy, environment, food, global health, poverty, security, space and water.

To learn more, visit singularityu.org/impact

Contact Us

[email protected]

+1 650-200-3434

twitter.com/singularityu facebook.com/singularityu

NASA Research Park Building 20 South Akron Road MS 20-1 Moffett Field, California 94035-0001 United States

Table of Contents

Exponential Technologies and Global Grand Challenge Overview

Our Approach to Driving Impact and Assessing Results

Education Metrics Innovation Metrics Community Metrics

Future Impact

5

9

12 18 28

34

This report covers data from January to December 2013 unless otherwise noted.

4 5singularityu.org/impactImpact Report 2014

The speed at which technology is changing and evolving is unprecedented in human history. Events happening around the world affect us in minutes. Divergent technologiesartificial intelligence & robotics, biotechnology, nanotechnology

& digital fabrication, networks & computing systems and medicine & neuroscienceare not only accelerating, but are converging and building on themselves, causing even faster rates of growth.

At the same time, we live in a world with staggering challengeseducation, energy, environment, food, global health, poverty, security, space, waterthat need to be addressed. Civilization is at a critical juncture, and how we operate and manage these new and accelerating technologies directly impacts the world at large. What we do in the next couple of generations will dictate how the next several centuries of humanity play out. Humanity has a remarkable opportunity to harness these technologies and use them to solve for these threats.

Singularity University (SU) exists because the world needs an organization dedicated to addressing these serious global issues by fully embracing the power and capacity of exponential technologies. We assemble driven and ambitious leaders who want to improve the world. Innovation cannot be scripted. By bringing together these leaders and educating them about the fastest-moving technologies, SU empowers these individuals to create abundant opportunities for solving global grand challenges.

We are in our sixth year and excited about our growing, dynamic future. And this is just the beginning.

What are Exponential Technologies?

Exponential technologies demonstrate continued accelerating growth of capabilities (speed, efficiency, cost-effectiveness or power), driven both by advances in the individual technologies themselves, as well as through their interplay and synergies. These technologies that are causing tremendous disruption: artificial intelligence & robotics, biotechnology, nanotechnology & digital fabrication, networks & computing systems and medicine & neuroscience.

Global Grand Challenges


Developing solutions for sustainable environments and vibrant earth systems, from remediation to preservation at local-to-global scales.

Eradicating extreme poverty and ensuring basic needs and socio- economic opportunities for all human beings.

Creating the pathway towards humanitys destiny as a multi- planetary species, and developing the technology and resources for space exploration to address global needs and threats.

Transforming a sector that must supply for the needs of our growing population while also promoting healthy nutrition and sustainable resource management practices.

Personalized lifelong learning for allfrom early childhood to remedial and continuing educationempowered by connectivity and shrinking barriers of language or location.

Ensuring safe, reliable water and access to sanitation for all people; developing efficient use of existing water resources; and developing new potable water resources.

Designing reliable and predictable physical, financial, social, govern-mental and informational networks; and protecting people and infrastruc-ture from immediate dangers.

Ensuring basic health care access, accelerating medical breakthroughs and cures, and shifting towards preventative care to ensure physical and emotional wellbeing for people around the world.

Reliable, clean energy for diverse needsfrom families to factories, and from fields to skyscraperscreating an essential foundation for health, education, transportation and business.

FOODWATER

SECURITY

ENERGY

ENVIRONMENT

SPACE

EDUC

ATION

GLOBAL HEALTH

POVER

TY

GLOBAL GRAND CHALLENGES


e are not a traditional, degree-granting university. Rather, the name Singularity University is aspirational in describing a new kind of educational institution that is as much about doing as it is about learning. We drive positive impact for billions of people through three core focus areas: Education, Innovation and Community. Our work starts with a forward-looking approach

to education that transforms the way people think and what they think is possible. We challenge people to harness the latent opportunities of exponential technologies to develop transformative and disruptive innovations that address humanitys grand challenges. We pair education with application in our innovation initiatives to offer connections to a distinct global community of doers dedicated to transforming these challenges into great opportunities.

