R&D Council of NJ Executive Director Kim Case and NJ State Senator/physicist Andrew Zwicker join host Jim Barrood to explore New Jersey’s thriving innovation ecosystem. From building STEM talent pipelines to advancing fusion energy and strategic innovation centers, they reveal how academia, government, and industry are collaborating to shape the state’s future as a global innovation leader.
Kim Case: I am Executive director of the Research and Development Council of New Jersey. It's a nonprofit professional association made up of government, industry, and academic members all seeking to support and enhance the innovation ecosystem here in New Jersey.
Jim Barrood: Wonderful. Andrew.
Andrew Zwicker: So, I've got two jobs. One is at Princeton University's Plasma Physics Laboratory where I'm the head of public engagement workforce development, and my training is in plasma physics and fusion energy.
And I'm also the senator for State Senator for the 16th Legislative District, which is a good chunk of Central New Jersey.
Jim Barrood: Great. Thank you. Kim, let's talk about your journey. I know it's not the typical one, so let's start with college. How did you get from college to what you're doing today?
Kim Case: I went to Rutgers and always wanted to go to law school, and I was in student government, so I had a lot of contacts at the university, and I met with one of the deans at the law school, and the advice was, don't go right to law school. Do something else. Before you go to law school, and I was a little lost for a minute because I just always wanted to get into law school, and I was walking around campus and I saw a sign that said, do you want to level the playing field in education?
And I was like, absolutely. Like I'm a first-generation college student. And I know going to Rutgers was a big difference for me, a different environment. And so that was a call to enlisted to Teach for America. And so I decided to try to get into Teach for America. I went through that process and so I started out after college as a middle school social studies teacher in the South Bronx.
So CIS 166 Roberto Clemente, right outside of Yankee Stadium. And I did that for two years. I deferred law school and then I went to Rutgers Law after that. I practiced for a little bit and just realized it wasn't for me. There wasn't collaboration, there weren't meetings to talk about how to make things better.
I definitely always had that drive to improve things. And I had interned at CN Communications, which is a strategic communications company, and met with a mentor there and he had said that we're going to pitch the Research and Development Council of New Jersey and manage this organization. And I think that you can do that.
And I thought, okay, let's try. And so that's how I found myself with the Research and Development Council. And one of the things I liked the most about it was the passion of our members to build the stem talent pipeline in New Jersey. And that really aligned with what I had experienced in the Bronx and seeing where our students' potential was and like the opportunities that we could really invest in for them.
And I think that was a good match.
Jim Barrood: Awesome. What a unique route, but so impressive and I'm so and so happy you're in the position you are in now…Andrew?
Andrew Zwicker: Kim, so my mom for many years was a high school teacher at George Washington High School in George Washington Carver High School in Washington Heights, New York's, not far from where you were.
So, education for me was important from an early age. I went to a little school called Bard College in upstate New York, which is just a tiny, wonderful jewel of a college on the banks of the Hudson River. And from there, graduate school at Johns Hopkins. Came out and got a couple of postdocs, Princeton at the Plasma Lab, Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, and also did some work on fusion energy in Germany.
And then in the late nineties I got hired full-time at Princeton, where I still am at the plasma physics laboratory. At that time, I was hired by the deputy director of the laboratory, a person named Rush Holt. Who political folks will recognize instantly as the second physicist PhD physicist ever elected to the United States of Congress.
So he leaves to run for Congress and I go along my career at Princeton, and after eight terms, 16 years, he decides it's time to retire. And my boss, the person that replaced him at the plasma lab who was a registered Republican, came to me and said, I don't care about political parties. I know you're a Democrat.
Would you run for Congress? I just want a scientist to represent me. And of course, the only way anyone should ever react to the question of, will you run for Congress is to say, no. That's insane. But. Talked about it with my family and thought about it a little bit. And then two days later, a graduate student at Princeton, from Australia came up to me and said, ‘Hey, I hear you’re running from Congress.’
