UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Currently utilizing co-working space at Happy Valley LaunchBox powered by PNC Bank in the brand new Penn State Innovation Hub, Royce D'Souza has taken advantage of numerous entrepreneurial resources at Penn State, first as a student and now as an alumnus and founder.
D'Souza, who earned a philosophy degree in 2021, benefited from the programs and resources offered by Invent Penn State, including the Summer Founders program, which provides students $15,000 to work on their startups over the summer. Today, he leads his own State College-based company, Lessly.io, which helps restaurants and e-commerce stores accept orders, manage menus, generate analytics, and dispatch a private fleet of drivers — all from an integrated point-of-sale system.
D'Souza, joined by Lee Erickson, Penn State Office of Entrepreneurship and Commercialization associate director of economic development and student programs; Sydney Gibbard, Girls Code the World co-founder; and Tamela Serensits, Argolytics LLC founder, showcased the statewide impact of the Penn State entrepreneurial ecosystem during a House Democratic Policy Committee meeting on Monday, Jan. 31, at the Penn State Innovation Hub, located at 123 S. Burrowes Street in downtown State College. State representatives and staff of the House Democratic Policy Committee learned about the Invent Penn State initiative, which was launched by President Eric Barron in 2015, and toured the new building.
Recently, Penn State asked for $2.35 million in new funding in its state appropriation request for the 2022-23 fiscal year, which would help to strengthen and grow the Invent Penn State LaunchBox and Innovation Hub Network and expand established entrepreneurship training programs and startup pitch competitions.
"Royce is one of thousands of entrepreneurs and innovators who have benefited from Invent Penn State’s entrepreneurial resources," Erickson said. "For the past seven years, we’ve been building entrepreneurial ecosystems across all corners of Pennsylvania, and our new Penn State Innovation Hub is the next step in the evolution of our downtown State College ecosystem. This state-of-the-art building and gathering space will be a place where any innovator or entrepreneur in Happy Valley can access resources, expertise and support to turn their ideas into sustainable businesses. The new fabrication and makerspace located in the building will have the latest technology and prototyping equipment to support both new and existing business owners looking to prototype new products to grow their business, as well as faculty looking to commercialize their world-class research.”
Holding its ribbon-cutting ceremony this past November, the Penn State Innovation Hub is the cornerstone of the University's entrepreneurial ecosystem. Serving both the local and Penn State communities, the building is home to Happy Valley LaunchBox, one of 21 innovation spaces in the LaunchBox and Innovation Hub Network. The network provides early-stage startups with resources to de-risk and avoid common costly mistakes. Resources, many of which are provided at no cost, include accelerator programs, co-working space, legal and intellectual property advice, makerspace, mentorship, funding access, and business advice.
The network began in 2015, when five Penn State campuses each received $50,000 per year for three years from Invent Penn State’s competitive seed grant program. Now with hubs in 21 Penn State campus communities, the program has since assisted 4,976 entrepreneurs, supported 201 product development projects, created 302.5 jobs and 486 internships, and engaged 13,151 faculty, staff and students.
“The LaunchBox and Innovation Hub Network supports innovators and entrepreneurs across the commonwealth,” Erickson said. “The network is designed to de-risk and accelerate the creation of new businesses, as well as work with economic development partners to support and grow existing businesses. In just five years, we’re proud to say that 96% of Pennsylvanians live within 30 miles of one of our innovation spaces."
The Penn State Innovation Hub also features a state-of-the-art makerspace. This will include large-scale fabrication technologies, such as woodworking and welding equipment, and technology for rapid prototyping and electronics, such as 3D printing and small-scale electronics prototyping.
Other startup resources offered at the building include the Penn State Entrepreneur Assistance and Intellectual Property Law clinics and Penn State Small Business Development Center.
To view more Penn State affiliated startups, visit the Startup Navigator. To find more entrepreneurial resources, visit the Resource Navigator.
About Invent Penn State
Invent Penn State is a commonwealth-wide initiative to spur economic development, job creation, and student career success. Invent Penn State blends entrepreneurship-focused academic programs, business startup training and incubation, funding for commercialization, and university/community/industry collaborations to facilitate the challenging process of turning research discoveries into valuable products and services that can benefit Pennsylvanians and humankind.