Cox Communications recently announced it is partnering with Arizona State University to create the Cox Connected Environments Collaboratory at the university.
The collaboration, announced at the 2019 ASU Smart Region Summit, is expected to drive the development of Arizona’s “smart region” infrastructure.
“Cox currently powers several smart city initiatives and communities today as the preferred data network of residents and business owners,” said Steve Rowley, executive vice president of Cox Business. “Cox Business, combined with Cox2M, will bring new experiential capabilities to the campus and provide a space for all to innovate.”
The partnership will also deliver on ASU’s Smart City Cloud Innovation Center (CIC) promise to build smarter communities in the Valley by providing solutions to community challenges.
According to Cox, the Cox Connected Environments Collaboratory at ASU will serve as an incubation center and convening space that engages ASU students, staff and faculty to design the “next wave of Internet of Things (IoT) solutions” in hopes of solving real challenges within the Greater Phoenix area and beyond.
“Through our Cox2M business line, we will bring ASU students, staff and faculty the tools and capabilities to develop end-to-end solutions that can really make a difference,” said Sujata Gosalia, executive vice president and chief strategy officer at Cox Communications. “We are excited to build the future together in this new collaborative environment.”
The Cox Connected Environments Collaboratory will reside in an Innovation Zone at ASU, one of several spaces across the Valley and ASU campuses dedicated to creating innovative solutions. Other Innovation Zones include SkySong, ASU Research Park, the Novus Innovation Corridor and more.
Cox will be deploying a comprehensive wired and wireless network on campus as part of ASU’s NextGen Network to power the Collaboratory.
“Cox is a trusted partner, and we are eager to see the Cox Connected Environments Collaboratory at ASU drive smart region applications that combine people, connected devices, data and processes to improve community operations and the citizen experience,” ASU Chief Information Officer Lev Gonick said.
Earlier this month, ASU announced a partnership with Sprint to develop a “Smart Campus” and eventually a “Smart State.” The two will work together to bring 5G connectivity and Sprint’s Curiosity IoT operating system to the university’s campuses.
“The spirit of innovation permeates everything we do here at ASU, and that philosophy extends to the ecosystems and resources we make available to our collaborators,” said Sethuraman Panchanathan, executive vice president of Knowledge Enterprise and chief research and innovation officer at ASU. “New ideas and solutions to grand challenges are discovered when we partner at this level. Our Innovation Centers and Innovation Zones are prime examples of how these relationships are cultivated, and how the resulting benefits are realized by our communities.”
To learn more about the Cox Connected Environments Collaboratory, click here.
This story was originally published at Chamber Business News.
