Quadrant-i Gift Honors Alumnus Father
Steve Braverman, on behalf of the space technology venture capital firm CreationsVC, has made a significant gift to Quadrant-i, Georgia Tech’s incubator for bringing faculty innovation and intellectual property to market. The result of a confluence of several factors, including the recent launch of Tech’s Space Research Institute (SRI), the gift honors Braverman’s father, Neil Braverman, IM 1960, a proud Georgia Tech alumnus and successful technology entrepreneur. The gift will support Quadrant- i’s commercialization of faculty-driven space exploration technologies.
CreationsVC specializes in investing in space tech, AI, and related technologies. The firm sponsors Creation-Space, an Israeli-based global innovation hub that is fostering innovation to enable humanity’s expansion beyond Earth. Steve said the gift is focused on “identifying innovative technologies that address challenges on Earth, with a focus on solutions that demonstrate ‘dual value’ — meaning they drive positive outcomes on Earth, with future application in space.”
Steve had long wanted to recognize his father’s entrepreneurial spirit with a gift to his alma mater. Steve says Neil chose to attend Tech because he knew that “Tech was going to give him the real capabilities, the real skill set, to not just manage the entrepreneurial process but to create it.” Neil’s education instilled in him what Steve calls “a strong appreciation for problem- solving and for addressing unforeseen needs and tough questions in a way that is grounded in entrepreneurship.”
After Neil graduated from Georgia Tech with his degree in industrial management, he went on to enjoy an accomplished career in textile manufacturing, founding and leading successful companies such as Safeskin Corporation, the top manufacturer of latex gloves for the healthcare and electronic markets. Over the years, Neil supported his alma mater in many ways, including the establishment of a dean’s scholarship in the Scheller College of Business, but Steve wanted to honor his father’s entrepreneurial spirit further. He met with Rahul Saxena, director of CREATE-X, Tech’s incubator for undergraduate commercialization, and discovered Quadrant- i and Tech’s newly created SRI.
SRI is the hub for all things space-related at Georgia Tech. It connects the Institute’s Schools, Colleges, Interdisciplinary Research Institutes, and labs to lead conversations about space in Georgia and the world. Supporting Quandrant-i and its relationship with SRI was a natural fit for Steve and CreationsVC.
Jonathan Goldman, director of Quandrant- i, sees the organization as a “resource to help the commercialization activities of SRI.” The CreationsVC gift will help Quadrant-i support the commercialization of faculty intellectual property and spinoff companies, while encouraging them to take root in Atlanta, enhancing an already vibrant space tech ecosystem. As Goldman points out, Georgia’s biggest industry is aerospace, and with Georgia Tech’s Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering consistently ranked among the best in the country, “There’s tremendous opportunity to build more space-centric businesses in the state of Georgia.”
Tech’s strong support of faculty entrepreneurship also captured Steve’s attention. “We were stopped in our tracks in a positive way,” he says, “by Tech’s vision of a university that rewards entrepreneurship not only at the student level but at the faculty level.” Supporting Quadrant-i commemorates his father’s entrepreneurial spirit and legacy as a proud Tech alumnus by investing in innovation that is “grounded in true financial metrics that deliver.” Steve’s gift to Quadrant-i furthers his vision of “doing good by doing well” and aligns with Tech’s mission of advancing technology and improving the human condition.
To make a gift in support of Quadrant-i or SRI, contact Meagan Burton-Krieger, executive director of Campaign Operations and chief of staff, at meagan.burton-krieger@dev.gatech.edu.