Cornell Tech has struck a deal with Ferrero International — one of the world’s largest chocolate manufacturers among brands like Nutella and Kinder — for the company to reside on the Roosevelt Island campus starting this September.
Ferrero will inhabit The Bridge, a center for investors, established companies and Cornell Tech teams to develop and prototype new products and technologies together.
Ferrero’s Vice President of Open Innovation Science Giovanni Battistini explained in a recent press release the advantages of collaborating with other companies and academics to help accelerate the commercialization of new products.
“We are thrilled to join the community at The Bridge,” he said in a press release. “With the opportunity to work with Cornell Tech and be among other companies committed to change and innovation, we will develop cutting-edge research and technologies that will have transformational effects on our products and business.”
Ferrero is the third tenant to sign with the established company programs at The Bridge, joining Two Sigma Investments and Citigroup on Cornell’s $2 billion, 12-acre campus. Ferrero will take 4,200 square feet at The Bridge, according to the press release.
MaryAnne Gilmartin, President and CEO of Forest City New York — owner and developer of The Bridge at Cornell Tech — said that The Bridge helps “close the gap” between academia and industries.
“Technology has become integral to all industries, not just our tech sector,” she said in the release. “We are thrilled to welcome Ferrero to the building where they will be able to take advantage of working in close proximity to the talented students and cutting-edge researchers at Cornell Tech in our unique ecosystem of impact and innovation.”
In October 2013, Cornell Tech announced its collaboration with corporations and media giants, including Tumblr, Facebook and The New York Times for its Connective Media degree, according to its website.
A couple months following the Connective Media degree collaboration, Cornell Tech signed a lease for the Roosevelt Island property with former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
In February 2015, Verizon donated $50 million for the Verizon Executive Education Center, and in 2016, Cornell Tech, CUNY and Verizon announced the “Women in Technology and Entrepreneurship in NY” initiative.
In its new partnership with Ferrero, Cornell tech students will learn about technologies and innovations to improve Ferrero products and drive improvements in product protection and packaging, according to the release.
Cornell Tech Dean Dan Huttenlocher said in the press release that Cornell Tech is creating digital pioneers who spark innovation across many sectors and not just in “traditional tech companies.”
“We are happy to have Ferrero join the campus for a chance to collaborate with students and faculty and they develop new ideas and technologies in their field,” he said.
In the upcoming school year, Cornell Tech will have around 300 graduate students and 30 faculty on its Roosevelt Island campus. When fully completed in 2043, the campus will be 2 million square feet constructed on 12 acres serving an academic community of nearly 2,500, according to its website.