$25M Gift To Kellogg School Launches ‘The Next Frontier’ In Research With Real-World Impact

Northwestern Kellogg will be home to a new institute dedicated to a better understanding of how innovation works — and how to establish a new way to identify and increase opportunities for groundbreaking research coming out of organizations

How does innovation actually occur? How do great ideas improve systems and, therefore, people’s lives?

Northwestern University and the Kellogg School of Management are using a major investment to find the answers — in the hopes of achieving immense returns for society by making research and development even a small percentage more efficient.

Today (February 12) Northwestern and Kellogg announced the launch of the Northwestern Innovation Institute, established through a $25 million gift from university trustee Pin Ni and the Future Wanxiang Foundation. Its mission: to revolutionize how we understand and foster innovation across science, technology and business.

‘THE NEXT FRONTIER’

Dashun Wang: “If we can make R&D even five percent more efficient, the returns for society would be immense”

The institute will be led by Dashun Wang, Kellogg Chair of Technology and professor of management and organizations, who will serve as the faculty director.

Focusing initially on universities, the NI Institute “will use big data analytics and artificial intelligence to aggregate, integrate and analyze diverse datasets on inventions, patents, licenses, revenues, grants and publications from institutions around the world,” according to a news release. “These data will allow for a deep understanding of how innovation works and how breakthroughs happen, as well as the development of predictive models that enable leaders to increase efficiency and pinpoint new opportunities for innovation.

“Through this work, the institute aims to maximize research outcomes, find untapped innovation, partnership and growth opportunities, and guide investments to the people, ideas and institutions that are most likely to lead to impactful advances.”

Kellogg Dean Francesca Cornelli calls the institute “the next frontier” in promoting research with real-world impact.

“This incredible gift from Pin Ni and the Future Wanxiang Foundation will help unlock the full power of innovation at institutions around the world, accelerating breakthroughs that drive economic growth and improve lives,” she says.

‘THE KEY TO UNLOCKING NEW POSSIBILITIES’

Translating the research produced at universities into successful applications can be an elusive process. The NI Institute will leverage cutting-edge AI tools and large-scale databases and build on Northwestern’s ample work in the space. The gift follows a $20 million grant from the National Science Foundation, awarded last August as a collaboration between Kellogg and Northwestern’s McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science.

“For the past century, innovation has fueled remarkable human progress,” says Wang, Kellogg Chair of Technology and professor of management and organizations at Kellogg. “In the century ahead, the impact of innovation will only grow. If we can make R&D even five percent more efficient, the returns for society would be immense — in longer, healthier and happier lives for everyone around the world.”

Wang, a 2019 Poets&Quants Best 40 Under 40 Professor, will serve as faculty director of the NI Institute, and Alicia Loffler, adjunct professor of strategy at Kellogg and founding executive director of Northwestern’s Innovation and New Ventures Office, will serve as executive director.

“Investing in innovation is the key to unlocking new possibilities,” says Pin Ni, president of Wanxiang America Corporation. “The Northwestern Innovation Institute will be more than just advancing technology; it will lead to meaningful change that impacts lives and communities. I am proud to support this next step in innovation at Northwestern and Kellogg.”

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