Innovation Quarter

10/28/2026

🖊️ Got a laundry list of problems getting your product to customers?
🖊️ Need something to grow your business that checks all these boxes?

If you’re looking for a fast, cheap, honest validation of your product or service, you need a paying corporate pilot program.

Join us for Sparq Works on Tuesday, November 10 for a hands-on workshop with Nicole Royer, author, speaker and fractional COO. Royer will help you develop a playbook for landing your first corporate pilot or partnership to grow your business.

Sparq Works, brought to you by the iQ and Visiontoventure , is FREE and open to the public, but space is limited. Register today: https://bit.ly/4enck9N

10/26/2026

Dear Winston-Salem,

Since you’re known as the City of Arts and Innovation, people often associate the iQ with the “innovation” part. But we love art as well, and we see it every day in the iQ. It’s in the architectural details of the buildings, the quiet moments in Bailey Park, the play of light and shadow.

We try to pause to appreciate the beauty around us, and we want to send these artful moments to you.

We love you, Winston.

💌 The iQ

10/21/2026

✨✨✨We’re still basking in the glow of the best entrepreneurial party out there. The Winston-Salem Techstars Startup Weekend “AI: Ideas in Action” led by Visiontoventure just wrapped up in the iQ.

We loved seeing innovative people from experienced serialpreneurs to the entrepreneurially curious come to Sparq in the iQ and work together to create businesses, validate ideas and develop pitches.

Here are some of the things that attendees learned while drinking from the firehose this past weekend:

💡 Mentorship makes a huge difference, giving support, perspective and guidance.
💡 Being surrounded by a room full of like-minded, motivated people gives much-needed energy.
💡 Not winning doesn’t mean the journey stops – it just makes entrepreneurs more motivated.
💡 AI can generate content, but it cannot replace deep thinking.

If you want to know about other programs coming out of the iQ that support entrepreneurs, check out the programming lineup from Sparq. 🔗 in bio.

10/19/2026

The Run Club does things their own way – and that’s why they’re amazing.

It’s a run club for everyone. 🏃🏻‍♀️🏃🏽‍♂️🏃🏽🏃🏾‍♂️🏃🏿‍♀️

Every Thursday, runners meet up in Bailey Park for a social run. You pick your own pace – 🐢or 🐎– and everyone is welcome. You don’t have to be fast, you just have to have fun.

🍸🍺🍷 The Run Club ends at one of iQ establishments – this week it was Fair Witness …. And they do it all over again the next week. You should come!

📅 Every Thursday
⌚ 6 p.m.
📍 The water wall in Bailey Park

Run or don’t, they say. The choice is yours.

For more info on The Run Club schedule, check out their Instagram stories.

10/16/2026

As the sun is setting on 2026, we’re beginning to think about what will come to light in 2027.

Here are some of the things we’re looking forward to:

👁️ Opening of the Eye Institute: The new Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Eye Institute is set to open in early 2027, bringing expanded access to world-class eye care, research and clinical innovation to the Innovation Quarter.

🏗️ Phase II: The next chapter of the Innovation Quarter is taking shape as the request for proposal (RFQ) process for finding developers and contractors gets underway for Phase II, paving the path for future development across the 28-acre expansion site.

🎷 Another Amazing Year of Events: After a record-breaking year of attendance at our 2026 Signature Events, we’re excited to keep the momentum going with another year of free, fun and engaging programming for our community.

🔬 Sparq Labs Expansion: More room for innovation is on the way as renovations at Sparq Labs will add 20,000 sq. ft. of new lab and office space, creating more capacity for growing life sciences companies.

We’re proud to be part of this community, and excited for how this growth will enrich the place we call home. Keep shining bright, Winston. 🔆

10/09/2026

No one wants the music to end, so for the last month of Park Hangs this year, we’re giving you two bands on one weekend! Don’t miss this last chance for Signature Events this year.

On October 16, make your way to Bailey Park for the Boone-based duo of Real Companion, and then come back the next day (10/7) for Bedroom Division, a recording project from multi-instrumentalist Dylan Wishon of Greensboro. Both events take place from 5 to 8 p.m.

Park Hangs in Bailey Park is brought to you in partnership with NCMA Winston-Salem and sponsored in part by Atwell Ford Real Estate.

In case of bad weather, check our IG Stories for info on location changes.

10/08/2026

The weather may have caused a location change, but it didn’t dampen our spirits at this year’s Bailey Park Latin Fest! This incredible event still delivered amazing performances and flavors, and there’s nothing better than when the iQ is full of music and dancing.

Make a mental note to join the iQ and SonCaribe Latin Dance next year for Bailey Park Latin Fest – you won’t want to miss it!

10/06/2026

To grow a life science company you need a roadmap. The science isn’t enough.

Companies need expertise in regulatory standards, law, accounting, funding (both investors AND grants) and much more. It’s enough to get your head spinning.

Don’t get overwhelmed; get a guide. Sparq Speaks is bringing together an A-list group of industry insiders to help you make sense of Winston-Salem’s life science ecosystem. Don’t miss this opportunity to get all this know-how in one place.

🧬 Sparq Speaks: How to Navigate Winston-Salem’s Life Science Ecosystem
📅 Thursday, October 29, 2026
🕔 5:00 – 7:00 p.m.
📍 Sparq, Bailey Power Plant
🤝 Networking time to follow

Sparq Speaks is a FREE event brought to you by the iQ and Visiontoventure. Register today!

Learn how to navigate Winston-Salem's life science ecosystem from the people who know it best.

10/02/2026

🍿🍿You have two chances to get in on the action this October at Innovation & Cinema!

For the last month of Signature Events in 2026, the iQ and /perture cinema are bringing a double feature to Bailey Park.

This month’s movie lineup:

🏎️ October 9 - Ford v Ferrari
🏍️ October 23 - Tron: Legacy

Don’t let either of these opportunities get away from you–mark your calendars to join us in Bailey Park for the last movies of the year.

In case of bad weather, check our Facebook Stories for info on location changes.

10/01/2026

Millions of Americans suffer from Alzheimer’s disease, and its effects can be devastating. Fortunately, Alzheimer’s research has made advances in diagnosis and treatment. However, getting those advances to the people who need them–patients and medical providers–is easier said than done.

Michelle Mielke, a Public Health Science researcher at Wake Forest University School of Medicine based out of the iQ, uses her research to help improve Alzheimer’s diagnosis and expand patients’ access to the best care possible.

Learn more about how Mielke is narrowing the gap between research and patients: https://bit.ly/4dJikJo

Alzheimer’s disease affects 7 million people in the United States alone, but getting the latest in Alzheimer’s research to patients is harder than you may think. Meet Michelle Mielke, PhD, a scientist from the Department of Public Health at Wake Forest School of Medicine. Working out of the iQ, ...