End of Semester News from Brandeis Innovation
Let’s Get Reacquainted!
As the semester winds down, we welcome new members of our community who have recently attended events or participated in our programs. We also love to reconnect with longstanding supporters. It’s an opportune time to re-introduce our programs. Brandeis Innovation has a lot to offer, whether you are faculty, staff, a student, an alum, or a community supporter. Learn about all the great programs that Brandeis Innovation offers.
Brandeis Innovation: Empowering Entrepreneurs
Brandeis University is committed to research and scholarship that challenge conventional knowledge, uncover the workings of the world, and develop innovations that benefit society. To support these efforts, the university has set up a highly active and supportive Office of Technology Licensing (OTL), equipped to handle all aspects of licensing, business development, and legal processes needed to transfer technologies developed at Brandeis. In addition, it also features a virtual incubator and various programs designed to foster innovation across the campus.
Office of Technology Licensing (OTL):
The Office of Technology Licensing provides dynamic support for Brandeis researchers, inventors, and industry partners. Focused on technology development, commercialization, and the successful transfer of innovative technologies, OTL is equipped to handle a wide range of licensing, business development, and legal challenges. The mission is to empower Brandeis investigators by providing the necessary tools and infrastructure to bring their technologies to market.
Virtual Incubator:
The Virtual Incubator was created to provide a center for innovative activity across Brandeis University’s campus. The Incubator engages students, faculty, researchers, alumni and staff to promote a culture of collaboration across the university’s many disciplines and departments, fostering innovation and discovery through research, grants and partnerships.
Within the incubator, there are different funding and training programs like Spark, Sprout, and I-Corps™.
Spark:
Participating in Spark will give participants, including students, faculty and staff, the opportunities to recruit team members, obtain entrepreneurial skills training, get connected to industry leaders outside Brandeis, and be eligible to apply for seed funding.
Sprout:
This program was designed to encourage and support translational research activity within the Brandeis community for faculty, postdocs, and student researchers (graduate and undergraduate) in the Division of Science. Participants have the opportunity to get funding from a pool of $100,000, get industry-leading mentorship, connect with industry colleagues and organizations, and potentially participate in the Brandeis NSF I-Corps™ program.
I-Corps™:
The National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps™) program uses experiential education to help researchers gain valuable insight into entrepreneurship, starting a business or industry requirements and challenges. Participants get the opportunity to work in an interdisciplinary team, conduct customer discovery and validate research ideas, build a business based on the Lean LaunchPad methodology, train to be an entrepreneur, and broaden the impact of basic research projects.
Join Us!
Whether you are new to Brandeis University or already part of our vibrant community, the Brandeis Innovation hub offers opportunities for you to engage with groundbreaking research and entrepreneurship. Stay tuned throughout the year for startup opportunities, profiles of our innovators, and events to learn and network!
SparkTank 2024
SparkTank, Brandeis Innovation’s signature startup pitch event was in a new location this year, but the energy, excitement and creativity were the same as always at the annual innovation competition. Marking the culmination of months of work refining their business ideas, developing their business models, and in some cases, developing viable prototypes, SparkTank is a celebration of startup energy on the Brandeis campus, in addition to being a chance for Spark participants to showcase their inventions
Two New External Funding Opportunities
Global EdTech Startup Awards
The Global EdTech Startups Awards (GESAwards) represents the largest global competition and community for educational technology, involving over 6,000 startups from more than 130 countries since its inception in 2014.
SOCAP DIGITAL
The 2024 SOCAP Fellowship is now open for applications and is seeking social entrepreneurs globally with innovative, scalable, and impactful ideas.