U News | New “Innovation Alliance” in Baltimore leverages the region’s leadership in biomedical research
UF Innovate earns top awards at the 2025 International Business Innovation Association’s annual conference in Philadelphia.
From the University of Maryland Baltimore:
A new collaboration bringing entrepreneurs and investors together with physician-scientists, surgeons, and medical technologists promises to launch the Baltimore region as a major national hub for new biomedical ventures and start-up companies.
The initiative, called the “Innovation Alliance,” leverages the region’s national and international leadership in biomedical research and technology to attract venture capital, foster startups, drive economic growth, and ultimately bring to market new treatments, cures, and technologies that will directly improve lives.
The Alliance will have three main components centered around funding and support for innovators as they take ideas from the lab to the marketplace. These include gathering twice a year to give partners and investors an exclusive first look at new technologies and emerging businesses supported and reviewed by the life sciences accelerator at the University of Maryland’s Baltimore Life Science Discovery (UM-BILD). Alliance partners will also work with an Innovation Advisory Group to review and consult on grant and investment decisions for cultivating new biomedical projects. Lastly, members of this new partnership will offer mentorship for university-affiliated researchers with entrepreneurial ideas.
From the University of Florida:
The University of Florida’s (UF) start-up incubator, UF Innovate, has further solidified its accelerator program as among the industry’s best after earning top awards at the 2025 International Business Innovation Association’s annual conference in Philadelphia.
The awards recognized both Sid Martin Biotech and The Hub accelerate programs with Top Entrepreneurial Support Organization (ESO) of the Year for rural programs (Sid Martin Biotech), the Top ESO of the Year for Science and Technology Program (The Hub), and the Dinah Adkins Award for Technology-Focused Incubation.
The Dinah Adkins Award is one of the highest honors and recognizes UF Innovate’s Accelerate program for its overall excellence and sustained impact of UF’s hybrid incubation and acceleration model.
From Seton Hall University:
Now entering its third year, the Summer Entrepreneurship Institute — a dynamic partnership between Seton Hall University’s Division of Continuing Education and Professional Studies (CEPS) and industry leaders — is back and bigger than ever. It is a program that gives high school students a hands-on introduction to entrepreneurship, small business start-ups, and new product development. Over the course of an action-filled two weeks in July, students will build real-world skills, bring their ideas to life, and set the stage for future success.
Under the guidance of Victor Salama, Executive Director of the Greater Newark Enterprises Corporation (GNEC), students will develop a product prototype over the first eight days, culminating in a competition on day nine, where students pitch their business ideas continuously for 90 minutes to hundreds of guests, with the top teams winning cash prizes. More than just business fundamentals, the program instills an understanding of entrepreneurship through an ethical and societal lens, empowering students to build sustainable and impactful ventures.
The Summer Entrepreneurship Institute is supported by Valley Bank and PSEG, whose funding helps provide resources and professional mentorship to participants.
From Ohio University:
Ohio University, HTC VIVE, and Virtualware have partnered to launch a new program called the Digital Enterprise Collaboratory (DEC), which will provide infrastructure to power new digital engineering and workforce development programs to support the growing demand for advanced manufacturing in Ohio.
The partnership combines Ohio University’s leadership in engineering education, HTC VIVE’s industry-leading XR hardware and software technologies, and Virtualware’s enterprise XR platform VIROO. The project will provide Ohio University with the technology infrastructure and capabilities needed to accelerate product development, research, and workforce development by enabling real-time collaboration between various university, industry, government and Department of Air Force Research Laboratories (AFRL) members using the latest digital engineering and immersive technologies.
The program will also expand OHIO’s existing manufacturing training and certification programs to support the growing demand for new factory workers.
From the University of California Davis:
Opening a new chapter in the University of California Davis’ role as a regional engine of innovation and economic growth, Chancellor Gary S. May joined city of Sacramento leaders, developer Wexford Science & Technology LLC, business partners, and community members to inaugurate Aggie Square, the $1.1 billion innovation district that will bring together the university’s cutting-edge research with private-sector companies and start-ups. The chancellor also announced new partnerships to accelerate life sciences ventures at Aggie Square.
The first phase of Aggie Square delivers 767,000 square feet of transformative development that anchors the district’s bold vision. This milestone includes three state-of-the-art buildings featuring wet and dry laboratories, modern classrooms, collaborative community spaces, and a variety of flexible-use areas. Included in this phase is Connect Labs by Wexford, a flexible, scale-in-place lab and innovation infrastructure that will include pre-built and furnished lab, support and office spaces with a curated set of amenities, services and shared equipment for emerging and growth companies, particularly in life sciences, biomedical engineering, technology and data sciences.
The university will occupy 60 percent of the commercial space in Phase 1, while the remaining 40 percent will be leased by private industry. Economists estimate that more than 12,000 jobs have been created related to the construction of this site, with 3,200 permanent jobs expected after the project is complete.
From the University of Colorado Boulder:
In a major step toward accelerating Colorado’s climate innovation economy, the University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder) has launched Boulder Climate Ventures, a new interdisciplinary program that equips students to develop and launch high-impact start-ups focused on climate solutions. The program is supported by Breakthrough Energy, a global initiative focused on advancing climate and energy solutions through innovation and investment.
Led by the Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility (CESR) and the Deming Center for Entrepreneurship at the Leeds School of Business, Boulder Climate Ventures is a graduate-level program that connects students, primarily from business, engineering, and science backgrounds, to a growing network of experts, researchers and entrepreneurs tackling sustainability challenges.
Boulder Climate Ventures is the newest addition to Breakthrough Energy’s University Climate Ventures network, joining Stanford University, MIT, Technical University of Munich, and Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. CU Boulder is the first U.S. public university to be included in the network, a milestone that reflects the university’s growing leadership in climate innovation, said Andrew Mayock, Vice Chancellor for Sustainability.
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