NYU School of Engineering Announces ADT as Sponsor of Urban Future Lab

BROOKLYN, New York—The New York University Polytechnic School of Engineering announced today that ADT Security Systems has become a sponsor of the Urban Future Lab, an incubation program for tech startups that also serves as a destination for educational programs and workshops supporting a sustainable infrastructure and urban resilience.

Andrew Droney, director of innovation programs for ADT, announced the gift during the grand opening ceremony for the Urban Future Lab, located at the NYU Polytechnic School of Engineering in Downtown Brooklyn. The new hub of innovation is the third incubator partnership between the school and the New York City Economic Development Corporation.

The Urban Future Lab is home to the New York City Accelerator for a Clean and Resilient Economy (NYC ACRE), an internationally recognized hub for entrepreneurs working in the areas of clean energy and sustainability. As such, it nurtures start-up companies working on smart-building technology—companies like Radiator Labs, which is developing effective temperature-control systems for existing radiators, and Keen Home, which is designing smart ventilation.

ADT, the largest security company for homes and business in the United States and Canada, employs advanced technology to enable customers to monitor, control, and enhance their own security. ADT has also pioneered home automation and utility management via its Pulse platform. ADT Pulse was the first mass-market home automation and security system, which launched more than three years ago and now has the highest number of household users in North America.

“With 140 years of history and heritage, ADT continues to push the envelope when it comes to innovative solutions that will help customers integrate our products seamlessly into their everyday lives,” said Droney. “Through this exciting partnership with the NYU School of Engineering and the Urban Future Lab, ADT will be able to quickly identify and act upon emerging technology trends by working alongside some of the best and brightest innovators in the world.”

“This generous gift from ADT will help launch the Urban Future Lab on a trajectory of innovation for the benefit of New York City and beyond,” said NYU School of Engineering Dean Katepalli R. Sreenivasan. “Like our school, ADT dates back more than a century, and—also like us—it is using its rich history as the fuel to support innovators who can make our planet a better place in which to live.”

The 10,000-square-foot Urban Future Lab is located in the heart of Brooklyn’s Tech Triangle, at 15 MetroTech Center. It will provide incubation space for up to 20 start-up companies of NYC ACRE. The founding business partner of NYC ACRE is The Urban Future Lab also will be NYU’s epicenter for the new PowerBridgeNY proof-of-concept center. Both PowerBridgeNY and NYC ACRE are partnerships with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). Fewer than 50 proof-of-concept centers are believed to operate in the United States, accelerating technology developed at universities through the earliest stages of commercialization.