Increasing IDeA state Biomedical Entrepreneurship via Ecosystem, Enterprises & Experts

Summary The proposed DE iRED program consists of university and private sector partnerships to deliver a comprehensive program that will engage and support biomedical innovators in the early stages of technology commercialization by addressing key bottlenecks in the startup process as identified both in the solicitation and by the DRIVEN Accelerator Hub. According to DRIVEN’s Voice of Customer interviews regarding challenges to the commercialization of biomedical innovations, there are 3 main barriers to translating basic science products that benefit patients, 1) gap in funding between basic research and validation studies required for early-stage development, 2) lack of knowledge and understanding by innovators about how technologies are brought to market, and 3) lack of access to sufficient technology development and commercialization resources. The creation of the IDeA state program is clear evidence of the need for resources not only to cultivate biomedical research but to spur on commercialization of the new technology created. Correctly identifying deficiencies in the commercialization pathway and preemptively providing corrective measures will create better entrepreneurs and increase the likelihood of commercialization. Our team will develop a rigorous and engaging online curriculum to support the goals and bridge the gap of sufficient training and knowledge for innovators through a high-availability, scalable, on-demand platform. The platform will help both new and experienced innovators to focus on areas of need and provide direct learning interventions from ideation, to market assessment, and go- to-market strategies and will allow for live mentoring and coaching interactions online to support and supplement the curriculum. Data and advanced insights will be analyzed for both the overall program and the learning process that will yield trends as to the correlation between innovators who are deemed successful and the parts of the program leveraged most, allowing us to continuously improve the program. This will result in a more robust education, an increase in the number of biomedical entrepreneurs, an increase in the number of biomedical startups developing market-driven technologies applying for SBIR/STTR and accessing existing ecosystem resources, and increased connectivity between innovative technologies and other enterprises and experts. The specific aims align participants and establish the DE iRED organization with deliverables that include team governance criteria and processes, and innovator roadmaps for Delaware, Northeast, and wider region/IDeA states.They also include the launch of final program and outreach campaigns (local > northeast) and programming using data obtained through pilot activities, testing the revenue model and pricing for sustainability as well as increased reach of the launch outreach campaign to the Northeast and national venue.