I just turned in my thesis and can be your campaign manager. And so people saw me in a way I didn't see myself, which was this elected official, and I was frustrated. It is the end of the Obama administration, and I was frustrated in the lack of understanding in Congress of the importance of investment in basic r and d as an economic driver.
Whether that was for the development of fusion energy or any other stem engineering technical type of basic research. So, I said, why not? Why not me? I can't be any worse than what I was seeing. I claim without any evidence whatsoever to have had. On a congressional campaign, more PhDs in all of American political history.
because I just asked my friends to help me run a campaign. I lost, but I lost less, worse than anyone ever imagined. Next year I ran for the general assembly. I was the biggest upset in the state. Won by less than a hundred votes out of about 35,000 votes cast that year. It was 2015. Spent six years in the assembly.
I'm now in my third year, fourth year in the Senate. In the State Senate, and I go back and forth between this beautiful mixed up world of science and politics. And hopefully, being a scientist makes me a better elected official, but I think. Being an elected official has made me a better science person and with my work in workforce development in Princeton.
Jim Barrood: Got it. Thank you for that. And thank you for your service. We are lucky to have a scientist. In the state legislature for sure. So Kim, tell us about the Research and Development Council. It's been around for a while, right?
Kim Case: Yeah, so it started in 1962. It came really out of leadership of Bell Labs and this understanding that you really, in order to get the best research and development, the best innovation you have to have cross-sector collaboration, right?
So bringing together industry, academia, and government. Around the table to develop a vision that really was going to be the most impactful. So things that have come out of the Research and Development Council and the membership and those discussions are things like the Liberty Science Center. There was a commission that the Research and Development Council established to discuss having a major science center in the state of New Jersey.
The r and d tax credit, which has gone through numerous iterations over the past decades. We're very proud of New Jersey's STEM Month, which happens in March of every year. And Senators Wicker is always a part of the Edison Patent Awards, which is really our opportunity annually to highlight innovation across the state.
And every year we have dozens of submissions of patents that we review. With a group of scientists and select really the best to highlight this year's event will be on November 20th at Bell Works. We have 17 winners that we're going to highlight and it'll be a great event.
We also have our Governor STEM Scholars, which is a collaboration between the Research and Development Council, the Department of Ed, and the governor's office. That brings together really high achieving STEM students from across the state and high school and at the college level to experience all that New Jersey really has to offer them in the government sector.
Senators, workers also involved in that in the industry sector in the academic sector. Really showing them that there isn't anything that's not in New Jersey, right? There is a pathway for them in all avenues when it comes to stem. And then we also have the STEM Pathways network now that we host that really started out of government in the office of the Secretary of Higher Education, and that brings together over 500 STEM leaders from across the state to.
Talk about things that are challenges, opportunities in STEM and education and workforce development. One of the biggest initiatives that has come out of that statewide program are our eight STEM learning ecosystems across the state. And those ecosystems are at the grassroots level. They involve K to 12, they involve higher ed, they involve employers.
They involve the government really focusing on what the needs of their communities are to move the needle for stem, for all learners. So we've got our hands in a lot of pots but all of it is necessary because it's all part of that ecosystem and education and stem and innovation and really moving things forward.
Jim Barrood: It really is an amazing organization and I'm so delighted that you're leading it and doing such a great job. So that sort of segues into our next topic about sort of innovation in the state, right? The council has been supporting it for many. Years. But of course, it takes government help, right?
Ecosystem, government support, orgs like yours, academia, entrepreneurs, investors, corporates. Andrew, talk to us about how far we've come or maybe some historical perspective, and then how far we've come and where we are now. And then I'd love to get Kim's perspective as well.
Andrew Zwicker: Sure, and Kim mentioned some of the initiatives that are going on that are part of that ecosystem.
But if you start historically then you know, you think about New Jersey and Edison and the light bulb. You think about Bell Labs, you think about all these incredible inventions that have come out of New Jersey, the computer ship industry. Everyone thinks of Silicon Valley, but it was created and started.
