NSF Innovation Corps Hubs Program (I-Corps™ Hubs) NSF 24-532
Sponsor: NSFInternal Deadline: 02/29/2024Institutional Submission Limit: 1Sponsor Deadline: 04/25/2024Program Website
I-Corps Hubs are consortia of institutions of higher education with common goals and challenges that collaborate to provide entrepreneurial training to members of the scientific community (students, postdocs, faculty, and other researchers). These collaborating institutions span geographic areas and participate in?a?Hub?to achieve operational excellence and to facilitate interactions with stakeholders in their entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystem. Each Hub has a Lead institution to oversee operational management of the consortium and seven initial Partner institutions that contribute to the success of the Hub objectives, activities, and expected outcomes. A Lead institution may be a current or former I-Corps Node or Site (Track 1), or they may be entirely new to the I-Corps program (Track 2).
The goal of the NSF Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program is to reduce the time and risk associated with translating promising ideas and technologies from the laboratory to the marketplace, to increase the economic competitiveness of the United States, to encourage collaboration between academia and industry, and to train NSF-funded faculty, students, post-docs, and other researchers in innovation and entrepreneurship skills. The I-Corps program utilizes experiential learning of customer and industry discovery, coupled with first-hand investigation of industrial problems and processes, to quickly assess the translational potential of inventions. The I-Corps program is designed to support the commercialization of so-called "deep technologies," i.e., those based on fundamental discoveries in science and engineering. The I-Corps program addresses the skills and knowledge gaps associated with the transformation of promising basic research outcomes into deep technology ventures (DTVs).
For more information, view the I-Corps Hubs solicitation and register for an informational webinar on Feb. 15, 2024, at 1 p.m. ET.
Submission Process
Limited submissions MUST be coordinated with the Office of the Vice President for Research.
If interested in applying for this opportunity, send the following as a single PDF by the INTERNAL DEADLINE above to Julie Morris at jmorris@sc.edu.
• Cover page: Listing PI details, USC co-PIs/lead personnel, and Partner Institutions with associated personnel
• Project Summary (1 page): Provide an overview, which briefly describes: distinguishing features of the Hub, highlights of key activities, potential outcomes/impacts resulting from Hub activities, and statements on the intellectual merit of the proposed activity and broader impacts.
• Project Description (3 pages): Please describe the vision, motivation, and rationale for establishing the collaboration, and how the hub addresses the goal for this competition. Be sure to address/summarize the role of USC & partners in meeting the 6 principal activities outlined in the RFP
• A SCiENcv formatted biosketch for USC PI and co-PIs