On June 24-26, professional athletes explored the world of space technology at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. The NASA Commercialization Training Camp invited current and former athletes with the NBA and NFL to spend three days at Goddard and learn about opportunities to license and commercialize NASA technology.
“For athletes who are looking to transition into entrepreneurship as a second career after retirement, working with the NASA Technology Transfer Program can result in the development of commercial products or business concepts,” said Dennis Small, a senior technology manager with Goddard’s Strategic Partnerships Office. “We crafted this workshop to introduce participants not only to NASA technologies, but also to the basics of starting a business and finding success in the market.”
Through Space Act Agreements with the National Football League Players Association and the National Basketball Retired Players Association, NASA collaborated with the two organizations to bring the training camp to life.
On the first day of the training camp, athletes heard from Goddard’s team of technology transfer professionals, who work hand in hand with the engineers and scientists at Goddard who invent ground-breaking technologies. Through the process of technology transfer, NASA ensures that innovations developed for exploration and discovery are broadly available to the public, maximizing the benefit to the country.
The second day featured speakers from the Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO), which seeks to “provide resources and connections that early stage technology and life sciences companies need to thrive” in the state of Maryland, according to TEDCO’s website. The presentation explained how to work with investors and develop strategies to capture their attention when seeking funds. Dr. Jim Liew, an assistant professor of finance at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, followed TEDCO with a primer on entrepreneurial finance.
The last day of the training camp involved FedTech, an organization that connects entrepreneurs to resources and technologies developed through federally funded research and development. FedTech Founder Ben Solomon spoke to the athletes, and Obafemi Ayanbadejo, a former NFL player and licensee of NASA technology, shared how he founded his company, HealthReel. Attendees of the training camp also heard from former professional athletes who had successfully transitioned to careers in technology and aerospace.
Throughout the three days, athletes explored facilities and laboratories at Goddard, learning more about technology development at NASA and Goddard’s role as one of NASA’s 10 field centers. Attendees were given a list of NASA technologies to research and consider for licensing.
“We’re excited to see what will come from these connections,” Small said. “We encourage the training camp attendees to stay in touch and let us know how we can help support their projects.”