With the invention of the transistor here in New Jersey, and especially in the last eight years under the leadership of Governor Murphy and the CEO of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, Tim Sullivan, there's been a push to try to ensure that there are good public policies in place to go along with some of the finest.
Research institutions in the country, and that of course is Princeton and Rutgers and NJIT and Stevens and Cain as our research universities. You put that together with our location, which is why New Jersey's always been an innovation state in the East coast between New York down to Philly. We have the highest density.
Of scientists and engineers in New Jersey in the world I would argue at that point you could say in the universe. But the point is that we've got the number one public education system. We've got research institutions, we've got organizations like the RD Council of New Jersey. We've got public policies in place, and so there are tax credits.
There are angel investor tax credits. There's this thing called the Evergreen Fund, which is a one-to-one match where a VC and the state will match dollars to go into companies here in New Jersey. All of the pieces are here. It just takes focus and drive because as everybody knows, entrepreneurship and investment and growing an ecosystem of innovation takes many years.
So you see, whether it's down in Research Triangle in North Carolina of what's happened in Massachusetts life sciences. That's crossed party lines, that's crossed multiple administrations, both at the state and federal level, but it's a concerted effort. And New Jersey is, again, back on that path, recapturing so much of the innovation that we had here.
And to be honest, we lost quite a bit of it and now we're putting in place policies to make sure that we've got it for now in the foreseeable future.
Jim Barrood: For sure. Kim, how do you see it?
Kim Case: I just, I wanted to add to that too. I think a big part of this is the marketing of where New Jersey is at with this, and I think to Senator Zwicker's point, I think Governor Murphy really has made it clear that we're open for business when it comes to innovation in the state.
That's half the battle, is really just having a spokesperson and leadership out there. People like Senators Wicker, people like Governor Murphy, people like Tim Sullivan. Who are saying that we want you to be here, so let's talk about how we can make that work. We already have a menu of options for you.
We have tax credits, we have location, we have partners that you can come and we can connect you with. So I think a big part of that has been on the marketing where to senator, Zwicker's Point, Silicon Valley, has. Edged us out when it comes to the marketing side of things. I actually was at an event at Bloomberg a couple years ago, and they talked about where the transistor was invented in Silicon Valley, and I basically got up and screamed in my seat.
I said, that's not true, we have a legacy, but just because we have a legacy, I think people, they count us out for the, in, in some sense of the future. But it started here and it's going on here and it's going to continue to go on here. And we have had a lot of momentum over the last eight years, and we hope to see that continue to grow.
And I know the companies and the partners for the research and development council. I feel very strongly about that too. They want to see things grow here in the state. Mo our members are committed to being here in New Jersey. Bell Labs started in the Research and Development Council in 1962 is still here.
So that, still has that commitment and that presence and incredible leadership and vision. So I think we really are if we can focus on getting the word out and continuing to get the word out and getting the messaging out. We are not, we're not just good, we're great in the space of innovation, and we want more people to be here and experience that.
Jim Barrood: Yeah, and we should also highlight the marketing part, the communication part. Choose New Jersey has done a really good job over the past few years. I just had Tim Crouch on the pod recently. He's leading the West Coast and AI efforts in addition to being the chief strategy officer of the organization.
Kudos to them as well, because you're right, communicating it is half the battle. Andrew, talk to us about the strategic innovation centers as part of the, all those many programs that the EDA has brought online.
Andrew Zwicker: Yeah. And so at this point there are strategic innovation centers across the state, and these are, in short, they're public private partnerships where the idea is you can leverage resources, both financial resources, intellectual resources, whatever it might take to accelerate.
Innovation. So just in the central Jersey area. Just to give an example, there's the Helix Strategic Innovation Center in New Brunswick. It's a partnership with Rutgers University. Nokia is going to be one of the main tenants there, but right next to all the research that's happening. Rutgers will really push New Brunswick forward.
Down at Princeton, there is the AI hub, and of course we all talk about AI every single day. But again, Princeton's research and AI combined together bringing in a company called Core Weave out of New Jersey, bringing in Microsoft. To work on AI and the newest one is one near and dear to my heart.
