Gerald O. Wilson

Gerald O. Wilson, Ph.D., M.B.A.

Dr. Gerald O. Wilson is the inaugural Director of Entrepreneurship at EnterpriseWorks and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Research Park. In this role, he is responsible for the strategic development and implementation of a vision and infrastructure to establish and accelerate a cross-campus culture of entrepreneurship that spans research institutes, colleges, and departments. His focus includes anticipating mechanisms to secure and grow entrepreneurship programs and resources to assist ecosystem members with company creation, funding, management, and growth beyond the incubation phase. Dr. Wilson leads the staff in supporting entrepreneurship programming and business development of clients of the EnterpriseWorks incubator at the University of Illinois Research Park, which provides technology commercialization support for researchers and entrepreneurs, supports new venture creation, and catalyzes promising startup companies.

Prior to joining the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Dr. Wilson was President and CEO of Autonomic Materials, Inc. (AMI), an advanced materials company based in Champaign, Illinois.

As CEO, he led the development of the company’s AMP-UP^TM protective coatings product lines aimed at eliminating traditional tradeoffs between high performance corrosion protection and environmental responsibility. The company’s technology platform was recognized as the Materials Performance Corrosion Innovation of the Year by NACE International (now AMPP), the Worldwide Authority on corrosion and as a Solar Impulse Efficient Solution.

For over two decades, Dr. Wilson has worked on developing new chemistries for self-healing coating, adhesive, sealant, composite, and biomedical applications. He has authored or co-authored over 70 peer-reviewed articles, conference proceedings and invited lectures in a variety of professional national and international forums and is an inventor on over 30 issued and pending patents.

Dr. Wilson is also a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Technology Entrepreneur Center in The Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and a leadership coach and workshop facilitator for the Illinois Leadership Center. He earned a B.A. in Chemistry from Macalester College, a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering and an M.B.A. from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.