We do not achieve impact alone. Our distinct type of impact is powered by our community of over 200,000 individualsconsisting of entrepreneurs, executives, students, government officials, philanthropists, scientists, thought leaderswho bring a sense of wonder and enthusiasm to working towards a better future. These pioneers1,300 alumni, 700 event participants, and 200,000 online subscribersspearhead local innovation in their regions, propel resources to help entrepreneurs in remote parts of the world, and bring awareness to solving for global grand challenges.

Collaboration with over 75 public and private sector partners located across the globe is key to the success and impact of SU and our larger community. Our partners provide critical resources to strengthen existing programs and activities in our three core areas, as well as crucial input as we embark upon new initiatives, and set out a course for future growth and impact. We strongly believe in mutually rewarding relationships to yield effective and innovative programs relevant to distinct regions with the goal to maximize impact. As a complement to these partnerships, we work to build a sustainable philanthropic community of organizations and individuals who seek to invest in and share our mission to solve some of humanitys hardest problems.

W

EDUCATIONINNOVATIONCOMMUNIT Y

We Bring an Integrated Approach to Driving Impact

Singularity University enables the creation of sustainable solutions

to difficult challengeseducation, energy, environment, food, global

health, poverty, security, space and waterthat face humanity. Our

unique approach inspires entrepreneurial leaders to leverage exponential

technologies to develop innovative solutions to these challenges at a large

scale. We measure our impact through the billions of people throughout

the world that directly or indirectly benefit from our educational programs,

innovation-enhancing activities, and community-building initiatives. At every stage of our work, we ask: are Singularity Universitys strategic initiatives, approaches and programs achieving the maximum impact they can towards solving humanitys grand challenges? We seek to connect a humanitarian community of forward-thinking people in a global

movement towards an abundant future.

Our Approach to Impact Assessment & Learning

IMPACT METRICS

EDUCATION With our world-class faculty and unique perspective on exponential thinking, we offer the following unparalleled cross-disciplinary educational programs:

Graduate Studies Program Executive Programs Custom Programs Exponential Conferences Global Summits Faculty Engagements Singularity Hub Exponential Youth Camp

INNOVATION We train action-oriented constituents to turn ideas into real-world solutions through:

SU Labs Startup Accelerator Innovation Partnership Program Corporate Innovation Exchange Impact Partnerships

COMMUNITY We create a community of like-minded innovators, entrepreneurs and partners who share an appreciation for the opportunities that cutting-edge technologies create for a more abundant future. This extensive network consists of thousands of community members in more than 85 countries. Community activities include:

Alumni Activities Ambassador Program Global Impact Competitions Exponential Advisory Board

11singularityu.org/impact10 Impact Report 2013

13singularityu.org/impact12

We need to be training people on how to change the world.

Larry Page CEO, Google Speaking at the SU Founding Conference, 2008

Education MetricsGraduate Studies ProgramExecutive ProgramsCustom ProgramsExponential ConferencesGlobal SummitsFaculty EngagementsSingularity HubExponential Youth Camp

e provide diverse educational programs that transform the way people think and inspire them to direct their efforts toward global change. Our programs teach people that technological innovation is not random, but rather the result of an accelerating wave of breakthroughs that is

increasing in pace as it builds on its own momentum. Moreover, we enable our participants to understand how to leverage these technologies to have significant impact toward solving humanitys greatest challenges.

14 singularityu.org/impactImpact Report 2014

8,300,000 525

1211364

258

300

154

80

55

Global Summit Participants

Executive Program Participants

23%

45

233

17 38

Graduate Studies Program Participants

Youth Participants

% of GSP13 participants that won GICs

# of Singularity Hub website views # of Singularity Hub members

# of countries represented

# of SU faculty speaking engagements

# of GSP13 team projects


# of SU program participants

Exponential Conference Participants

Educational Programs Graduate Studies Program (GSP) A 10 week summer program that convenes entrepreneurs, leaders, scientists and engineers from around the world to develop innovations that leverage exponential technologies to positively impact billions of people.

Executive Programs (EP) A week-long intensive and interactive program for business, government and investment executives, covering the technologies and tools that todays innovators and leaders need to understand to keep pace with the wave of accelerating change and outperform their peers.

