On Monday, July 14, 2025, higher education entrepreneurship leaders from 19 Universities gathered in Indianapolis for the Midwest Engineering Entrepreneurship Network (MEEN) Conference. MEEN’s mission is to support the innovation efforts of Midwest technology entrepreneurship institutions. The annual conference supports this mission by bringing University innovation leaders together to collaborate, ideate, and share ideas for the future of entrepreneurship education. The 2025 conference was hosted by Purdue University in Indianapolis and highlighted the emergence of midwestern innovation ecosystems.
Purdue University in Indianapolis
Each year, the MEEN conference is held at a different University campus to highlight the diversity and potential of entrepreneurship education at different campuses. In 2025, the conference was held at Purdue University’s new Indianapolis campus. Purdue’s recent expansion reflects both their commitment to the city and the emergence of Indianapolis as a Midwest innovation center.
“With increased uncertainty with respect to Federal science funding, it is increasingly important for university entrepreneurship centers to leverage resources in their local and state ecosystems. Indianapolis provided a great example for MEEN attendees to experience an innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystem that offers a rich and diverse set of resources to support companies commercializing university-developed technologies.” – Matthew Lynall, Ph.D., Clinical Professor at Purdue University and organizer of the 2025 MEEN conference
2025 MEEN Conference Attendees
Navigating a Changing Ecosystem
Recent changes in Federal spending priorities have necessitated Universities to reevaluate and explore ways to maximize their impact. For Engineering Entrepreneurship Centers, utilizing their ecosystems becomes paramount. The 2025 MEEN conference theme of ‘Navigating a Changing Ecosystem’ provided an opportunity for attendees to discover some of the best ways to navigate their regional ecosystem. In one session, titled ‘Best Practices for Making Connections Across Campus,’ Nick Moroz, Matthew Lynall, and Jed Taylor showcased the ways university leaders can work together across units in their school to create impactful programming and outcomes.
Nick Moroz, Matthew Lynall, and Jed Taylor presenting ‘Best Practices for Making Connections Across Campus’
Other conference sessions included Christopher (Toph) Day, CEO of Elevate Ventures, who described the ecosystem and infrastructure supporting Indianapolis. Ryan Larcom, at Alloy Partners (formerly High Alpha Ventures), shared the opportunity of establishing university-based Venture Studios. Darwin Ling, Founder and General Partner of Good AI Capital, spoke about the application of AI in conjunction with physical devices.
Ryan Larcom presenting ‘University-based Venture Studios’
MEEN – A Foundation for Midwest Entrepreneurship Education
Founded in 2011 by the University of Michigan and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, MEEN has helped enable the growth of Engineering Entrepreneurship Centers in the Midwest. Today, MEEN allows these centers to collaborate and chart a bright future for entrepreneurship education. As Midwest Universities look to expand their economic impact, MEEN remains a valuable network of friends and colleagues.
Learn more about MEEN: https://midwestentrepreneurship.org
Interested in University Innovation? Discover the Great Lakes I-Corps Hub: https://greatlakesicorps.org
