a living laboratory and marketing juggernaut.
CATALYSTS accelerate innovation in specific industries.
Catalysts are high-impact events that target the core industries of a carbon net-zero district. They gather 25-50 industry experts to tackle pressing challenges. A current virtual catalyst is the highly informative Micro Cargo Wars! on the potential that an evolved micro cargo industry offers NYC and other cities. |
| Micro Cargo: Explore the potential that new innovative vehicles and approaches offer in taking trucks off the streets. |
| Micro Mobility: Promotes e-bikes, scooters, and walkability to diminish CO2 emissions and improve urban life. |
| Urban Agriculture: Local farming techniques such as rooftop gardens that act as carbon sinks and cut transport-related emissions. |
| Green Buildings: Designs using sustainable materials, solar panels, and energy efficiency to lessen the carbon footprint. |
| Water Innovation: Approaches like rainwater harvesting that reduce carbon emissions related to water management. |
| Waste Innovation: Strategies such as composting and recycling to decrease city carbon footprints. |
| Metaverse and Climate: Virtual platforms aimed at environmental education, simulations, and climate-conscious urban planning. |
Invent.City created a four-roundtable catalyst called Micro Cargo Wars! on the future potential of an evolved micro cargo industry for NYC. It ultimately will include an action plan to launch a pilot in FiDi. The fourth and final roundtable is on November 15.
IDEAS COMPETITIONS TO ADDRESS BIGGER ISSUES.
Ideas Competitions: Dynamic experts - Economists, Artists, Scientists, Writers - converge to craft the future. They analyze, showcase, reveal, and capture, transforming visions into reality. |
| Ideas on Integrated Housing: Modular, eco-friendly designs for adaptable urban living. |
| Ideas on Revitalized Spaces: Transforming unused areas into vibrant community zones with farms, culture, and recreation. |
| Ideas on Energy Landscapes: Pioneering sustainable energy, like solar hubs, for a greener NYC. |
| Ideas on Waterways: Elevating waterways as vital urban arteries for transport, recreation, and ecology. |
| Ideas on Smart City: Harnessing IoT and AI for enhanced city life and connectivity. |
| Ideas on Resilient Urbanism: Building infrastructures ready for environmental challenges. |
| Ideas on Metaverse City: Merging virtual and physical spaces for community engagement and collaboration. |
World's Fairs to reach the widest market.
World's Fairs have a rich history of promoting society-changing innovation. Invent.City would be NYC's fourth World's Fair, but would be much different. It would be smaller with just 5 million projected physical visitors (complemented by 45 million in the metaverse). Invent.City would attract companies globe across the globe to to both locate their carbon net zero initiatives in FiDi and to attract investment in general. |
| NYC'S FOUR FAIRS: |
| 1853/54: Exhibitions of the Industries of All Nations: Held at present-day Bryant Park. Featured Elisha Otis' elevator safety latch, a key innovation for skyscrapers. Visitors: 1.5 million. |
| 1939/40: Building the World of Tomorrow: In Flushing Meadows, Queens, aimed at economic revival during the Great Depression. Visitors: 45 million. |
| 1964/65: Peace Through Understanding: Also in Flushing Meadows, noted for transportation and consumer electronics showcases. Visitors: 51 million. |
| 2025: Building A Carbon Net Zero City: Invent.City is designed to accelerate climate change solutions and economic growth. Physical Visitors: 5 million; Virtual Visitors: 45 million. |
| VALUE ADDED FOR TOURISTS. |
| Reasons why tourists will attend: Experience a world of wonders, where imagination meets reality and the future is unveiled today. |
| See innovation before it hits the market: Be the first to witness the next big thing in technology and design, revolutionizing how we live. |
| Experience future cities in the metaverse: Step into a virtual world of endless possibilities, exploring tomorrow's urban landscapes today. |
| Play interactive games about the future: Dive into futuristic gaming, where fun meets education and every play is a step into tomorrow. |