Custom Executive Programs These 13 day programs are based on SUs Executive Programs curriculum, but are tailored to the needs of a specific industry for corporations, nonprofits and government organizations.

Exponential Conferences These 24 day events take SUs unique vantage point and focus on exponentially accelerating technologies that are impacting specific verticals such as finance, medicine & healthcare and manufacturing.

Global Summits These 2 day events, held in key international cities, bring people together to expand their understanding of how to use exponential technologies to create positive change and economic growth.

Faculty Engagements SU faculty provide knowledge and real-world expertise on a global scale through speaking engagements, expert consultations and custom executive programs.

Singularity Hub An independent news network, published by SU, covering science, technology and the future of humanity. The membership program offers exclusive access to video lectures, private forums, promotion & collaboration opportunities and more.

Exponential Youth Camp (XYC) A 5 week pilot program that empowers high school students to learn about key exponential technologies and how those technologies have the potential to positively impact the world.

EDUCATION METRICS

Custom Program Participants

Graduate Studies Program

Singularity Hub

Executive Program

Faculty Engagements

Data from 2013 unless otherwise noted.


IMPAC TSTOR Y

In Silicon Valley, theres a lot of talk about The Maker Movement...revolution that has people returning to their workshops and building with their hands. As the cofounder of IDEAco, a nonprofit that works in maker education, a large part of my job is about using maker culture to inspire learning. Exposure to this revolution hooks students on the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) skills necessary to fill jobs in the worlds fastest-growing industries.

Making is a fantastic way to engage many students, but its only the first step toward an even greater revolution. If we wish to build a thriving and responsive economy, the future of education cannot be about giving students the skills to fill jobs; it must be about giving them the skills to create jobs. This requires more than technical skills, it requires empathy, context and innovation.

Last fall, our team was invited to a roadless, 300-person Yupik village named Eek to pilot a new program that teaches design thinking and 3D printing to elementary students. Located on Alaskas marshy west coast, Eeks handful of stilted buildings are powered by diesel fuel imported on river tankers. When the water freezes, so does the fuel source. At the schoolthe largest building in townevery child has a computer; at home, few have running water.

Eek exemplifies an uncomfortable mashup of state education standards and the traditions of subsistence livinga dichotomy that exists in many native communities today. As we unloaded our 3D printers onto the muddy runway, I realized that we would need to introduce this technology as more than a hook for future learning. It needed to be immediately relevant and useful to our students.

If you give a child a tool she may not care to use it, but if you give her a problem to solve with that tool, she will excel in its mastery. Direct, meaningful application of technology is often the missing piece of STEM education. Its also the piece that inspires true innovation. Making is fun, but its time to begin connecting the incredible skills of the maker community with the daunting challenges of our world.

Its time for the Maker Movement to become the ChangeMaker Movementthat is the future of education.

Beyond the Maker Movement How the ChangeMakers Are the Future of Education

Written by Libby Falck Graduate Studies Program 2012

The Graduate Studies Program at Singularity University was the most beneficial educational experience of my life. The programs intensity pushed me to strive for greater impact in everything I do and, since graduating, the SU community has been pivotal in providing connections to advice and funders that have enabled my projects to flourish as never would have been possible before.

Libby Falck Cofounder & Director of Innovation, IDEAco Graduate Studies Program 2012

Innovation MetricsSU Labs Startup AcceleratorInnovation Partnership ProgramCorporate Innovation ExchangeImpact Partnerships

n addition to our educational programs, we foster innovation through the SU Labs Startup Accelerator, Innovation Partnership Program, Corporate Innovation Exchange and Impact Partnerships. Supported by our exceptional faculty, alumni, corporate

partners and a global network of mentors and investorsour teams, startups and corporations receive the guidance, support and connections necessary to build entrepreneur-ship and technological innovation. This includes access to our Innovation Lab, an onsite maker space for building and prototyping, that enhances the capability to learn and utilize exponential technologies.

I

Singularity University provides a unique and valuable window into the future, and together we can identify and scale up solutions that will have great impact for the worlds most vulnerable women and children.

