U-Launch
U-Launch is an innovative partnership launched in late 2010 to accelerate the spinout and commercialization of clean energy technologies from New England university labs. Research universities have been a great resource for new ideas, but there are many critical challenges in moving research to commercial viability, and connecting technical advances to the entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and other resources needed to move technology innovations rapidly from the university into the marketplace. U-Launch aims to remedy this by utilizing the expertise and resources of its partner organizations, including an extensive network of R&D capabilities, investors, entrepreneurial executives, and flexible lab space. U-Launch provides a flexible set of technical, business, financial and infrastructure services and funding to help promising but unproven cleantech innovations cross the chasm from lab to early market.
U-Launch is a collaboration between four partners with complementary cleantech expertise: Fraunhofer TechBridge, the New England Clean Energy Council (NECEC), the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC), and the Association of Cleantech Incubators of New England (ACTION).
These organizations have teamed up to provide:
* Business Guidance: The New England Clean Energy Council provides early-stage business resources.
* Technical Guidance: Fraunhofer TechBridge accelerates the development of a commercial product.
* Ecosystem & Market Development: MassCEC fosters ecosystem & market advancement through consumer incentives for technology adoption.
* Physical Space / Ecosystem: ACTION provides startup space & incubation services.
This effort is funded by a three-year award from the U.S. Department of Energy's Innovation Ecosystem Development Initiative, with additional support from Fraunhofer USA and a growing set of supporters.
U-Launch has teamed up with the Cleantech Open Northeast to provide an additional award package for a select Cleantech Open regional semifinalist valued at $20,000. All CTO-NE semifinalists will be considered for the award.
For more information, or to apply for U-Launch funding, click here. Questions? Contact Kim Herb, Innovation Program Manager, at kherb@cleanenergyfoundation.org.