| Learn about worldwide environmental issues: Explore the challenges facing our planet and the innovative solutions driving change for a greener future. |
| Understand new technologies: Unravel the mysteries of cutting-edge tech, gaining insights that could shape your perspective on the digital world. |
| VALUE ADDED FOR BUSINESS VISITORS: |
| Learn about market-ready innovation. Business people will be able to explore and in many cases touch cutting-edge products and services ready for market deployment. |
| Discover upcoming innovative solutions. Get a first look at emerging technologies and groundbreaking ideas. |
| Network with prospective suppliers and partners. Build connections with industry leaders and potential collaborators. |
| Gain insights into industry trends and technologies. Stay ahead of the dramatically changing curve with expert analyses and forecasts. |
| Connect with potential investors. FiDi is already a preeminant global financing capital. Invent.City will be a platform for businesses to meet prospecitve investors. |
| Explore industry collaboration opportunities. Uncover possibilities for joint ventures and strategic partnerships. |
| Engage with innovations via interactive exhibits. Experience the latest innovations hands-on through dynamic displays and demos. |
World's Fairs have historically been pivotal platforms for showcasing global innovation, unveiling transformative inventions and visionary ideas that have shaped the course of human progress.
| The Great Exhibition (London, 1851) Theme: Industry of All Nations Innovations: The Crystal Palace (a massive iron and glass structure), early telegraph systems, industrial machinery. |
| New York Crystal Palace Exhibition (New York, 1853) Theme: Display of industry and technology, similar to London's 1851 Great Exhibition. Innovations: The Latting Observatory (a wooden tower taller than the Washington Monument at the time), early telegraph systems, and a precursor to the elevator. |
| Centennial Exposition (Philadelphia, 1876) Theme: Celebrating the U.S.'s 100th birthday. Innovations: The telephone by Alexander Graham Bell, the typewriter, and Heinz Ketchup. |
| Exposition Universelle (Paris, 1889) Theme: Celebration of the French Revolution. Innovations: The Eiffel Tower, early versions of the phonograph. |
| World's Columbian Exposition (Chicago, 1893) Theme: 400th anniversary of Columbus's arrival in the New World. Innovations: The Ferris wheel, moving walkway, early dishwasher. |
| Pan-American Exposition (Buffalo, 1901) Theme: Advances in electricity and technology. Innovations: Electric lighting displays, early X-ray machines. |
| Louisiana Purchase Exposition (St. Louis, 1904) Theme: Celebrating the centenary of the Louisiana Purchase. Innovations: Introduction of the ice cream cone, electric typewriter. |
| Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes (Paris, 1925) Theme: Modern decorative and industrial arts. Innovations: Art Deco design style, which was named after this exposition. |
| 1939 New York World's Fair Theme: "The World of Tomorrow." Innovations: The television, Futurama (an exhibit visualizing the world of 1960), early robots. |
| 1964/65 New York World's Fair (New York, 1964-65) Theme: "Peace Through Understanding" and a showcase of mid-20th-century American culture and technology. Innovations: The Ford Mustang was introduced, a model of a futuristic moon colony, the Unisphere (a 12-story high model of the Earth), IBM showcased a computer that could draw illustrations, early video phone demonstrations, and Disney introduced "It's a Small World" and audio-animatronics shows. |
| Expo '67 (Montreal, 1967) Theme: "Man and His World." Innovations: Habitat 67 (a model community housing project), IMAX film format. |
| Expo '70 (Osaka, 1970) Theme: "Progress and Harmony for Mankind." Innovations: Early mobile phones, local area networking technology. |
| Seville Expo '92 (Seville, 1992) Theme: "The Age of Discovery." Innovations: High-speed train linking Madrid to Seville, advanced pavilion designs using new materials. |
| Shanghai Expo 2010 (Shanghai, 2010) Theme: "Better City, Better Life." Innovations: Sustainable urban planning and design concepts, Maglev train technology. |
