The UW Tech Exploration Lab team hosted an info session for interested students on Jan. 29, 2025, at the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery. If you couldn’t make it, don’t worry—here are the key takeaways. You can also watch the full recording here.
What is the Tech Exploration Lab?
The Tech Exploration Lab is a collaboration between WID and the Wisconsin School of Business that puts students face to face with industry pain points and pressing issues. Students in the lab will explore how emerging technologies such as AI, VR and AR, and machine learning can solve these problems.
What are the goals of the Tech Exploration Lab?
The main goal of the Tech Exploration Lab is to provide students with a space outside of the standard classroom to use technology creatively. The lab seeks to expand how students can interact with professionals and professors—eliminating the pressure to earn a grade, students should feel comfortable being exploratory with their work.
Students can also expect to gain hands-on experience with relevant technologies as well as key insights into industry problem-solving as members of the lab.
How does the Tech Exploration Lab work?
Students in the lab will meet every week on Monday from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. inside room 1145 of the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery for industry speaker sessions, team meetings, and project work time. Students seeking additional help can also meet with lab directors Tuesday from 11:00 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Students can work on semester projects either on their own or in teams identifying an industry problem and exploring potential solutions. Or students can attend Monday meetings and Tuesday office hours solely to learn and gain skills without working on a project.
What’s Next?
The Tech Exploration Lab is holding its first official meeting Monday Feb. 3, where students can learn from DoIT on AI policies and how to navigate the AI sandbox. Students will also begin matching with teams and defining projects.