Speeches
Swedish American Chamber of Commerce
4/17/2007
Inventables CEO selected as keynote speaker at Swedish American Chamber of Commerce meeting
Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers
Inventables CEO, Zach Kaplan, was invited as the keynote speaker to address the Swedish-American Chamber of Commerce Entrepreneurial Days. This business, trade and networking event between Sweden and the U.S-is billed as the most important event for commerce between these two countries. The Entrepreneurial Days creates the perfect environment for Swedish and U.S. companies to expand trade between the U.S. and Sweden/Northern Europe.
Invention to Venture: IIT
3/31/2007
Product Design and Development in Entrepreneurial Settings
McCormick Tribune Campus Center
Inventables CEO Zach Kaplan was invited to speak on the difference between product development in a corporate setting and an entreprenuerial setting. Kaplan took the audience through Inventables product innovation process and told stories of two product development programs he participated in at Inventables.
Innovation & Technology Forecast
1/16/2007
Innovation & Technology Forecast
Drinker Biddle Gardner Carton LLP
Inventables CEO, Zach Kaplan, was invited to speak at the 7th Annual Innovation & Technology Forecast. The event covered the future of IT, communications, smart buildings, nanotech, biotech and biomedicine. In addition to Kaplan the event showcased four outstanding speakers who are leaders in Chicago's innovation community.
Entrepreneurial Leadership
4/22/2006
2006 Chicago Undergraduate Entrepreneurship Conference
University of Chicago Gleacher Center
The founders of Inventables have been invited to speak on two panel discussions to talk about defining your market and generating sales.
A Material Surprise
2/24/2006
Monterey Convention Center
Inventables founders Zach Kaplan and Keith Schacht shared some provocative materials along with ingenious ideas for how they might be applied. The audience was delighted with a working sample of an electronically illuminated fabric. At the end of the talk Chris Anderson the curator of TED raffled off a complete Inventables Innovation Library. The lucky winner was famous architect Joshua Prince-Ramus, the driving force behind the new Seattle Public Library.
Authentic Future Product Concepts
8/24/2005
Wardman Park Marriott, Washington, DC
Osman Ozcanli Technology Envisioner of Inventables presented how Inventables creates authentic future product concepts inspired by provocative technologies. This hands-on, engaging presentation will explain this concept of mental integration triggered by observing unexpected properties. The psychology of designing something is fascinating. When designers observe things that have unexpected properties they are presented with the opportunity to learn something new as well as make new mental connections. Learning about something unexpected helps designers change their perspective on the world. It will help them to explore possibilities that they did not know existed before.
Inventables: Innovation in Action!
7/27/2005
Palace Hotel, San Francisco, CA
At this premier event for everything real estate, technology, and innovation Inventables senior leadership took the audience by storm. In the spirit of creative optimism the audience was surprised and delighted with some hands on demonstrations of technologies and entertained with enlightened ideas for how they might be applied to consumer products. Seven demos of invention and innovation got audience members thinking outside of the box and inspired them to think differently about the business problems they work on through a discussion of learning about what's unexpected.
Step, Stretch, Leap with New Ideas In Materials and Technologies
6/11/2005
Pittsburgh, PA
Designers in every major consumer product company are developing the next-generation products. These designers are constantly brainstorming creative ideas and researching new technologies for inspiration.
Unexpected properties spark new design ideas
3/21/2005
McCormick Place Chicago IL
Inventables co-founders Zach Kaplan and Keith Schacht talk about how observing unexpected properties in materials and technologies can spark creative new product possibilities.
The Future
2/24/2005
Monterey Convention Center Monterey, CA
Inventables co-founders Zach Kaplan and Keith Schacht will present the latest in unique materials and technologies – along with inspired suggestions on how to utilize them – at the 2005 TED Conference. The presentation will be a thought provoking walk through six provocative technologies the Inventables team found in their research. Schacht and Kaplan will also unveil two commercials for future product concepts they worked on with Roman Coppola and his team at the Directors Bureau. The commercials will illustrate the potential for the enabling technologies that give rise to the revolutionary product concepts. The presentation will leave you thinking outside the box and into the future.
Provocative Materials and Technologies
10/28/2004
Civic Auditorium and Exhibition Center Pasadena, CA
Zach Kaplan and Keith Schacht of Inventables will present a selection of the most provocative materials and technologies their research team found in the last year. Each material or technology was selected because it demonstrates a technical concept that makes something possible that wasn't possible before in consumer products. Catch up with some of the latest developments and come away with tangible jumping off points for the products you are working on and the problems you are trying to solve. The presentation will include pictures, illustrations, and actual samples of items presented. It will help designers learn new ideas and make new connections by synthesizing information from many disciplines. The hands-on nature will stimulate right-brain thinking, and the mock-up of ideas from the Inventables concept studio will concretize the applications and inspire you to look into the future.
Inspiration Shift
4/16/2004
W City Center Chicago, IL
Inventables' presentation will focus on how knowledge of materials and technologies can be used as an invaluable source of inspiration for new product concepts. Inventables will briefly touch on why this source of inspiration is becoming increasingly valuable and then spend the majority of the talk introducing you to a selection of unique materials and technologies that Inventables has discovered in their last year of research. Inspiring application ideas for each item will be delivered in graduated “Step, Stretch, and Leap” format. This technique helps designers first understand the basics and then stretches their minds with powerful product concepts.
Bridging the Innovation Gap
4/4/2004
Pittsburgh Marriott District Center Pittsburgh, PA
Innovation with New Materials and Technologies. Design is evolving. Zach Kaplan of Inventables will help designers prepare for the future by educating you about what's possible with innovation-inspiring advanced materials and technologies. This outside-the-box hands-on presentation will engage you not only with new materials and technologies but also current and future design concepts that take advantage of these innovations. The product concepts will be offered as Steps, Stretches, and Leaps to help designers create taking off points and spark creative product ideas.
Brain Candy for Housewares Designers: Innovation with New Materials and Technologies
3/20/2004
McCormick Place Chicago, IL
Inventables will introduce housewares product designers to some unique materials and technologies that Inventables published in DesignAid over the last year. Applications for each material or technology will be delivered in graduated "Step, Stretch, and Leap" format.
Experience as a gateway to your understanding
10/16/2003
Rochester, NY Rochester Institute of Technology
Zach Kaplan of Inventables will demonstrate how experience can be a powerful gateway to understanding new and unique materials and technologies. The presentation will feature some samples featured in past issues of Inventables DesignAid. Some highlights will be a fabric that can sense your touch, a 1.5 volt battery that is paper-thin and flexible, and a disposable chemical nose that changes color in response to odors. Following the presentation will be a brainstorm in the college of Art and Design Building.