Christopher Fabian Advisor on Innovation to Executive Director, UNICEF



Innovation ActivitiesSU Labs Accelerator A community of local and global startups exploring and commercializing breakthrough technology innovation. SU Labs is powered by the greater SU network to help build and launch sustainable SU Companies to positively impact billions of people.

Innovation Partnership Program (IPP) IPP is a unique, joint initiative created by XPRIZE Foundation and SU that brings together the Fortune 500 and Silicon Valleys brightest technologists, entrepreneurs, innovators and business strategists to create breakthrough business models that harness the power of disruptive technologies and crowd-sourced wisdom.

Corporate Innovation Exchange (CIX) An innovation outpost in Silicon Valley igniting transformational growth in large organizations by helping them apply exponential technologies and plug into Singularity Universitys unique global community.

Impact Partnerships Partnerships with NGOs, private companies, governments, foundations, academic institutions and other forward-thinking organizations, working together to solve SUs Global Grand Challenges.

INNOVATION METRICS

20 10

165

39

$100,000,000

23 417

# of patent applications filed by SU Companies

# of GSP team projects that became SU Companies

# of people employed by SU Companies

# of companies in attendance

2013 Founding Members

2013 Partners

# of capital raised by SU Companies

Global Disaster Innovation Group /The Field Innovation Team

United Nations International Childrens Emergency Fund

# of SU Companies

# of individuals in attendance

SU Labs Startup Accelerator Innovation Partnership Program

Impact Partnerships

Corporate Innovation Exchange

Cumulative data from 20092013 Data from 2013


The SU Labs portfolio is a highly differentiated startup accelerator, with globally distributed startups at various stages of development and financing. SU Companies focus on industry sectors that align with one or multiple Global Grand Challenges (GGC)education, energy, environment, food, global health, poverty, security, space and water. Below, each company is listed under a respective GGC.

Recovering precious metals by recycling electronic waste

Artificial intelligence-based guidance planning for travel

Peer-to-peer car sharing that reduces congestion and prepares for the advent of robotic cars

3D printed leather and meat Laser-printed DNA

Oligonucleotide-free DNA synthesis

Low cost machine-to-machine network operator enabling the internet of things

Emotion sensing tools to detect risk and enhance user experience

Streaming for 3D printers to ensure file security, print quality and analytics

SU COMPANIES

Genome Compiler

Environment Food Energy Security Poverty Education Global Health Space

Autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle network for transportation of goods to areas without all-season roads

Connects profitable business models with targeted social impact

Big data analytics for financial institutions and programs that rewards customers for healthy behavior

Web-based ocean exploration submarines

Online tools for utilizing collective intelligence to facilitate personalized lifelong learning and skill-building

Several robot platforms including open source telepresence robots

Neuroscience-based web service to increase focus and attention

Next-generation of computer- aided design tools for synthetic biology

Nonprofit that works to catalyze breakthroughs in the long term preservation of organs for transplant

First-ever commercial, open- standard, secure health data information exchange for the medical industry

Remote patient monitoring and predictive analytics to reduce preventable hospital admissions in patients with complex chronic disease

Advanced aerospace technology company focused on researching the next gener-ation high efficiency aerospace vehicles powered with renewable electromagnetic energy

UAV systems and open source Arduino space experiments

Additive manufacturing in space

+ Global Grand Challenges


AI & Robotics Biotechnology & Bioinformatics

Energy & Environmental Systems

Medicine & Neuroscience

Nanotechnology & Digital Fabrication

Networks & Computing Systems

Space & Physical Sciences

Artificial intelligence-based guidance planning for travel

Web-based ocean exploration submarines

Online tools for utilizing collective intelligence to facilitate personalized lifelong learning and skill-building

Several robot platforms including open source telepres-ence robots

3D printed leather and meat

Laser-printed DNA

Oligonucleotide-free DNA synthesis

Next-generation of computer- aided design tools for synthetic biology

Nonprofit that works to catalyze breakthroughs in the long term preservation of organs for transplant

Recovering precious metals by recycling electronic waste

Emotion sensing tools to detect risk and enhance user experience

Neuroscience-based web service to increase focus and attention

Streaming for 3D printers to ensure file security, print quality and analytics

Peer-to-peer car sharing that reduces congestion and prepares for the advent of robotic cars

