U-M opens Michigan I-Corps to all comers entrepreneurial

The University of Michigan has worked for years to commercialize its research into growing businesses, employing a variety of programs that often look to pair university researchers with university business students and graduates. Michigan I-Corps is looking to broaden that scope. The new entrepreneurial training program, part of the National Science Foundation's National I-Corps initiative, is looking to not only empower the entrepreneurial ambitions of university's research and business classes but also entrepreneurs and scientists from outside of Ann Arbor's ivory towers. Any Michigan-based technologist, regardless of academic affiliation or funding source, is eligible. The program is recruiting teams from Michigan's universities, tech companies and startups funded by venture capitalists. "One of the best ways to enhance entrepreneurship is to get all sorts of folks to mix together," says Jonathan Fay, director of Michigan I-Corps. The Michigan I-Corps will be comprised of approximately 25 teams, each with three members: a principal investigator (or senior executive), entrepreneurial lead (or product manager) and industry mentor. The statewide program will focus on customer discovery and business model generation, but will supplement it with modules on business basics, intellectual property, and entrepreneurship ownership and operations. "What about your technology has value?" Fay says. "What about your technology do the customers want?" Source: Jonathan Fay, director of Michigan I-Corps Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.