Peter Pfanner

Executive Director, UIC Innovation Center
Medical Device Development Director, UIC College of Medicine
Research Professor, Industrial Design
Department Affiliate, Urology

Peter Pfanner is the Associate Vice Chancellor for Innovation and the Executive Director of the Innovation Center. In this role, he provides strategic vision, fosters corporate and academic partnerships, and ensures the successful integration of research, design, and real-world innovation. An industrial, interaction, and experience designer, innovator, and educator, Peter holds a bachelor’s degree in applied science in industrial design from the University of Canberra in Australia and a Master’s in Design Methods from Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago.

Over the past three decades, Peter has served as design and creative director of numerous international projects for consultancies and corporations like IDEO and Motorola. His experience spans mobile communications, transport, consumer electronics, medical, office products, furniture, architecture, and materials science.

Peter holds 23 patents and is a 1st Dan Black Belt in Tae Kwon-do.