Professor scoops award for digital innovation

Professor scoops award for digital innovation

8 October 2014

BALLYNAHINCH man Greg Maguire has won a prestigious award.

He was presented with the “creative media and consumer internet category” accolade at this year’s Northern Ireland Science Park INVENT Awards.

Greg — who owns gaming company Inlifesize — was named as having the innovation with the most commercial potential in his category at the prestigious INVENT 2014 final held at Titanic Belfast last week.

Inlifesize is leveraging its expertise in Hollywood grade visual effects and AAA gaming to stake a claim in the emerging consumer virtual reality market.

Greg, who is a Professor of Animation at the University of Ulster, won a slice of the £33,000 prize fund and will now take part in Northern Ireland’s most exciting tech mission this year —a week-long visit to San Diego and San Francisco at the start of December.

Northern Ireland Science Park CONNECT Director, Steve Orr, explained that since the launch of INVENT 2014 last February, the sheer enthusiasm and interest in the competition has been “unprecedented.”

He said to have 92 entries this year, tripling the number in 2013, demonstrates the hunger for innovation in Northern Ireland is rife.

Steve added: “Right from the beginning, we were enormously impressed with the ideas, concepts and inventions, all with great potential to become successful commercial businesses.”

Julie Ann O’Hare, Director of Business Banking with awards sponsors, Bank of Ireland UK, said the company’s ambition is to grow its business in Northern Ireland.