Interview by Jonathan Kersting
What if Pittsburgh and West Virginia stopped thinking like neighboring regions and started acting like one connected technology corridor?
TechVibe Radio goes back to West Virginia with Melissa McKenna of Trilogy Innovations and Bill Walker of West Virginia University for a wide-ranging conversation about the innovation, research and economic opportunities taking shape from Pittsburgh to Morgantown, Bridgeport and beyond.
The discussion uncovers some remarkable work already underway, including WVU research that can extract critical minerals and rare earth elements from acid mine drainage while helping clean up legacy environmental damage. McKenna and Walker also detail new life being brought to former pharmaceutical infrastructure in Morgantown, growing opportunities in health care and energy, and the $321 million NSF-backed regional initiative connecting WVU, Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Pittsburgh and partners across a 78-county region.
At the center of the conversation is one big idea: the Pennsylvania-West Virginia state line may be a political boundary, but it does not have to be an innovation boundary.
Hear how closer connections in research, commercialization, workforce, cybersecurity, energy and investment could create a stronger technology corridor along I-79, and why the Mountain State Cyber Summit and Tech Yeah on October 28 in Morgantown could be an important place to start building those relationships face-to-face.
If you think you know West Virginia tech, this conversation may change your map.