Remote patient monitoring and predictive analytics to reduce preventable hospital admissions in patients with complex chronic diseases

Autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle network for transportation of goods to areas without all-season roads

First-ever commercial, open- standard, secure health data information exchange for the medical industry

Low cost machine-to-machine network operator enabling the internet of things

Connects profitable business models with targeted social impact

Big data analytics for financial institutions and programs that rewards customers for healthy behavior

Advanced aerospace technology company focused on researching the next generation high efficiency aerospace vehicles powered with renewable electro-magnetic energy

UAV systems and open source Arduino space experiments

Additive manufacturing in space

SU COMPANIESSU Companies address Global Grand Challenges by making use of one or multiple exponential technologiesartificial intelligence & robotics, biotechnology & bioinformatics, energy & environmental systems, nanotechnology & digital fabrication, networks & computing systems, medicine & neuroscience and space & physical sciences. Below, each company is listed under a respective technology.

+ Exponential Technologies

Genome Compiler


Singularity University profoundly changed the way I thought about building my company. The knowledge I gained gave us a four-year head start in developing systems that today are becoming essential to the industry. Most importantly, SU gave me a unique privilege to be around people I admire and deeply respectamazing visionaries who are not afraid to challenge conventional wisdom and make commitment to changing lives of billions of people.

Dmitriy Tseliakhovich Cofounder, CEO & CTO, Escape Dynamics Graduate Studies Program 2010

IMPAC TSTOR Y

Escape Dynamics is proposing that we do away with fiery rockets altogether in order to make a much more dramatic attack on the exorbitant cost of space flight.

We want to look at a next-gen technology, not an improvement on chemical combustion, to drive a 10x change in the way we access Earths orbit, said Dmitriy Tseliakhovich, reflecting some of the language he picked up as an admirer of Peter Diamandis and an alum of Singularity Universitys Graduate Studies Program.

Chemical propulsion simply does not allow for a small and simple launch vehicle. There is a fundamental physical limit on how efficient chemical rockets can become, Tseliakhovich had concluded by 2010, when he launched Escape Dynamics.

Escape Dynamics would propel spacecraft with energy transmitted in a microwave beam that tracks the vehicles ascent trajectory. The energy, caught with an antenna, would run through a heat exchanger before being pushed out of a thruster. Tseliakhovich first sketched out the method as part his doctorate in astrophysics he received at Caltech in 2010.

If it all works out, it would mean that spacecraft themselves would be far simpler vehicles, within the budgets, perhaps, of private companies. Takeoff costs would also be much lower without the extra weight of first-stage rockets and the fuel to power them. Space travel would lighten its carbon footprint substantially, just as people gear up to do more of it.

In the second half of 2014, the company plans to emerge from the 30,000 square-foot hangar where it has done most of its work to start testing its propulsion methods over long distances.

Escape Dynamics Aims to Eliminate Single-Use Rockets in Space Flight

Written by Cameron Scott Singularity Hub

Community MetricsAlumni ActivitiesAmbassador ProgramGlobal Impact CompetitionsExponential Advisory Board

e foster a global community of doersentrepreneurs, executives, students, government officials, philanthropists, scientists, thought leaders and morewho want to build a better future. Our ecosystem enables individuals and

organizations to understand, learn and utilize exponential technologies to discover and design sustainable solutions to the biggest problems in the world.

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Singularity University... is an opportunity to bring people from every conceivable walk of life with people that share a common aspiration to do better, to be better and to make a positive impact on peoples lives.

Gavin Newsom California Lieutenant Governor


31singularityu.org/impactImpact Report 201430

Community InitiativesAmbassador Program SU Ambassadors are alumni of our Executive Programs and Graduate Studies Program appointed to represent SU in various countries to spearhead Global Impact Competitions and forge collaborations with local companies, organizations, universities and government agencies.

Global Impact Competitions (GIC) Organized by geography and theme, these competitions are held in partnership with sponsor organizations worldwide to inspire innovative ideas for impacting millions of lives locally and globally. Winners are invited to attend the Graduate Studies Program.

