Sacramento, Calif. – Today, UC Davis announced that Kings Owner and Chairman Vivek Ranadivé will receive the university’s Innovative Community Partner of the Year Award. This award recognizes a leader or an organization that works to drive regional economic impact, through innovation, entrepreneurship or support for growing the startup ecosystem in collaboration with UC Davis. Vivek will accept the award at the university’s awards ceremony on June 8.
“We’re fortunate to have a university community like UC Davis to support the bold endeavors of our region,” said Sacramento Kings owner and chairman Vivek Ranadivé. “It is an honor to be recognized by a hub of innovation and discovery. Thank you to Chancellor Hexter, as well as the student and faculty community, for supporting and elevating our vision of a thriving Northern California.”
Under Ranadivé’s leadership, the Sacramento Kings have worked to impact the community by deliberately investing in local companies, creating job pipelines for underserved communities, and creating a new center of civic pride. Along with Downtown Commons, the $1 billion investment into the region has seeded over $530 million in real estate transactions near the arena, increased property values, and contributed to a thriving downtown with over 80 new businesses. After only eight months of operation, Golden 1 Center received the Sports Business Journal Facility of the Year award for the tremendous impact it has had on the region.
Ranadivé is an active member of the UC Davis Chancellor’s Board of Advisors and is a strong supporter of innovation and entrepreneurship across the entire University of California system. The Kings annual Capitalize competition – the NBA’s first crowdsourced VC contest – featured seven UC Davis-affiliated organization in the semi-final round of 16.
Recently, his venture capital firm focused on investing in value-driven startups specifically including those derived from UC campuses, Bow Capital, invested in a bio-sciences startup founded on research developed at UC Davis.
“Vivek Ranadivé deserves this year’s Innovative Community Partner Award for several reasons,” remarked Interim Provost Kenneth Burtis. “He is a pioneer in the fields of big data and real-time technology, he is an important force for promoting innovation and entrepreneurship both in the private sector and at UC, and he is actively engaged in helping UC researchers translate their discoveries to real-world impact.”
“Vivek’s tireless efforts have woven innovation into the very fabric of the Sacramento Kings organization and into the heart of Sacramento,” said said Dushyant Pathak, Associate Vice Chancellor of Research and Executive Director of Venture Catalyst at UC Davis. “ We are thrilled to recognize him and the Kings for their dedication to supporting University of California entrepreneurs and to working with us to enhance the UC Davis innovation engine.”
Visit UC Davis Chancellor’s Innovation Awards for more information about the awards.
