If UNR has a CS department then it needs to reach-out to it's current student body and make considerations for creating a market for tech in Reno.
The innovation sector is not limited to software/internet businesses. There is also digital entertainment, advanced machining/robotics, and bio pharmaceuticals.
With the announcement of Tesla's gigafactory in the greater Reno area I would make this the best opportunity to create an intersection of innovation that Reno can be starting point for.
Maybe Reno should host a tech conference. Or even the next formula-e race circuit. Just ideas. I see so much potential for Reno. :-D
There are VERY interesting things going on in Reno, especially at UNR. MEMS research, solar cell research, biology, biotech, computer vision etc. There's also Sierra Nevada Corp in Sparks which was founded by two former UNR graduate students and is a very successful aerospace company. They are working on their own re-usable space craft in the dream chaser project: http://www.sncspace.com/ss_space_exploration.php Robocoin (bitcoin atm) is here but it's been rather disappointing.
One of the big flaws with this area is that casino gaming and mining have been the biggest draws on the talent pools for engineering. Gaming isn't the big money maker for the state that it once was and innovation wasn't a huge part of the business in the first place.