Exponential Advisory Board (XAB) The XAB is an exclusive group of individuals advising SUs strategic vision. The board participates in SUs leadership conversations, special events and priority investment opportu-nities in SU Labs Companies and our accelerator workspace.

COMMUNITY METRICS

50

88

50

13

646

1,060 18

80# of SU alumni # of awards received by SU alumni

% increase of SU Ambassadors

# of SU Ambassadors

# of GIC competitions

# of XAB members


# of GIC applicants # of GIC winners

# of companies started by SU alumni

Alumni Activities

Ambassador Program

Global Impact Competitions

Exponential Advisory Board

Data from 2013Cumulative data from 20092013

Cumulative data from 20092013

Cumulative data from 20092013

SU alumni are participants of our Executive Programs or Graduate Studies Program

1315

Highlighted countries represent the locations of 2013 GIC competitions.

33singularityu.org/impact

IMPAC TSTOR Y

It may not seem so out of the ordinary anymore to crowdsource solutions to the problems posed by poverty, but doing so with a for-profit business model adds a new and challenging twist. Thats a challenge that Socialab, a Latin American nonprofit company, welcomes.

The organization runs competitions for technology-based business proposals that address major problems wrought by poverty in the region: food insecurity, lack of clean drinking water, struggling public education and so on. Then it taps its virtual community of 300,000 users to identify the best ideas and fine-tune them.

The network, according to Socialab Founder and CEO Julian Ugarte, is the largest open innovation platform in the world. After spinning off from the youth-led Chilean nonprofit Techo in 2007, Socialab began hosting crowd-sourced competitions in 2010, shortly after Ugarte participated in Singularity Universitys 2010 GSP Program.

Drawing its own funding from grants, including ongoing support from the Inter-American Development Bank and Movistar Chile, Socialab then incubates the winning projects, encouraging the nascent companies to test their products on real users and continue to iterate on their products. When its clear that the products will sell and the revenue model is solid, Socialab and the company approach investors.

Last year, Socialab whittled 15,000 proposals down to 111 products that it supported based on $2.1 million in grants. Its currently incubating 35 companies. Among the projects Socialab has supported are MirOculus, a blood test for multiple forms of cancer (the companys medical lead also participated in a Singularity GSP); Algramo, a Chilean company that uses a business model similar to Groupons to negotiate lower prices for food and household items; and Plasma Water Sanitation System, a pump that uses pressure and electricity to purify drinking water.

Chilean Incubator Wants Companies Using Tech to Help the Poor

Written by Cameron Scott Singularity Hub

Singularity University showed me that I was not crazy to want to solve large-scale humanitarian problems in record time using technologies. SU gave me the freedom to think and to change the world.

Julian Ugarte Executive Director, Socialab Graduate Studies Program 2010

32 Impact Report 2014

35singularityu.org/impact

FUTURE IMPAC T

hile this report focuses on 2013, and in some cases, our operations since inception, we aim to support, generate and drive impact into the future by further strengthening current programs and launching new, complementary

initiatives in our three core areasEducation, Innovation and Community.

It is our goal to improve SUs ability to collect and report on metrics in real-time and to create an online impact dashboard.

EDUCATION Incorporate our mission, specifically solving for the Global Grand Challenges, into every program we deliver to achieve greater impact.

Deliver transformative educational programs online to drive new people and projects focused on the usage of exponential technologies to solve Global Grand Challenges.

Expand access to SUs content, collaboration and community worldwide to serve different constituencies, including students, entrepreneurs, executives and youth.

Continue to grow our impact partnerships with a focus on organizations that share our mission and have expertise around Global Grand Challenges.

Provide opportunities for our community to visit our impact partners field offices to gain direct experience beta testing ideas to help solve Global Grand Challenges.

Develop a more robust mentorship and entrepreneurship program to equip companies with the necessary skills and resources to take their products and services to the next level.

Expand, enable and further diversify our growing family of alumni and community members worldwide through targeted activities and programs at the local levels.

Establish local partnerships in different global cities to inspire a new wave of entrepreneurial activities and technology initiatives at municipal, regional and administrative levels.

