As Coastal Virginia’s innovation ecosystem continues to evolve and coalesce, the partnerships and collaborations driving that momentum are advancing the ways in which academia, research facilities, industry and regional development organizations are working together. These cooperative efforts serve to attract investment, nurture talent, and advance economic development. The success of these partnerships along with new initiatives like Start in Hampton Roads, and the Hampton Roads Regional Investment Playbook, are helping to dispel the once prevalent opinion that substantive and lasting regional cooperation was a just pipe dream. We have a way to go, but we’re sensing a new optimism.
For this roundup, we asked leaders from across the region to share their perspectives on how these connections are transforming Coastal Virginia into a hub of innovation and opportunity.
—Beth Hester, Managing Editor
Patrick Ball, Associate Director of Operations, Hampton Roads Biomedical Research Consortium (HRBRC)
In Hampton Roads, Innovation happens through the power of collaboration. The Hampton Roads Biomedical Research Consortium (HRBRC) was founded to bridge the region’s academic, clinical, and economic strengths, creating a shared infrastructure for research, technology development, and workforce growth.
Through partnerships with Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences, Norfolk State University, Old Dominion University, Sentara Health, and the cities of Hampton Roads, HRBRC connects researchers, clinicians, and entrepreneurs to accelerate biomedical innovation from concept to community. The Consortium’s work spans advanced computing for environmental health, data science, and medical prototyping. Here, engineers and physicians co-design new training tools and technologies in the Prototyping & Integration Lab.
With facilities at Old Dominion University’s Tri-Cities Regional Higher Education Center, and a collaborative space at Assembly in downtown Norfolk, HRBRC serves as a regional hub for interdisciplinary innovation. By aligning public institutions and private partners around shared goals, HRBRC is helping to shape a healthier, smarter, and more connected Hampton Roads.
Derek Aday, Dean and Director of William & Mary’s Batten School of Coastal & Marine Sciences & Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS)
As the Commonwealth’s trusted scientific advisor, William & Mary’s Batten School & VIMS support our shellfish farmers through advanced research, selective breeding, and disease management while refining growing methods, tracking production, and providing technical training and advice. By connecting cutting-edge research to real-world application, we’re helping to ensure that shellfish remain a sustainable cornerstone of Virginia’s environment, economy and culture.
We are also proud of the role that we’ve played in restoring and sustaining Virginia’s iconic shellfish. Our science—including careful monitoring, advances in breeding for disease resistance and habitat restoration —was a critical factor that led to the recovery of wild oysters after the fishery nearly collapsed in the late 1990s. Now, many are celebrating the return of bay scallops to the Eastern Shore. This took the world’s largest seagrass restoration project, more than a decade of breeding and seeding millions of juvenile scallops, and the support of many public and private partners.
Today, Virginia’s iconic shellfish are thriving and we have become the largest producer of oysters and hard clams in the U.S. These are tremendous accomplishments, and I hope that people will continue to support the science that helped make them possible.
Michael Evans, Director of Business Intelligence, Hampton Roads Alliance
In Hampton Roads, innovation often happens in quieter ways, in rooms where competitors share data to strengthen a proposal, or where local leaders sit shoulder to shoulder to tell one unified story. I have seen how that kind of collaboration turns possibility into momentum. In my role leading economic and real estate research for the Hampton Roads Alliance, I’ve learned that good data alone is not enough. I serve as an advisor to localities and businesses across the region, helping leaders turn analysis into action and align around shared strategies for growth.
Here, progress is not just about technology or startups. It’s about connecting what already exists — data, people, and purpose—to build something stronger. In a region this diverse, real success only happens when everyone has a seat at the table and a stake in the story. The Hampton Roads Regional Investment Playbook captures that alignment, focusing our collective effort on what we do best: defense, energy, aerospace, and logistics. These strengths form the foundation of a shared strategy for growth.
When we move forward together, partnership becomes our greatest innovation.
Roberto Flores, Ph.D., CNU Innovation Hub Director, and Associate Professor of Computer Science
The Innovation Hub (iHub) at Christopher Newport University was launched a year ago as a gateway to connect faculty with regional businesses and nonprofits to address real-world problems through research and innovation. Since then, iHub has created links and provided incentives to establish several robust projects. When we started this initiative, we discovered a vibrant entrepreneurship and start-up community driving innovation in Hampton Roads. We have now established partnerships not only with start-ups but also with local government, non-profit organizations, and other universities.
As Director of the iHub, I find our most effective connection point is our unique collaboration model. We ask potential external partners to work with our faculty on projects for which they may not have the internal capacity to address right now. We provide the expertise and incentive for our faculty to participate, effectively removing their capacity limitations.
All projects supported by the Innovation Hub involve the application or development of Artificial Intelligence and Data Science tools and mechanisms, ensuring we advance both regional innovation and a future-ready workforce in Virginia.
Elspeth McMahon, Ph.D., Associate Vice President for Maritime Initiatives, Old Dominion University
In Coastal Virginia, innovation extends far beyond the classroom, it’s happening at the waterfront, in our shipyards, at our port and across the military installations that anchor our region’s economy. At Old Dominion University, our north star is building a connected maritime workforce and innovation ecosystem, linking education, industry and the community to bring technology, training and talent together to strengthen our nation’s most vital maritime network.
Through partnerships with the Hampton Roads Executive Roundtable, Hampton Roads Alliance, Hampton Roads Workforce Council, Virginia Ship Repair Association, the Virginia Maritime Association, Propeller Club and 757 Collab, among others, ODU is shaping the maritime leaders of tomorrow while driving regional growth and innovation. Our programs are designed to meet real-world workforce needs through our interdisciplinary school of Supply Chain, Logistics and Maritime Operations. We cultivate future talent with K–12 outreach initiatives, such as our Maritime Engineering and Environmental Studies Academy, developed in partnership with Newport News Public Schools.
ODU also leads pioneering research to enhance the safety, resiliency and efficiency of maritime operations, spanning autonomy and automation, shipbuilding and repair, maritime logistics, cybersecurity and smart port management. Solving key problems and strengthening the maritime industrial base is made possible through our regional collaborations and strategic partnerships.
Together, we build the bridges that keep Coastal Virginia at the forefront of maritime excellence.
Tim Ryan, Executive Director, Innovate Hampton Roads and Director, REaKTOR Technology Innovation Center
In Coastal Virginia’s 757 region, Innovate Hampton Roads (IHR) has a unique and strategic advantage because we can “see the chessboard” in real time, connecting regional players for transformative outcomes. By aligning startups, universities, and research giants, IHR leverages the collective strengths of these entities to drive innovation and economic impact.
IHR guides companies through their entire entrepreneurial journey, from idea validation at Start Peninsula’s pitch competitions, to supporting their day-to-day growth at REaKTOR’s collaborative spaces, which culminates in celebrating milestones at 757 TechNite’s showcase events. This holistic vision ensures startups thrive at every stage.
Old Dominion University (ODU), with its prestigious R1 research status, can partner with regional ventures, channeling cutting-edge discoveries into commercially viable through joint R&D and talent pipelines. In this mission, 757 Collab serves as a strong partner within IHR’s framework, empowering startups with mentorship, solid action plans and funding to foster innovation.
Established organizations amplify these efforts. NASA Langley’s Strategic Partnerships Office, linked through IHR, shares aerospace expertise, while Jefferson Lab’s tech transfer programs equip firms with tools for environmental and data science advancements. A recent VIPC grant to IHR bolsters this ecosystem, attracting investment and talent for medtech and biotech innovation.
By orchestrating innovation in action, IHR positions the 757 as a national hub for innovation, driving job creation and lasting impact.
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