Opening presentation from Penn State representatives at the Nittany Watson Challenge Immersion event on January 19-20, 2017.

1. Event presented in
partnership with:

2. The EdTech
Network — a
vertical under
Invent Penn State

3. Partnering to drive innovation in education

4. We Are…
focused on creating opportunities for
collaboration among companies,
entrepreneurs, and Penn State students,
faculty, and staff.

5. We Are…
fostering the development of educational
technology solutions to transform education
and enhance World Campus capabilities.

6. We Are…
supporting economic development in
the region — leading to the creation of an
EdTech Hub here in State College.

7. COMPANIES
FACULTY & STAFF
ENTREPRENEURS
STUDENTS

8. OPPORTUNTITIES FOR FACULTY & STAFF:
FACULTY & STAFF
Create opportunities for new research and
publications around the latest educational technologies
Attend invitation-only events and network with
leaders and entrepreneurs in EdTech
Secure funding for innovative research projects that
help position you as leader in your field
Participate in programs that involve students,
EdTech companies, and local entrepreneurs
Connect with businesses and entrepreneurs to pilot
new education technology in your classroom or online
learning environment
Meet other innovation-focused faculty and staff

9. OPPORTUNTITIES FOR STUDENTS:
STUDENTS
Network with local businesses and create
opportunities for internships, mentoring, and
employment
Work with members of the Network who can help you
turn your education technology ideas into marketable
products and services
Form relationships with members of the University
community
Attend invitation-only events that bring together other
students, companies, entrepreneurs, faculty, and staff
for collaboration

10. Learn more at:
www.edtechnetwork.psu.edu

11. Event presented in
partnership with:

12. ECONOMIC IMPACT
#NittanyWatson
By 2021, IBM predicts that Digital
Agents will be a $15.8B market

13. THE WATSON EFFECT
#NittanyWatson
Udacity partners with IBM Watson to launch a new artificial
intelligence (AI) Nanodegree program.
IBM unveils a series of new cognitive solutions intended for
professionals in marketing, commerce, supply chain and human
resources.
IBM unveils a cloud-based AI engine to help businesses harness
machine learning.
IBM Watson is the brains behind Weather Channel’s new Facebook
Messenger bot.

14. STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS
#NittanyWatson
October 2016
IBM announces partnerships with
BlackBoard & Pearsons to integrate
AI into their solutions

15. AI FOR EVERYONE
#NittanyWatson
September 2016
Salesforce launches Einstein —
enabling any company to deliver smarter,
personalized & more predictive customer
experiences

16. AI FIRST
#NittanyWatson
"Looking to the future, the next big step will be for the very concept of
the “device” to fade away. Over time, the computer itself—whatever
its form factor—will be an intelligent assistant helping you through
your day. We will move from mobile first to an AI first world."
—Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google Inc.

17. THE NITTANY WATSON CHALLENGE
The EdTech Network created this challenge to surface innovative
ideas for transforming education and enhance World Campus
capabilities using IBM Watson
Bringing together students, faculty, and, staff to define creative
solutions to today’s greatest educational challenges leveraging
advanced technology
#NittanyWatson

18. PRIMARY GOALS
Surface EdTech innovations using AI that directly impact the
academic experience
Provide students throughout the Commonwealth with the
opportunity to gain meaningful AI project experience
Spark research and business startup ideas for faculty and staff
Identify AI applications that could significantly increase World
Campus capabilities and/or efficiencies
#NittanyWatson

19. TWO STAGE FUNDING OPPORTUNITY
#NittanyWatson
Stage 1 Stage 2
Prototype
Development
10 Teams
$5K Each
Basic working model of
the system that
demonstrates key
functionality
Minimal Viable
Product (MVP)
5 Teams
$10K Each
Working system with
actual data

20. THE FRAMEWORK
#NittanyWatson
Teams w/
Ideas to
Leverage
Watson
Stage One
Selection
Research
Projects
Business
Startups
COIL
RIGs
Potential Future
Funding Sources
IBM Shared
University Research Grant
Invent Penn State
Fund for
Innovation
Ben Franklin
IBM
Immersion
Day
Stage Two
Selection

21. #NittanyWatson
Jan 19-20
Immersion
Day Kickoff
Event
Feb 3
Phase 1:
Proposal
Due Date
Feb 24
Phase 1:
Proposal
Winners
Announced
Mar 31
Phase 2:
Prototype
Due Date
Apr 21
Phase 2:
Prototype
Finalists
Announced
Jul 31
Phase 3:
MVP
Due Date
IMPORTANT DATES

22. CHALLENGE CATAGORIES
Prospective Student Experience
Matriculated Student Experience
Engaged Student Experience
Graduating Student Experience
#NittanyWatson

23. PROSPECTIVE STUDENT EXAMPLES
Credit Transfer Challenge – help address the issue of determining if
credits can be transferred to Penn State as part of the enrollment
process.
Student Concierge – focus on answering the top 5 most frequently
asked questions in the primary domain areas such as financial aid,
academic support, academic advising, etc.
Marketing Assist – how can Watson be used to improve geo-targeting,
selecting keyword phrases for paid search, engaging student
prospects, matching interests with degrees offered, etc.
#NittanyWatson

24. MATRICULATED STUDENT EXAMPLES
Course Scheduling – leverage Watson to provide recommendations
to students for courses or a possible course schedules.
Clubs & Organizations – use Watson to provide students with
recommendations for clubs & organizations based on personality
and/or social media profiles.
#NittanyWatson

25. ENGAGED STUDENT EXAMPLES
LionPATH Assist – assist students in their use of LionPATH.
Student Engage – increase a student’s awareness around
opportunities for scholarships, internships, undergraduate
research, study abroad, etc.
Mentor Match – recommend a student that is nearing
completion of their degree to be a potential mentor for
someone recently enrolled.
#NittanyWatson

26. GRADUATING STUDENT EXAMPLES
Smart Job Search – match graduating students’ data with jobs’ data
on the web in a desired geographic region to identify opportunities.
Resume Evaluator – evaluate a student’s resume based on the
information provided/collected and provide recommendations. e.g.
degree, classes, projects, clubs & organizations, internships, etc.
Interview Rehearsal – enable mock interviews and provide
recommendations for improvements based on what was said (or not
said) as it relates to the information provided/collected. e.g., degree,
classes, projects, clubs & organizations, internships, etc.
#NittanyWatson

27. IMMERSION DAY KICKOFF EVENT
Learning Opportunities – learn from IBM Watson experts through a
series of workshops
Idea Generation – ideation sessions with Rose Cameron, design-
thinking expert
Team Formation – opportunity to identify potential team members
during a team formation exercise
Community – opportunity to network with others with
common interests
#NittanyWatson

28. TEAM FORMATION
Team can consist of one person or many
Teams can consist of faculty, staff, and/or students
Key team roles: Team Lead, Technical Lead, Subject Matter Lead
#NittanyWatson

29. SLACK CHANNELS
#watsonimmersion – communications for today and tomorrow
#nittanywatson – general non-technical questions
#teams – communication channel for the sole purpose of
forming teams
#NittanyWatson
Account: EdTechNetwork.Slack.com

30. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Website – edtechnetwork.psu.edu
Canvas Course – psu.instructure.com/courses/1828178
Twitter – @PSUEdTechNet
#NittanyWatson

31. Event presented in
partnership with:

32. WORLD CAMPUS USE CASES
Credit Transfer
Student Concierge
Course Scheduling
#NittanyWatson

33. Event presented in
partnership with: