A New Hub for Creativity, Innovation
and Entrepreneurship
Inspired by Stanford University’s Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, also known as the D.School, the University of Hawai‘i has created a lab based on those same principles of exposing students to experiences that get them involved with innovation and entrepreneurship.
“Our visit to Stanford’s famed D.School served as a tremendous source of inspiration for us to create something similar here for our students,” said Vassilis L. Syrmos, UH vice president for research and innovation. “We look forward to it becoming a vibrant hub on the UH Mānoa campus brimming with students and faculty working in collaboration to solve real-world problems with real-world innovative and entrepreneurial solutions.”
The i-Lab features floating whiteboards, chairs and tables that can be moved anywhere and most importantly, an absence of walls—all of which will help foster the free-flow of thought and sharing of ideas across multiple disciplines. The reconfigurable space is also equipped with rapid prototyping equipment like 3-D printers and laser cutters that allow students to turn design concepts into working models. The i-Lab is already being used for classes, workshops, lectures, and in the future, will play host to events like start-up weeks and innovation challenges.