Urban Technology Lab is trying to put Sacramento on the innovation map
Originally Published on December 23, 2019 by Graham Womack on Comstocksmag.com
In September 2018, visitors from Austin, Texas, came to Sacramento for a tourism promotion between the two cities. During their visit, they wanted to tour the then one-year-old Sacramento Urban Technology Lab, recalls Louis Stewart, City of Sacramento’s chief innovation officer.
Only one problem: The lab is not a real place. Stewart says he explained to the visitors that the SUTL is “the whole city and it’s made of the actors that make up the lab.” Those actors include representatives from local government, higher education and private industry, committed to achieving economic development through collaboration and innovation by making Sacramento a “living laboratory,” where ideas, products and services can be tested, developed and scaled.
While it’s still a relatively new undertaking, in time, SUTL’s efforts could yield major results, say its proponents. These include bringing new technology to the city, such as autonomous vehicles and 3-D mapping, while expanding the local high-tech industry and making it more accessible to historically underrepresented groups.
Meet the Innovation Team
When Stewart arrived at City Hall in May 2017 following seven years with the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, his new office held scarcely more than dreams.
While former Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson created the Mayor’s Office for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, he didn’t find anyone to head it. Mayor Darrell Steinberg, Johnson’s successor, hired Stewart. “He’s well-connected, and he has a vision, and he works it,” Steinberg says. “He wants Sacramento to be one of the leading technology hubs in the country.”
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