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When you open Microsoft Excel to review quarterly results or check Waze to optimize your route to the office, youre tapping into technologies born not in corporate boardrooms, but in university labs. Thinking of innovation, our minds often jump to the titans of tech: Jobs, Musk, Altman, Gates, Bezos. But behind everyday tech innovations and healthcare breakthroughs are academic researchers whose work catalyzed billion-dollar industries. The unsung heroes of the lab and lecture hall have laid the groundwork for some of the most transformative technologies of our time. A few make celebrity status as Nobel prize winners, but the glory of most academics is poorly understood for its formative early impact on products now essential to our livescivic, commercial, and medical. As we gather for the World Changing Ideas Summit on November 19 in Washington, DC, cohosted by Fast Company and Johns Hopkins University, we shine a spotlight on those whose curiosity-driven research has sparked breakthroughs that quietly shaped the world around us. ACADEMICS AND THE INNOVATION ECONOMY Here are four ways academic researchers have quietly shaped America’s innovation economy and impacted daily life. 1. GPS: The backbone of modern logistics You have probably tried to optimize your driving time and cherished every minute saved from your commute. Google Maps has over 2.2 billion monthly active users, and 71% of U.S. smartphone users rely on it weekly. At the root of this technology is the global positioning system (GPS), whose origins trace back to 1957. When Sputnik launched, two young physicists at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL)William Guier and George Weiffenbachdriven by the national urgency of the Cold War and scientific curiosity, used the Doppler shift of Sputniks radio signals to determine its orbit. They and others at APL soon realized the inverse was also true. Their breakthrough inspired the worlds first global satellite navigation system, sponsored by DARPA and the U.S. Navy. This innovation, aimed at solving national security challenges for the U.S. government, became the foundation for modern GPS, revolutionizing navigation and telecommunications for military, government, and civilian applicationsfrom global defense operations to everyday delivery routes. 2. Spreadsheets: A new language for business According to a survey, 84% of office workers use Microsoft Excel daily. Thank you, Bill Gates, right? Not so fast. The spreadsheet was not actually born in the Seattle tech scene; that credit goes to Dan Bricklin and Bob Frankston, students at Harvard and MIT. VisiCalc, the first spreadsheet software, was thought of as a magic blackboard, revolutionizing business modeling. The two werent aiming for market disruption, but simply trying to make homework easier. Bricklin was frustrated by tediously recalculating financial models by hand; Frankston, an experienced coder, helped bring it to life. VisiCalc launched in 1979 from a shared belief that computers should empower people. Their work was nurtured in university settings, supported by federal research grants and computing infrastructure. What began as an academic collaboration became the backbone of how we financially model todayfrom managing family budgets to forecasting industry trends. One could argue that this technology catalyzed our data-driven economy. 3. Self-driving cars: Autonomy realized Science fiction has arrived! Thats what I was thinking as I stepped into my first self-driven Jaguar in San Francisco, courtesy of Waymo. Waymo alone operates over 1,500 robotaxis across major U.S. cities, with plans to expand to 3,500 vehicles by 2026. The roots of this revolution trace back to Sebastian Thrun, a German-born scientist, whose childhood love of robotics and desire to reduce traffic fatalities led him to Stanford. There, he directed the Artificial Intelligence Lab and spearheaded a team that won the DARPA Grand Challenge, a competition funded by the U.S. Department of Defense. That success caught Googles attention and ultimately led to the creation of Waymo and a multi-billion-dollar industry. 4. Cancer detection: Learning what to look for Cologuard has been used over 16 million times. detecting more than 623,000 cancers and precancers, with 80% caught in the early stages. This technology started with the journey of Bert Vogelstein, a Johns Hopkins oncology researcher fixated on a simple scientific question: Why do some cells become cancerous? At Johns Hopkins, supported by sustained federal funding from agencies like the National Institutes of Health, Vogelstein, Ken Kinzler, and colleagues spent decades unraveling the genetic mutations behind tumor development. Their work led to the discovery of p53, a key tumor suppressor gene, and laid the foundation for our modern understanding of cancer as a genetic disease. Researchers insights into cancer cell origins enabled industry to develop methods for detecting disease. Today, we rely on genetic tests for early cancer detection, prenatal screenings, and personalized medicine. IT TAKES THREE PARTS So how do ideas from a university lab end up in your pocket or your car? Its a well-tested recipe. American innovation thrives on a three-part formula: federal investment, university research capabilities, and private sector development. Federal funding fuels foundational science, long before theres a market. Universities cultivate talent and ideas, allowing researchers to follow where the science leads rather than what a corporate budget dictates. Once science shows promise, the private sector tailors the science toward specific applications and scales those ideas into products and companies. Since 1980, federally funded academic research has resulted in over 17,000 startups and $1.9 trillion in economic output. But as global competition intensifies, the U.S. must double down on its research ecosystem. This tripartite innovation ecosystem is not just a source of economic strength. Its a reflection of our American values: open inquiry, public good, and the belief that big ideas can come from anywhere. This three-pronged approach unleashed a century of American technological leadership. At a time when federal research funding is being severely cut, we are wise to remember its central role in our economyand its promise for American leadership throughout this century. Christy Wyskiel is senior advisor to the president for innovation and entrepreneurhip, and executive director of Johns Hopkins Technology Ventures.
