Dean H. Rao Unnava: Spring 2025 Big 3

Dean H. Rao Unnava's Spring 2025 edition of the Big 3 features:

UC Davis' $1.1B Aggie Square Innovation Hub Opens for Business
Aggie Square opens a new chapter in UC Davis’ role as a global gateway for innovation and international collaboration in the life sciences. A model of public-private partnership, this bold initiative is a nexus where research, business and community come together. Read more >

25th Annual Big Bang! Business Competition Awards $100K in Seed Cash
We recently celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Big Bang! Business Competition, the longest-running student innovation challenge in Northern California. Big Bang! has engaged 7,500+ entrepreneurs and helped 160 startups raise $1.7B in funding. Read more >

Master of Management Offers New Opportunities for Aggie Athletes
Not every college athlete turns pro, so UC Davis prioritizes preparing student-athletes for life after sports. Two dozen Aggies are pursuing our Master of Management or MBA, representing nine NCAA Division I teams. Read more >

Video Transcript

• UC Davis Aggie Square is open for business!
• Our 25th annual Big Bang! Business Competition awarded over $100,000
• A record 24 UC Davis student-athletes are earning their Master of Management or MBA degrees

Welcome to the Spring 2025 edition of the Big 3 Video Newsletter.

UC Davis' $1.1B Aggie Square Innovation Hub Opens for Business

After years of planning, Aggie Square is now open on the UC Davis Sacramento campus—a $1.1B innovation district and a model of public-private partnership. This bold initiative positions UC Davis as a global nexus for innovation, economic development, and life sciences collaboration.

At the Graduate School of Management, we’re activating student engagement through industry-focused programs like our Biotechnology Immersion. 

At the ribbon cutting, UC Davis announced a global alliance with Wexford Science & Technology and South Korea–based FLANN Inc. to launch up to 10 early-stage life sciences ventures—underscoring Aggie Square’s role as a launchpad for international innovation.

Aggie Square exemplifies UC Davis values: sustainability, innovation, and inclusive growth—offering students, researchers, and partners a dynamic space to collaborate, create jobs, and accelerate solutions that impact California and beyond.

This month, we celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Big Bang! Business Competition, the longest-running student innovation challenge in Northern California.

25th Annual Big Bang! Business Competition Awards $100K in Seed Cash

Organized by the Mike and Renée Child Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the Big Bang! offers a year-long journey to collaborate, test ideas and ultimately build the networks needed for sustainable ventures.

This year’s $25,000 top prize went to a team of undergraduates for a precision livestock health monitoring solution. The implantable device helps farmers prevent disease outbreaks—an excellent example of the competition’s real-world impact.

Judges recognized standout ventures across UC Davis research strengths, including animal health, education, energy, food systems, human health, and social impact.

Over the past 25 years, Big Bang! has engaged 7,500+ entrepreneur and helped launch over 160 startups that have raised $1.7B in funding.

And generous competition sponsors have awarded over $1M in prize money.

The Big Bang! is more than a competition—it’s a powerful launchpad for the next generation of mission-driven entrepreneurs.

We congratulate all the entrants and winners of the Big Bang! for their innovative thinking and dedication to developing life-changing solutions.

Master of Management Offers New Opportunities for Aggie Athletes

Not every college athlete turns pro, so UC Davis prioritizes preparing student-athletes for life after sports.

We’ve teamed up with UC Davis Athletics to create a new pathway that extends student-athletes' collegiate careers while preparing them for post-competition success.

This past season, 21 Aggie student-athletes joined our Master of Management program, and three others are pursuing their MBA. They’re top players on NCAA Division I teams, including football, basketball, baseball, golf, lacrosse, track and field, volleyball, and tennis.

The partnership is also proving to be a strategic recruiting tool. Our graduate business programs offer UC Davis undergrads a way to continue their academic journey—and attracts graduate student-athletes from other top programs nationwide, including Harvard and Dartmouth.

In today’s evolving landscape of Name, Image, and Likeness, known as NIL, and transfer portal dynamics, our graduate business programs offer a compelling edge: They are helping student-athletes build skills, networks and career opportunities that endure long after the final whistle.

Thank you for watching this issue of the Big 3!