NCInnovation and NC IDEA Foundation: Partnering Up to Accelerate Innovation
NCInnovation and the NC IDEA Foundation recently announced a new partnership supporting NCI’s grants and regional innovation networks to accelerate the commercialization of promising public university research. This collaboration will leverage NCInnovation and NC IDEA’s extensive network of entrepreneurial expertise to support regional innovation efforts and economic development across the state.
NC IDEA will recruit and manage four Regional Entrepreneurs in Residence (EIR), forming an Entrepreneur in Residence Network for NCInnovation projects. These EIRs will play a crucial role in building innovation pipelines by coaching faculty, and connecting with industry and experts. Additionally, project EIRs will be matched with specific grant-funded projects, working closely with NCInnovation Regional Innovation Network Directors.
The partnership will offer two primary tracks of entrepreneurial programming:
- Pipeline Workshops: These workshops are open to all interested participants and are designed to enhance the entrepreneurial ecosystem of partner universities. They will include past and potential NCInnovation grant applicants and other stakeholders.
- Grantee Cohort: This track is tailored for NCInnovation grant recipients, focusing on intensive customer discovery (the process of gathering information about potential customers) training to support project teams in pursuing a path for their technology to achieve commercial viability.
This partnership marks a significant step forward in North Carolina’s innovation landscape, combining NC IDEA’s entrepreneurial support with NCInnovation’s public university grant funding, regional innovation networks, and focus on supporting research with commercial promise. By aligning these resources, the initiative aims to drive substantial growth and impact in the state’s innovation ecosystem, including successful homegrown companies that create jobs, building a durable network that attracts attention, capital, and people over time.
For more information or to apply for the Regional EIR roles, visit the NC IDEA website.
NCInnovation, Inc. is a Research Triangle Park, NC-based 501(c)(3) public-private partnership designed to accelerate commercialized innovation from North Carolina’s research universities. Backed by more than $25 million in private philanthropic commitments, NCInnovation uses the interest and income from a $500 million State-funded endowment to provide non-dilutive grant funding, mentors, and support services so that North Carolina university proofs-of-concept return value to the regional communities that created them. Learn more at NCInnovation.org.
