Utah Technology Commercialization and Innovation Program Green-Lights New Grants

Fifteen promising innovative technologies just got a $40,000 boost. For the first round of the new fiscal year, the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) approved $600,000 of grants in support of new technology and research that universities and university licensees are seeking to take to market. The grants are designed to help build companies and create quality new jobs from groundbreaking innovation.

Based on the recommendations of a panel of private sector industry experts, the state approved Technology Commercialization and Innovation Program (TCIP) grant funding for 15 projects, some of which were new grants while others were follow-on grants to existing companies and projects — projects or companies may obtain up to two grants for the same application of the same technology.

To leverage the state’s dollars, the critical-stage grants are given to selected technologies with commercial promise that can show achievable milestones and can provide matching funds from federal grants or private investors.

“In addition to some revolutionary manufacturing and information technologies, hundreds of thousands of dollars are being invested in life science innovations that have the potential to improve our lives through pioneering surgical, patient evaluation processes and drug-delivery systems,” said David Bradford, TCIP program director.

Funded technologies include an online marketplace for event parking to a solid state nanotube-based sensor for point-of-care tuberculosis detection. Other nanotechnologies were funded, including an improved manufacturing process for semiconductor nanocrystals and a follow-on grant for highly responsive nanofiber-based sensors for use by public safety officials to detect explosives and narcotics.

The approved grants from this cycle of support technologies developed at University of Utah, Utah State University and Weber State University.

Last year, the state awarded nearly $2 million in grants to 49 different applicants through its TCIP competitive grant cycle. Grants target university technology commercialization and support innovation in Utah’s most robust economic clusters: life sciences; information technology; and manufacturing, materials, energy and the environment.

For the second year in a row, GOED will administer three grant solicitation cycles, reaffirming the State’s commitment to its smaller, faster grant process that makes more funding available to an increased number of projects and companies in need of early-stage funding.