Innovation and Entrepreneurship (I&E)

In an op-ed for The National Interest magazine, MIT president emerita Susan Hockfield writes that "there is no better way to precipitate growth than investing in innovation."  

The Boston area is seeing a boom in startups that specialize in the use of artificial intelligence to more effectively market to consumers, writes Michael Fitzgerald for Boston Magazine. Fitzgerald writes about the startups, experts, and technologies from MIT that have helped to initiate this renaissance.

Caroline Pugh interviews Kevin Rustagi, MIT alumnus and entrepreneur, for The Huffington Post. Rustagi, two-years out of college, has already founded two companies and worked for Apple where he helped to design the speakers for the iPhone 5.

USA Today reporter Kelly Whiteside highlights Professor Hugh Herr’s work developing bionic prosthetic limbs that emulate the function of natural limbs. Herr developed a bionic leg that allowed Boston Marathon bombing survivor Adrianne Haslet-Davis to dance again.

Writing for Forbes, Leo King reports that an autonomous robotic submarine developed by MIT startup Bluefin Robotics is being deployed in the search for Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370.

Dennis Keohane of The Boston Globe writes about the recipients of this year’s Lemelson-MIT National Collegiate Student Prize Competition.

John Roach reports for NBC News that graduate student David Sengeh was selected as a recipient of the 2014 Lemelson-MIT National Collegiate Student Prize Competition. Sengeh was selected for his work on an innovative socket that makes prosthetic limbs more comfortable and functional for amputees.

The Daily Beast reporter Mike Miesen looks at Sanergy, a company founded by MIT students that manufactures and distributes toilets designed for urban environments with poor sewage infrastructure. The model could improve sanitation in dense urban areas without adequate waste removal.

In a Bloomberg TV appearance, Professor Fiona Murray explains her latest research that shows how the gender gap plays into venture capital funding. Murray also discusses ways to encourage females to pursue careers in science and technology.

During a HuffPost Live panel discussion, Professor Fiona Murray speaks about her new research that shows venture capitalists prefer attractive men to women when funding new startups. In addition to Murray, the panel featured leading female entrepreneurs and journalists.

NPR’s All Tech Considered looks at new research from MIT Professor Fiona Murray that indicates attractive males are more likely to receive funding for their startups than females.

Guardian reporter Holly Welham writes that MIT researchers “found that male entrepreneurs were 60% more likely than women to succeed and that physical attractiveness produced a 36% increase in pitch success.”

“Investors are more likely to put money into a business idea pitched by a man than a woman, according to a study published by researchers from Harvard, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Wharton School,” writes Matt Clinch for CNBC.

New research from MIT shows that investors are more likely to select business concepts pitched by men, in particular attractive men, as opposed to women, reports Richard Valdmanis for Reuters.