NSF I-Corps Hub: Northeast Region

I-Corps枢纽项目的广泛影响是建立一个由学术、工业和政府伙伴关系组成的区域网络，这将提高国家将科学发现转化为有形社会效益的能力。该中心位于美国东北地区的心脏地带，将利用其邻近的深度技术产业，包括制药、纳米技术、化学、能源和光子学。作为通过教育和培训项目实现机会民主化的催化剂，该中心将把主要机构、合作伙伴和附属机构的实验室发现转化为促进新商业企业的形成，充分利用已经投入该地区的大量联邦研究资金。该中心建立在强大的工业和政府合作伙伴关系的基础上，拥有成功合作和创业活动的良好记录，包括以前的NSF I-Corps站点和工业资助的研究合作。通过对包容性和多样性的承诺，该中心将通过培养来自不同背景的下一代创新者，为美国未来的繁荣和全球竞争力做出贡献。最终，该中心将通过加速将学术发现转化为市场，为美国技术驱动型经济的增长做出贡献。这个I-Corps Hub项目是基于东北地区网络的发展，该网络将教育、指导、指导和支持所有参与机构的创新者，并通过创建新的商业企业，促进将基础科学和工程发现转化为有形产品。这一愿景将通过利用I-Corps项目的培训技术来实现，以创建一个全面的生态系统，在整个创意和技术风险生命周期中支持创新者。培训和指导将侧重于通过I-Corps项目赋予学术研究人员权力，这些项目旨在培养围绕深度技术商业化、客户发现和影响力创造的批判性思维。专门针对教师的其他项目将寻求通过创业企业继续利用学术发现造福社会，从而产生持久的影响。这种方法强调了长周期、深科技创业公司所必需的整体规划，以及来自不同机构的最佳实践分享，从而实现协同学习和激励。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact of this I-Corps Hubs project is the development of a regional network of academic, industrial and government partnerships that will grow the nation’s capacity to transform scientific discoveries into tangible societal benefits. The Hub, located in the heart of the Northeast region of the U.S., will leverage its proximity to deep technology industries including pharmaceuticals, nanotechnology, chemistry, energy, and photonics. Serving as a catalyst to democratize access to opportunities through educational and training programs, the Hub will translate laboratory discoveries generated at the Principal, Partner, and Affiliate institutions to spur formation of new commercial ventures, leveraging the significant volume of federal research dollars already invested in this region. Built on robust industrial and government partnerships, the Hub has a proven track record of successful collaborations and entrepreneurial activities including previous NSF I-Corps Sites and industry-funded research collaborations. Through a demonstrated commitment to inclusivity and diversity, the Hub will contribute to America’s future prosperity and global competitiveness by training the next generation of innovators from diverse backgrounds. Ultimately, the Hub will contribute to the growth of America’s technology-driven economy by accelerating the translation of academic discoveries into the marketplace.This I-Corps Hub project is based on the development of a Northeast regional network that will educate, guide, mentor, and support innovators across all participating institutions, and promote the translation of fundamental scientific and engineering discoveries into tangible products through the creation of new commercial ventures. This vision will be realized by leveraging the training techniques from the I-Corps program to create a comprehensive ecosystem that supports innovators through the entire ideation and technology venture lifecycle. Training and mentoring will focus on empowering academic researchers via I-Corps programming geared towards developing critical thinking around deep-tech commercialization, customer discovery, and impact creation. Additional programming, specifically geared toward faculty members, will seek to create lasting impact by continuing to leverage academic discoveries to benefit society through entrepreneurial ventures. This approach emphasizes the holistic programming necessary for long-cycle, deep-tech startups and the sharing of best practices from different institutions, enabling synergistic learnings and motivation.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.