NIN Overview

NSF I-Corps™ National Innovation Network (NIN)

Building a Nation of Innovators

What is NIN?

NIN

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is cultivating a pipeline of university-based researchers who can turn ideas into successful commercial products, and equipping our nation’s science and technology faculty and students to be creative, technologically savvy leaders. Through its partnership with VentureWell, NSF has connected local program leaders from across the country to form the “National Innovation Network” (NIN).

An Audacious Experiment

This emerging movement of innovators is a key component of the NSF’s I-Corps™ Program, which has grown rapidly from an ‘audacious experiment’ in teaching university researchers how to use customer discovery to commercialize scientific discoveries into a national network.NIN has helped develop:• 900 teams, from 203 colleges and universities• More than 324 of these teams have launched companies

Lean Startup Methodology

The NSF started I-Corps™ in 2011 when it adapted lean startup trailblazer, Steve Blank’s Lean LaunchPad class for aspiring Stanford entrepreneurs, creating an accelerated seven-week curriculum to train university researchers to start companies that have developed new technologies based on NSF-funded research.

NSF and VentureWell

The NSF has scaled its curriculum and dramatically expanded the community of emerging scientists and engineers by partnering with VentureWell, a not for profit higher education network with 21 years of experience in fostering innovative experiential entrepreneurship programs at universities and colleges worldwide.

NIN Network

A Network that Turns Scientific Discoveries into VenturesThe National Innovation Network:

• Engages I-Corps™ university researchers who are working on campuses across the country, pushing the boundaries of science and technology to improve peoples lives.

• Connects them to a national pipeline of collaborators, mentors, and partners.

• Prepares them with cutting-edge tools and educational resources to form successful startups and commercialize their products.

I-Corps™ Nodes and Sites

University of California-San Diego

San Diego State University

University of Utah

University of California at Los Angeles

University of Southern California

University of Washington

Brigham Young University

Oregon State University

BAY AREA NODE

MIDWEST NODE

University of California BerkeleyUniversity of San FranciscoStanford University

IN-LA NODEUniversity of Southern CaliforniaUniversity of California at Los Angeles Caltech

SOUTH NODESOUTHWESTNODE

University of Texas at AustinRice University

Texas A&M University

NYCRIN NODECity University of New YorkColumbia UniversityNew York University

DC NODEUniversity of MarylandJohns Hopkins Virginia TechGeorge Washington

Michigan TechnologicalUniversity

University of MinnesotaTwin Cities

University of Texasat San Antonio

University of Houston

Tulane University

University of Alabama

University of South Florida, Tampa

University of Central Florida

University of NorthCarolina, Charolotte

University of Louisville

Howard University

University of Iowa

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

University of Illinois atUrbana-Champaign

PurdueUniversity

Universityof Chicago

University of Toledo

University of Akron

Carnegie-MellonUniversity

University of Pittsburgh

Rochester Instituteof Technology

University of Rochester

MassachusettsInstitute of Technology

University of Delaware

New Jersey Instituteof Technology

University of Pennsylvania

University of Connecticut

Stony Brook University

Arizona StateUniversity

Dartmouth College

Jackson State University

Louisiana State University

Missouri S&T

New MexicoState University

Ohio State University

Oklahoma State University

RensselaerPolytechnic

Institute

Tennessee TechnologicalUniversity

University of Arizona

University of NevadaLas Vegas

University of New Hampshire

Washington State University

Wichita State University

UPSTATE NY NODE

Texas A&M University

University of Alabamaat Birmingham

Johns Hopkins University

Cornell University

Brandeis University

University ofMassachusetts

Lowell

Georgia Institute of TechnologyUniversity of AlabamaUniversity of Alabama at BirminghamThe University of Tennessee, Knoxville

University of MichiganUniversity of Illinois Urbana-ChampaignPurdue University Cornell University

Rochester Institute of TechnologyUniversity of Rochester

Who is in the Network?

People and organizations engaged in I-Corps™ programming:• Nodes- Institutions that support regional needs for innovation

education, infrastructure, and research. There are 8 Nodes across the country involving 26 universities.

• Sites- Institutions that support teams whose technology concepts are likely candidates for commercialization. There are 58 Sites across the country.

• Teams- Researchers with an innovation and commitment to exploring its commercial potential. Each team has a Principal Investigator, an Entrepreneurial Lead, and a Mentor. There are more than 900 Teams.

NIN Benefits1. Improvements to innovation and entrepreneurship programs2. Institutional culture change to promote regional collaboration3. Compelling national brand that enables regional impact 4. Successful adaptation of curriculum by multiple federal

agencies 5. Unique mission that is transforming the scientific field of

innovation and entrepreneurship

NIN Benefit: Improvements to InnovationDirectors and faculty at each Node benefit significantly from their ability to tap into NIN for knowledge-sharing with their colleagues across the country. Training content remains cutting-edge and each Node disseminates new developments to the schools in its region. VentureWell has developed a faculty-training program with Steve Blank and Jerry Engel to train faculty members from institutions across the US in this methodology.

NIN Benefit: Promote Regional CollaborationMulti-institutional Nodes are founded on strong new partnerships forged by the I-Corps™ program. NIN has succeeded where previous efforts have failed to establish partnerships in the regions where we work. Simply applying for an I-Corps™ Node grant has catalyzed new partnerships between institutions that recognize the opportunity to join NIN together as a new Node.

NIN Benefit: Compelling National BrandThe NIN brand enables the network to be greater than the sum of its parts, capturing the combined research horsepower of top universities and the entrepreneurial energy of the silicon valley start up culture with a strong connection to NSF’s tradition of research excellence. As a result, the NIN community has achieved regional impact that would otherwise not have been possible.

NIN Benefit: Successful Adaptation of CurriculumThe NIN has catalyzed a host of successful adaptations of the I-Corps™ curriculum by multiple federal agencies including:

• National Institutes of Health (NIH)• Department of Defense (DoD)• Department of Energy (DoE)

NIN Benefit: Unique MissionEdmund S. Pendleton, Director of DC I-Corps ™ Regional Node and VentureAccelerator at Mtech, University of Maryland

• ”What really makes the NIN so powerful is simply the network effect. We now share best practices and collaborate across universities, states, and the entire country. “

Keith McGreggor, Director of South I-Corps ™ Regional Node and Director of VentureLab, GA Tech

• “The most important thing about the NIN is that it exists. There is nothing else like it.”

NIN ActivitiesAnnual NIN Meeting

• The network has convened annually for the purposes of learning from each other, discussing challenges and planning the future as our programs continue to expand and evolve.

Regular webinars on key issues/best practices• Every month we convene the leaders of the Sites and Nodes to

share what they are doing and learn from each other.

Regional meetups• Quarterly meetups are hosted regionally by sites and nodes

NIN Homepage and BlogSocial media and online discussions

Contact Information

On the Web• www.venturewell.org/i-corps/nin• www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/i-corps/

VentureWell Staff for I-Corps™• Tara A. Loomis, tloomis@venturewell.org• Marie Silver, msilver@venturewell.org• Gila Aispuro, gaispuro@venturewell.org

NSF Program Officers for I-Corps™• Lydia McClure, lmcclure@nsf.gov• Anita La Salle, alasalle@nsf.gov• Steve Konsek, skonsek@nsf.gov