Venturefest Wales 2014

Wednesday saw the first Venturefest Wales event take place in the wonderful City Hall.  The event brought together about 700 innovators, investors and entrepreneurs to inspire business growth in Wales.  There were a variety of talks and workshops and a business exhibition showcasing the latest inventions.  We were invited along as part of the Cardiff University stand to exhibit the epidural simulator we are developing and shared the stand with Jessica Jones of the Lightning Lab, School of Engineering.

Venturefest attracted a wide variety of delegates and it was great fun letting people interact with the simulator: we had everyone from software developers to school teachers having a go.  Similarly, I was impressed by the variety of businesses showcased at the event: 3-D printing replacement human tissue, new advertising techniques, drone videography, solar panel testing and giant bubbles domes.  I was particularly impressed by some of the school run projects including one to improve road safety for cyclists around corners using a novel road lighting system.

There was no shortage of networking opportunities and it was great to put some faces to names of other Cardiff University staff working on the stand: Sian Conti (Business Development Officer), Paul Thomas (Business Development, KTP), Gareth Evans (Head of Business Development), Nick Bourne (Head of Commercial Development).

Jeff Clark

Visit the following links for more information:

http://www.venturefestwales.co.uk/

http://www.innovation-network.org.uk/events/venturefest-wales-wed-09-jul-2014.aspx

https://storify.com/innovatewales/9th-july-venturefest-wales