What do pizza ovens, 3D printed cars, nuclear physics, and bourbon have in common?

These are just a few of the products of the rapidly emerging ecosystems of innovation, and smart manufacturing that exists in the region Singularity University has dubbed “The Maker Belt.”

Alphachimp's Peter Durand rode along with 20 senior executives from 15 global Fortune 200 companies on their 2.5-day tour from East Tennessee to Northern Kentucky.

Sean Watson is director of SU's Innovation Partnership Program, which designs experiences to expose members to disruptive technologies and “accelerate their innovation journey.”

As Watson advises:

Don’t overlook mid-sized cities like Louisville and Knoxville as players the 21st-century global economy: they're big enough to attract serious investment and provide an attractive standard of living (*cough* bourbon trail *cough*), but small enough that they can be nimble, deeply collaborative, open to failure and rapid learning. They can get things done in focused ways that are sometimes trickier in bigger cities.

We introduced our execs to the civic, corporate, academic, and startup leaders that are putting these regions back on the map, and facilitated killer conversations about how to keep up in the rapidly accelerating world we live in.

At IPP, participants learn about emerging, exponential technologies and organizational tools that are shifting the landscape of innovation, and what they mean to large multinational organizations.

We saw the incredible technology and spirit of experimentation rippling through this innovation ecosystem at organizations ranging from Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Local Motors, Louisville University, and several other maker spaces and biotech firms.

Meet leading entrepreneurs, thought leaders, educators, and technologists who are redefining the tools and capabilities available in creating new business models and to develop your strategy for becoming an exponential organization.

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