Black Fire Innovation was announced last month as a partnership between the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), Caesars Entertainment Corp. and Gardner Company that will bring the university and local businesses together to test, develop and commercialize hospitality products and ideas.

University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and Caesars Entertainment have partnered to deliver a technology hub designed to assist innovators with testing and showcasing new gaming and hospitality concepts.

After the recession, Nevada said it needed to be more than a company town that relies on jobs and taxes from gaming and tourists to pay for police, fire, roads, schools, and other public needs.

UNLV and Caesars Entertainment are coming together to push the gaming and hospitality industry forward.

Las Vegas is getting a new space with a casino, hotel rooms, a sportsbook and an esports arena.

It’s the perfect startup Cinderella story. After launching inside Jeff Bezos’ garage in 1994 as strictly an online bookstore, Amazon has since become a household name, earning more than $230 billion in net sales last year. Today, Amazon echo smart speakers and packages with the famous Amazon smile can be found in millions of homes across the country.

When Anthony Rufo began preparations to launch his digital companion company HAPPIE Home — a device for caregivers that’s similar to voice assistants like Google Home — he decided Las Vegas would be the perfect location.

At the Sands Expo and Convention Center, among hundreds of exhibitors and thousands of CES tech show attendees from around the world, one booth was distinctly Las Vegas. UNLV has been exhibiting at the annual tech show since 2014.