It's called the Plasma Forge, which is going to be located halfway between those two innovation centers. And that is looking at how we accelerate. Fusion energy here in New Jersey, but how do we accelerate any sort of technology that is plasma driven? Plasma is the fourth state of matter we've mentioned.
Both Kim and I have mentioned transistors and computer chip manufacturing. More than two thirds of the steps of making a computer chip are done with plasmas and making sure that the next generation of computer chips are hopefully advanced here in New Jersey as an example, or plasmas being used for health and medicine.
There's just an infinite number of applications. Plasmas can be used to improve agriculture and we're the garden state. And so again, these public private partnerships are being looked at. We are in New Jersey's strength. And so whether that is in life sciences, whether that is in energy, whether that is in financial innovation because of the fact we're across from, the financial part of the world, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera, these are all being grown.
Under the EDA and are really going to not just be born here, but now leave a legacy and hopefully the same way. We see Bell Labs being here for decades. These strategic innovation centers that are being created over the last few years are going to be around for a long time.
Jim Barrood: Yeah. We're very excited about that.
But talk, let's focus on the one at your home at PPPL and tell us more about that in layman's terms so people can understand the prospects and the potential from that effort.
Andrew Zwicker: Sure. So, first of all, fusion, if you're not aware, can be considered advanced. Nuclear energy source of electricity that is still not quite ready to produce electricity, but it's getting closer and closer.
It is nuclear energy without any of the problems that we think about. There can't be a chain reaction. It can't be an explosion. It doesn't produce long lived dangerous radiation that lasts for many decades. It is the ultimate source of energy. It's 24/7/365. It doesn't care if the wind is blowing or the sun is shining, and it doesn't produce any greenhouse gases at all.
It's just technically very difficult to do here on earth. The closest fusion reactor to us is the sun and all the stars are powered by fusion. In the same way that the transistor was invented and the computer age was invented here in New Jersey. Fusion energy wasn't say invented here, but the research in the United States started here in Princeton with a professor at Princeton University in the 1950s called Lyman, and his name was Lyman Spitzer.
And Professor Spitzer was a brilliant scientist. Besides his work in Fusion, he was the first person to propose putting a telescope. Above the atmosphere so we don't have to worry about atmospheric disturbances that leads to Hubble and now there is also a Spitzer telescope that is orbiting the Earth right now.
So fusion started here. It's the ultimate source of. If we can get there, and what we're seeing over the last years is that private dollars are now flowing in billions upon billions of dollars because energy is a trillion dollar worldwide industry. And so the goal of the Strategic Innovation Center is to help in this ecosystem.
We've been talking about it the whole time. Two have private fusion companies come and do their initial reactors, their first experimental reactors here in New Jersey. It creates jobs, it pushes the research forward, and then it leads to. Very soon after that, the reactors that are going to produce electricity.
So that's part of what this plasma Forge is designed to do. And then the other part is all of those applications I talked about before, because the reality is when you do big research often. There are little results that lead to enormously important spinoffs. So for example, GPS, like in all our phones and everywhere, comes out of the Apollo project and sending people to the moon.
And so we're going to try to capture plasma applications. The ecosystem we've been talking about, grow new companies that use plasma technology and just let this grow and grow. And then I guess the last thing since I said the word plasma over and over, it's a state of matter. The way solid, liquid or gas is a state of matter.
Any solid heats it up, it'll eventually become a liquid. And a liquid will eventually become a gas, heating up any gas. It'll eventually become a plasma and the sun and the stars are all plasma.
Jim Barrood: Wow. Okay. That was, thank you for that masterclass. But Andrew also mentioned the partnership with Hacks.
Andrew Zwicker: Oh, sure.
That out? Sure. So The Forge is a partnership between the Princeton Plaza Physics Laboratory, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, Princeton University. And HAX is an unbelievable accelerator. They're experts at taking companies, investing in them, and moving quickly to push them forward.