Launch a global collaboration platform to enable our community to easily connect and create fruitful collaboration resulting in new ideas, projects, companies and interests.

INNOVATION

COMMUNITY

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IMPAC TSTOR Y

At SU, we strongly believe in the power of our alumni to have meaningful and direct impact in their regions and globally in alignment with our goal to expand our resources and knowledge to various geographic areas in collaboration with regional partners. The creation of the Central & Eastern European Global Impact Competitions (GIC) in 2012 illustrates how SU inspires local startups, technology initiatives and a new perspective and optimism about the future.

Csaba Szabo (2011 GSP alumnus and 2011 SU Ambassador in Hungary) founded the first Central & Eastern European GIC in 2012. It was a huge success with more than 50 participants, and resulted in a full tuition for one winner to attend our 2012 GSP. In 2013, Csaba and Botond Bognar (2012 EP alumnus; and then-to-be-named 2013 SU Ambassador in Hungary) generated more than 100 GIC participants and secured funding for 2 winners. This year, 150 individuals participated in the 2014 GIC, and 2 winners were awarded the chance to attend the GSP free of charge.

This regional team of two pulled together a comprehensive cadre of GIC funding partners, including the Hungarian Government, Design Terminal, U.S. Embassy in Budapest, American Chamber of Commerce, GE Healthcare Hungary, Cisco Hungary, Prezi, Central-Fund, OTP Bank, European Entrepreneurship Foundation and several local SU alumni.

The Central & Eastern European GIC has increasingly gained exposure with Csaba and Botond leveraging critical relationships, and integrating the GIC within the local universities and the startup community, including TEDx Danubia, EIT, Founders Institute, Startup Kitchen, thehub.hu, BridgeBudapest, Klaster Lifescience Krakow, Avec Accelerator, Startup Date and Cluj Cowork.

But, it does not stop there. The GIC has resulted in substantial follow-on events and activities, including the European alumni reunion in April of 2013, the inaugural 2013 Summit Europe conference in November of 2013 (attended by 450 participants), and a custom 2-day program for top Hungarian government leaders. In turn, these events inspired the local Budapest government to invest substantially in Design Terminal, a platform for meeting and exchanging of ideas for the Central European region.

This locally driven collaboration between government, corporate, philanthropic and entrepreneurial community groups illustrates the need and hunger for expanded regional activities around entrepreneurship and innovation, and encourages us at SU to continue our efforts to foster and support these efforts regionally.

Fostering Entrepreneurship and Innovation in Central and Eastern Europe

Written by Rob Nail Associate Founder & CEO Singularity University

The knowledge I obtained from SUs Graduate Studies Program inspired me to develop and implement my vision for creating a regional community of doers in Hungary.

Csaba Szab Former SU Ambassador to Hungary Founder of GIC for Central & Eastern Europe Founding Director, Summit Europe Graduate Studies Program 2011

Budapests regional importance grew during the last three years thanks to Singularity Universitys presence, which attracted international corporate sponsors and a great number of talented applicants to the Global Impact Competition for Central Eastern Europe.

Botond Bognr SU Ambassador to Hungary Founding Director, Summit Europe Executive Program October 2012

Singularity University (SU) incorporated as a California benefit corporation, shortly after that legal form came into being in 2012. Benefit corporations are statutorily required to pursue the creation of a material positive impact on society and the environment, taken as a whole.

In addition, SU opted to state the following specific public benefit purpose in its Articles of Incorporation:

The specific public benefit purpose of the corporation is to improve life by advancing exponentially growing technologies, providing education about those technologies, and developing companies that leverage those technologies.

SU has a brief Benefit Report posted online in compliance with accountability and transparency requirements that are built into the benefit corporation law. In addition to the metrics stated in this Impact Report, for purposes of its benefit report, SU assesses its overall social and environmental performance by using the B Impact Assessment tool developed by an independent nonprofit called B Lab. This tool measures governance, worker treatment, local community engagement and environmental practices. SUs score on the 2013 B Impact Assessment was 92 points, approximately 15 percent higher than the threshold requirement for B Corporation certification from B Labs.

Benefit Corporation Disclosure

singularityu.org/impact

Documents

Singularity Impact Report (2014)