Earlier this year we caught wind of the new DC Innovation Corps (I-Corps), a program launched and backed by the National Science Foundation to identify the most promising entrepreneurial students and faculty researchers this area has to offer. The goal being to help translate their clear talent into successful startups and licensed technologies. Now I-Corps is following through with its promise to put the DC-area on the tech map, kicking off its first cohort at the George Washington University this week with 20 teams of up-and-coming innovators ready to make their mark on the world.
The teams come from a vast array of organizations across the region, including schools like Johns Hopkins University, University of Maryland, the George Washington University, Virginia Tech, and George Mason University. Individuals from the Children's National Medical Center, Emerging Technology Center, Maryland Technology Enterprise Institute (Mtech) and bwtech@UMBC will also be present this week, entrepreneurial research teams with a knack for making creative discoveries.
Each group will be trained by DC I-Corps, due to go through an intense, seven-week program based off of Stanford University's Lean LaunchPad program. Like Stanford, DC I-Corps has plans to facilitate the growth of revolutionary business ideas and transform them into full-fledged ventures. Its methodology draws upon "decades of experience in Silicon Valley, emphasizing talking to as many potential customers as possible, pivoting in response to resulting insights, building low-cost prototypes to get customer feedback, constantly adapting, and building a scalable business model," according to a Mtech press release.
"Nothing lays a better foundation and prepares startups for the rapid change and challenges of the 21st century than the Lean Startup Model," DC I-Corps Director Edmund Pendleton explained. "We believe that combining this methodology with the research churning from world-class universities and federal laboratories in this region is the equivalent of releasing lightning from a bottle. Great companies that bolster the region's economy and bring important products into our lives are bound to emerge."
It was GW, Virginia Tech, and UMD that were chosen as the universities that would launch the regional I-Corps program, awarded $3.75 million by the National Science Foundation in February to help support the creation of startups across the Mid-Atlantic region. And the decision to invest in these three schools was not surprising in the least. Dean Chang, associate vice president for innovation and entrepreneurship at UMD, admits that "we live in one of the most fertile areas in the country for technology-based research," speaking to how advantageous it is to build a business from scratch here in the District.
"Thirty-five of the top 200 U.S. universities in research and development expenditures are located within a four-hour drive of this I-Corps partnership," added John Lesko, associate dean for research and graduate studies in the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech. "Those universities collectively conducted $14.3 billion in research in 2010. We will attract and train teams from these top regional academic institutions."
A technology development incubator for brilliant scientists and engineers facilitated by three of the most impressive research institutions in the U.S., DC I-Corps seems as if it will be one truly great addition to the region.
Check out all of the teams that were selected for DC I-Corps below as described in the press release:
Children's National Medical Center
- ChronoKair: comprehensive healthcare smartphone/tablet application covering a patient's entire hospital course. Entrepreneurial Lead: Kelly Swords, urologist and pediatric urology fellow and adjunct faculty, the George Washington University.
- Shoulder and Hip Arthrography Robot: small and lightweight robot for shoulder and hip medical procedures. Entrepreneurial Lead: Reza Seifabadi, Joseph E. Robert Fellow at the Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation.
- Smartpupillometer: smart phone application for measuring pupil size and reactivity in different clinical settings. Entrepreneurial Lead: Mariana Mafra Junqueira, anesthesiologist and pediatrician, and Joseph E. Robert Fellow at the Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation.
Emerging Technology Center
- Tutela Industries: interactive patient engagement platform that employs a patient engagement approach with the ultimate goal of improving short and long-term outcomes for babies in the neonatal intensive care unit. Entrepreneurial Lead: Karen Alder, vice president.
George Mason University
- High Score Educational: 3D gaming application for science teachers. Entrepreneurial Lead: Len Annetta, professor.
The George Washington University
- CloudAdvisor: system for predicting virtual machine cloud performance and recommending public cloud instances. Entrepreneurial Lead: Ahsen Uppal, senior software engineer.
- Key Orthopedics: 3D-printed polymer device for growing stem cells in bone and cartilage tissue. Entrepreneurial Lead: Benjamin Holmes, Ph.D student.
- NanoChon: joint injury therapeutic technologies for extended and sustained biologic delivery. Entrepreneurial Lead: Nathan Castro, Ph.D. student.
- Small Spacecraft Micropropulsion: advanced micro-cathode arc thruster for small satellites. Entrepreneurial Lead: Samudra Haque, Ph.D. student.
- ToxSpec: low-cost, rapid method for predicting pharmaceutical compound activity and toxicity. Entrepreneurial Lead: Nan An, Ph.D. student.
Johns Hopkins University
- Read Ahead: ocular training method for seeing ahead when learning to read music. Entrepreneurial Lead: Travis Hardaway, adjunct faculty, Peabody Institute.
Regional
- Astrapi Corporation: advanced coding technology for improving broadband and wireless communications. Entrepreneurial Lead: David Shaw, senior vice president.
- Awarables: solution for measuring sleep disorders in pediatric and aging populations. Entrepreneurial Lead: Madhvi Upender, scientist and entrepreneur.
- Autonomous Marine Systems: autonomous sailing catamaran for ocean surveillance. Entrepreneurial Lead: T.J. Edwards, partner and mechanical engineer.
University of Maryland, Baltimore County Cyber Incubator@bwtech
- Surveillant: advanced compliance and checklist software for government, financial, security and related sectors. Entrepreneurial Lead: Jeehye Yun, founder and CEO.
University of Maryland, College Park
- Diagnostic anSERS Inc.: molecular fingerprinting technology for forensics and chemical analysis. Entrepreneurial Lead: Sean Virgile, Ph.D student.
- Myotherapeutics: clinical assay for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. Entrepreneurial Lead: Eva Chin, assistant professor.
- N5 Sensors Inc.: chemical sensors for industrial and environmental monitoring. Entrepreneurial Lead: Jonathan George, Ph.D. student, the George Washington University.
- XiaoQi': medical device for detecting hemoglobin and oxygen in oral and internal organ lesion tissues. Entrepreneurial Lead: Hsing-Wen Wang, visiting research assistant professor.
Virginia Tech
- Dynamic Safety Systems: worker safety system with online reporting tools and data analysis. Entrepreneurial Lead: Brady Redfearn, graduate student.
