In a major feature in Crain’s New York Business, Annie Karni gives readers a “First look at NYU’s Big Data Campus.”

Subtitled “A high profile physicist leads the effort to take on the problems of city life,” Ms. Karni’s piece profiles and introduces to a broad audience NYU’s recently founded, first-of-its-kind  Center for Urban Science and Progress  and its inaugural director, the renowned physicist and former Under Secretary of Energy at the United States Department of Energy, Dr. Steven E. Koonin.

NYU CUSP is a unique public-private research center that will use New York City as its laboratory and classroom to help cities around the world become more productive, livable, equitable, and resilient and serve as an incubator for innovative new businesses.

In laying out a prime example of the value that NYU CUSP will bring to both New York City and cities worldwide, Ms. Karni’s piece chronicles how Dr. Koonin, and CUSP, would attack a common problem faced by urban residents: excessive noise levels at inopportune times.

The piece also appropriately distinguishes CUSP from the other recently formed technology-oriented institutes in the City,  delves into Dr. Koonin’s remarkable background, and makes prominent mention of the Center’s expected dramatic economic impact:  CUSP is expected to generate $5.5 billion in economic activity over the next 30 years and lead to 200 spinoff companies, adding about 4,600 permanent jobs, in that same time frame.

The venerable and prestigious – and TMO Client – Polytechnic Institute at New York University is a major partner stakeholder in CUSP.

Read the entire Crain’s feature.

About CUSP

CUSP is an applied science research institute created by New York University and NYU-Poly with a consortium of world-class universities and leading international tech companies. At the heart of its academic program, CUSP will investigate and develop solutions to the challenges that face cities around the world. The Center will be the first program to assemble a global consortium to focus on this area of research and development at this scale, making it the world’s leading authority in the emerging field of “urban informatics.”