And so they're going to come in and be the private part of the private public. Venture here. They've already started investing in infusion companies. They've already started investing in plasma spinoffs, and so they're not just the private financial piece of it, but they are the experts when it comes to helping companies grow and grow in a smart way.
And so they're super, super enthusiastic about this is the next step of their growth and to partner with both PPL and the EDA.
Jim Barrood: Yeah. Thank you for mentioning that they are one of the top investors accelerators on the planet. Yeah. Just so lucky to have them so engaged in the state. So what about the outlook?
Okay. We have in our state a new administration coming in. We have a federal administration that is challenging academia and the innovation ecosystem in different ways. How do you see that? I'll start with you, Andrew, just because you're in politics a bit more. How do you see that coming through?
Andrew Zwicker: So, I'll start at the federal level. The position of the federal government at this point to cut basic research, whether that is in the life sciences, in health or the physical sciences is just nonsensical. It's dumb. It makes no sense whatsoever. We've seen for decades since the end of World War II, that American investment into basic R & D leads to a net return on investment, a significant one of economic growth. It creates jobs, it makes us competitive internationally. It makes us leaders in so many different ways. And so what is happening right now at the federal government? Lies in the face of all of our history as innovative leaders.
You call it challenging because you're being polite. It's just dumb. It really is a shortsighted, wrong policy. But that is what we have and that's what we're living with through right now. And so okay, fine. What that means is there's even more. Of a need for states to step up as best they can. They won't have the same size of investment because states economies are smaller than the federal government.
Okay. States have to step up. And so everything we've talked about, which has been done under the Murphy administration, wasn't done to expect that we're gonna see these massive cuts to the federal level. But thank goodness that we've done that and New Jersey's state policies are so strong. I am convinced, both as a scientist, as an elected official, that we will. In the first Trump administration, they tried to cut basic R&D and Congress kept on putting it back. I am convinced that eventually this administration will see the error in their ways and we will start to recover when it comes to investing in basic R&D. Not, not just a few things. And of course, this whole political position against the development of renewable energy is just straight up politics.
And again, take the politics out of it. It is a good economic decision. The fastest way to get electricity on the grid is solar and battery storage. And so having a position at the federal level against solar just makes no sense.
Jim Barrood: And what about the Nixon administration here in the state?
Andrew Zwicker: So the next administration, we'll find out polling is showing that it's pretty competitive, pretty close.
So it's hard to know exactly who's going to win. I have a favorite of course. But look, I think the critical thing here. I think about what has happened over the last decade plus up in Massachusetts when it comes to really becoming a center for Life Sciences, and they went through Democratic and Republican administrations.
They've gone through different presidential administrations, but they were focused. They had a long-term plan and have stuck with it. The goal here is going whoever wins the election in November to convince her that this, of course, is a policy that we want to continue.
Jim Barrood: Got it. Amen to that. Kim, go ahead. What's your take on both?
Kim Case: Starting with the question with the federal, we're lucky we're here in New Jersey, so I'm very proud that we're here in New Jersey and all of the policies and initiatives that Senator Wicker pointed out are exciting. And, our long-term games at the end of the day.
And I think that's how our companies and our institutions are looking at what's going on in the federal landscape. So they really are, we are investing for the long term here. Obviously there's a lot of bumps in the road. We do have the midterm elections that are coming up. Hopefully the pendulum swings a little bit in favor of decision makers who are going to make policies that support research and development and innovation in the country.
But in terms of a new administration for New Jersey, I think that people really should vote for people that are willing to make these investments. If people are, I think that we've had decision makers and governors who have said certain things, but I really feel like the budget represents your values and principles and how you see things for the future.
And we need those commitments. We don't need people just speaking their mind. We need people investing in the way that makes the most sense for the future. So that would be our suggestion, definitely on behalf of the Research and Development Council, if we definitely want people in positions who are gonna invest in the things that are gonna promote research and invest in the innovation economy in New Jersey.
