USC Annenberg Innovation Lab

Imagining and Building a Better Future The Annenberg Innovation Lab is a curious, creative and committed Think & Do Tank at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. We practice innovation as a collaborative exploration involving artists, scientists, humanists and industry professionals working together on problems and opportunities at the dynamic intersections of media, technology, culture and society. We combine rigorous scholarship and human-focused implementation to help understand and shape the interactions of emergent technologies and media with community, business, learning, making, governance and more. Our research is integrated with convening, building and teaching, and creates a tight and meaningful connection between theory and practice. We endeavor to work in the open to invite others into the process to test and build upon our insights. Colliding to Pioneer Breakthroughs By mixing leading domain experts, thought leaders, scholars and practitioners from across USC and leaders from some of the world’s most innovative global companies, civil society organizations, and public sector entities, we create unique collisions of people and ideas. We are proud to have pioneered breakthroughs in multiple areas, including big data social sentiment analytics and the use of transmedia techniques in branding, ideation, social curation and storytelling. Some opportunities to plug into our activities include joining a research project, meeting regularly in a working group, bringing the lab into your class, working with a researcher to offer a real-world learning environment, stopping in for serious play or spending some time reading our insights. Bridging Communities of Scholarship & Practice The strength of our community and their achievements are the hallmarks of our impact. We explore, work and learn with colleagues from across campus, Los Angeles and beyond, with ties ranging from casual to deeply connected. We have a dynamic group of research fellows and community partners representing leading scholars and practitioners in diverse fields and have been privileged to collaborate with and receive support from leading media, technology, telecom and consumer products companies from around the world. Equally important is the generous investment we have received from foundations.