Tech giant Microsoft is giving the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee more than $1 million to fund the school's internet of things research center.
Microsoft announced Monday that it is donating $1.25 million to UWM's Connected Systems Institute, a collaboration between academia, industry and government that's focused on the industrial internet of things.
The gift also includes an additional $250,000 worth of Azure cloud computing credits, and $80,000 worth of Surface Hub hardware. The gift was announced during the IoT Talent Consortium annual meeting at UWM.
“We like to add rocket fuel to rockets that are going places, and this one is,” Microsoft President Brad Smith said in a statement. Smith is from Appleton, and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella received a master’s degree in computer science from UWM.
UWM's Connected Systems Institute is also backed by Rockwell Automation, AO Smith, the WEDC and others. Its goal is to develop new industrial IoT technologies, and by the end of 2020, the institute says it will begin testing software and strategies in real-life environments to improve manufacturing automation. The Connected Systems Institute facility includes labs, classrooms and maker spaces.
“It was the inventions born right here in the Milwaukee area that laid the foundation for the smart buildings and automated factories of modern life,” Smith added. “Wisconsin’s research universities played an important role from the start, so it’s no surprise that the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Connected Systems Institute continues to shape our future by building a smarter, more productive and sustainable world.”
The new funding from Microsoft follows the firm's investment in Titletown Tech, a $10 million partnership between Microsoft and the Green Bay Packers to open an accelerator, venture capital fund and lab near Lambeau Field.