Andrew Zwicker: Can I just add, sorry, Jim. Just real quick to what Kim said. When I talk to business owners, small and big, what I hear from everybody is what they're looking for is certainty. Yes, they would like to speed up some of the regulatory burdens, but they need certainty because if they're going to invest in New Jersey, they don't want to feel like a new administration's going to come in at any level and flip.
Their position. And I think that's really key. And so again, it's how can we create a long-term path with certainty so businesses feel comfortable investing here.
Jim Barrood: Yeah, for sure. Absolutely. What about tips for entrepreneurs? What would be one tip for entrepreneurs looking to launch a venture in the state?
Kim?
Kim Case: I just, the first thing I thought of for that is jump in. There's so many ways to jump in here. You get involved with the organizations and definitely connect with the EDA so you understand what your menu of options are, depending on where you are. Check out an incubator. If you need space like that.
Go have a visit with someone. Talk to academic institutions. Know where you are in terms of what you are working on and find those partnerships. There's also a platform called research right with New Jersey. That's an option to use that as. A tool in what you're doing. So I think there's so many different ways.
I think you really can jump in and get connected. Don't feel like you have to start on your own. Start just doing research. Get out there and talk to people, and I think you will find the tools that you need to be successful.
Andrew Zwicker: Andrew. Yeah, I really like what Kim just said.
I think of some of my science friends, and we know how many companies start up and then don't succeed. I think the key thing here is that if you have a good idea, like Kim said, yeah, go for it. But the second one is you may know the technology, but the key thing you've gotta get is that business person in place who really understands how to put a business plan that is realistic together.
And then you go to all choose New Jersey or the EDA or the Business Action Center or wherever it might be. But that is really gotta be the key. I think the other thing is, especially to the academic researchers, we're seeing now. In our research institutions, an increased emphasis on technology transfer, an increased emphasis on helping academic researchers become more entrepreneurial.
Take advantage of that even if you don't think you have something just yet that is ready for tech transfer. The quicker you learn and understand about this ecosystem, the better off you will be because you know who knows where the next great invention is going to come from. And the goal, of course, is to come from a New Jersey research institution, but then we have all those wraparound services and ability to help that person grow that into a successful company.
Jim Barrood: Got it. Now, Andrew, just for you, what about entrepreneurs who are looking to start an energy or a fusion related venture in the state?
Andrew Zwicker: Yeah, look, that's the case. Take advantage of a variety of different things that are out there. We've mentioned some of the tax credits for the fusion companies. I have legislation working its way through right now to provide tax credits directly to fusion companies that come to New Jersey and also tax credits for owners.
Of decommissioned power plants, whether it's a decommissioned nuclear plant or a decommissioned coal plant, but they've got the big pipe, the big connection to the grid. If they work out an agreement with a fusion company, I want to give them tax credits for any infrastructure upgrades that they need to do.
So again, it is, when it comes to energy, when it comes to whether it's fusion or anything else, the pieces are all here and you just gotta work with the folks who are ready to help you so that you understand how you fit into that ecosystem.
Jim Barrood: Got it. That's great to hear. This has been a great conversation.
We usually end with a saying or a quote or a poem. Kim, what do you have for us?
Kim Case: So I've been using this quote for a long time now, but it doesn't, and, it doesn't get old to me. Nobel Prize winner scientist Marie Curie once said, one never notices what has been done. One can only see what remains to be done.
Jim Barrood: Love it,
Andrew Zwicker: Andrew. So I give a talk that I've done all over the country called Physical Politics, talking about the intersection of science and public policy and politics. And I end the talk with this quote from Carl Sagan more than 40 years ago. He said this, it was true then, and it is even more true today is what he said.
In science, it often happens that scientists say that's a really good argument. My position is mistaken. And then they would actually change their minds and you never hear that old view from them again. They really do it. It doesn't happen as often as it should because scientists are human and change is sometimes painful, but it happens every day.
I cannot recall the last time something like that happened in politics.
Jim Barrood: Perfect. Perfect. Thank you so much folks.
