Politics & Government
Gov. Malloy Appoints Michael Cantor Chairperson of Connecticut Innovations
Cantor, of West Hartford, is an intellectual property attorney and co-managing partner of Cantor Colburn LLP, and was named to the board of CI last year.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy announced Tuesday that Michael Cantor of West Hartford has been named chairperson of Connecticut Innovations (CI), a quasi-public agency with a mission of growing high-tech industries within the state.
Cantor, an intellectual property attorney who has an undergraduate degree in chemical and materials engineering, is co-managing partner of Hartford-based Cantor Colburn LLP. He oversees more than 110 attorneys, patent agents, and technical advisors who "help a diverse client base of international innovators," according to a news release.
"My intent is carrying out the governor's plan, continuing job creation in the state through supporting technology, biotechnology, and other growth companies here," Cantor said. Connecticut Innovations has several important goals, Cantor said, that include overseeing economic development programs recently passed by the legislature, and fostering job growth and innovation.
CI also hopes to help stop the "brain drain" of young people getting educated in Connecticut and then leaving the state, Cantor said.
"There are a lot of entrepreneurial opportunities happening hear. Young people want to be part of companies involved in cutting-edge technology and focused on key problems related to society, the environment, and energy," he said. "We hope to create an environment that young people want to work in."
“Michael Cantor has years of experience working with high-tech companies, serving as an advisor to help their operations grow and push boundaries. He is an energetic, hands-on leader whose proficiencies, particularly within the engineering field, will serve as a benefit to both CI and the people of Connecticut,” Gov. Malloy said in the release.
"It’s no secret that I’ve placed a major emphasis on growing Connecticut’s economy by seeking the advanced, 21st Century companies that are developing the high-tech products of tomorrow. Connecticut used to lead the world when it came to innovation — we had more patents, more groundbreaking discoveries than anywhere else in the world," said Malloy in the release.
"Through our recent investments in the bioscience industry, our energizing Next Generation Connecticut initiative, and other similar investments in high-tech industries, we are putting Connecticut on a path to becoming competitive again," Malloy said.
"This is an exciting opportunity for me personally. [My wife] Shari and I care deeply about Connecticut, and fostering an environment where young people want to stay." Shari Cantor is the deputy mayor of West Hartford, and has just joined the UConn board of trustees. The couple has four sons.
Cantor said that he, the board, and the professional staff of CI "will continue to work energetically to provide strategic support that advances the success of technology, engineering, biotech, and other companies, with the goal of significantly increasing prosperity in the state."
Cantor was originally appointed to the board of the Connecticut Development Authority by former Gov. M. Jodi Rell, and Gov. Malloy appointed him the board of CI when the two agencies merged last year. The commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community Development, Catherine Smith, was formerly chairperson of CI, but that role became a political appointment as a result of a new law enacted last month, according to the release. CI was created in 1989 and has supported its operations and programs through returns on its investments since 1995.
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