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E-Commerce
Being the children of Francis Ford Coppola had a profound impact on the filmmaking sensibilities of Sofia and Roman Coppola. But their mother, Eleanor Coppola, may have played a larger role in nurturing their creative pursuits. She taught me how to be in charge without being loud, and the importance of being real, Sofia writes in her introduction to Two of Me: Notes on Living and Leaving, Eleanor Coppolas posthumous memoir, published by A24 on November 11. [Cover Image: A24] Sofia and Roman convened in New York City last week for a conversation about the book and their mother, who died in April 2024 at the age of 87. One of Eleanors last wishes was to have Two of Me, which she wrote over the course of a decade using material from the diaries she kept for 50 years, published as a book. Eleanors other last wish was to have the 100 hours of video footage she shot on the set of Sofias 2006 film Marie Antoinette edited into a documentary, which is expected to be included in a 20th-anniversary edition of the film to be released next year. An artist and filmmaker whose mediums ranged from sculpture and conceptual art to photography and dance, Eleanor made her first documentary, Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse, after her husband asked her to shoot behind-the-scenes footage on Apocalypse Now. In 2016, at the age of 80, she became the oldest American woman to direct a debut feature film when she released the comedy Paris Can Wait. At an event last week, moderated by Vogue editor Keaton Bell and held at Barnes & Noble Union Square, Sofia and Roman shared some of the ways in which their mother influenced them, both as artists and as people. Here are the five biggest lessons they learned from her. 1. Stories are made of details Whether its the neon lights of Tokyos Shinjuku district in Lost in Translation or the elaborate floral arrangements in Marie Antoinette, Sofia Coppola is known for her filmmaking style that focuses on small details. She credits her mother with teaching her the importance of paying attention to such details. I got a lot from her just being this quiet observer, Sofia said. I notice details and I think thats in my films, which comes from her eye. 2. Everything is art Shortly after Sofia was born, Eleanor presented a gift to husband Francis in the form of one of Sofias dirty diapers, as it was the only work of art that Sofia could create at the time. Eleanor also once turned her home into a performance art space where she welcomed friends to observe a young Sofia watching a video of her own birth on a TV. What inspired me in my work is, she was very interested in conceptual art, specifically, and conceptual films, Roman said. She dabbled in that in the ’70s. And so the notion that anything can be a work of art, and that sense of play and idea art is something Ive brought into my work. 3. Film is not the only visual art form An avid appreciator of many different forms of art, Eleanor often brought her children to museums all over the world. One of Sofias most memorable experiences with her mother was being taken to see a performance by the German dancer and choreographer Pina Bausch. I was, like, Oh, we have to go to some weird modern dance with Mom. And it was one of the most incredible, most beautiful things Ive ever seen, Sofia said. Im really glad she brought us to see a lot of really interesting contemporary art that she was excited about. 4. Challenges are opportunities As an adult dealing with some personal issues and financial issues, Roman Coppola learned how his mother valued the experience of struggling in life. I was sort of moping a little bit, and she was, like, Wow, this is really great. There are a lot of things you have to figure out now in your life, and youre really going to take that on, Roman said. Some of the lessons werent just average things, but how to sort of embrace difficulty. It spoke to her confidence, but also just instilled that push to strive to pull yourself out of things and to work hard and be committed. 5. Mothers can also be filmmakers Eleanor didnt let her role as a mother prevent her from pursuing creative and artistic endeavors. She stressed to Sofia that it was important to make time to be both a mother and an artist. I learned from my mom that it was okay to do both, Sofia said. I think every mom that works feels guilty about it, so youre always torn. But she really encouraged me, and I was excited that I could do both.
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E-Commerce
Novo Nordisk, the Danish drug company that makes Ozempic and Wegovy, is now offering the drugs at lower prices for self-pay patients. On Monday, the company announced it would offer both medications, Ozempic (the weight-loss version of the drug) and Wegovy (the version that addresses diabetes), at a discounted rate of $199 per month for a limited time. The introductory offer goes from now until March 31, 2026. The announcement noted that the pricing is only good for the first two months of treatment, and at the lowest doses of the medications. After the initial months of treatment, the cost will move to the new monthly self-pay rate of $349 per month, down from $499. “As pioneers of the GLP-1 class, we are committed to ensuring that real, FDA-approved Wegovy and Ozempic are affordable and accessible to those who need them,” Dave Moore, executive vice president of U.S. operations at Novo Nordisk, said in a press release. Moore continued: “The U.S. healthcare system is complex, with different types of insurance and various ways for patients to obtain their medicines. Our new savings offers provide immediate impact, bringing forward greater cost savings for those who are currently without coverage or choose to self-pay.” Per the announcement, patients can access the new offers in three different ways: through Wegovy.com or Ozempic.com; through NovoCare Pharmacy; or through participating organizations and select telehealth providers that work directly with Novo Nordisk, such as Costco, GoodRx, WeightWatchers, Ro, LifeMD, and eMed.The offer comes amid the Trump administration’s call for the companies that manufacture weight-loss drugs to lower prices. Earlier this month while speaking in the Oval Office, Trump said that, after months of negotiation, a deal had been reached that would impact prices on the drugs for those who receive Medicaid and Medicare, and for users of the TrumpRx website, which is expected to launch by the end of the year.“Today, I’m thrilled to announce that the two world’s largest pharmaceutical manufacturers, Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, have agreed to offer their most popular GLP-1 weight-loss drugI call it the fat drug, rememberat drastic discounts,” Trump said.The competitive pricing comes as the obesity rate is trending down, as a result of reliance on weight-loss drugs. While in 2022, 39.9% of Americans met the criteria for obesity, that number today is down to 37%with 7.6 million Americans no longer meeting the threshold.
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E-Commerce
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