SSTI Digest

In fiscal year (FY) 2023, federal obligations for science and engineering (S&E) to universities and colleges totaled $49 billion—$29 billion more than FY 2000, and a 10% increase from the prior year. The growth is less rapid when adjusted for inflation (2017 USD), with just over $40 billion in real obligations in FY 2023, a 5% increase over the year prior and $12.6 billion (or 46%) increase over the FY 2000 value. Each year, approximately 90% of these federal obligations for higher education S&E are allotted to R&D activities, directly supporting key innovation activities nationwide. This article uses data from The Survey of Federal Science and Engineering Support to Universities, Colleges, and Nonprofit Institutions—the sole source of comprehensive, institutional-level data on federal science and engineering funding to academia and nonprofits—to provide breakdowns of federal obligations for S&E to universities and colleges at the national and state levels.   National overview of the data When adjusted for inflation (in constant 2017 dollars), federal support reached its peak in FY 2009 at $40.3 billion, primarily due to the inclusion…

Many SSTI members will attend the annual BIO International Convention, which will be held this year in Boston from June 16 to 19. There, they join a cohort of organizations with various connections to the life sciences, including contract research and manufacturing companies, academic centers, "big" pharma, "little" pharma, and foreign nations representing their life sciences efforts.  "The convention provides a valuable opportunity to engage directly with senior leaders, understand their growth challenges, and connect them with (our) resources,” said Jennifer Leinbach, executive director of the Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development. “BIO offers in-person time with regional partners I typically meet virtually. Booth collaboration fosters deeper conversations that often lead to new initiatives. Last year, I engaged with university tech transfer offices, venture capitalists, and consultants seeking to invest in Pennsylvania." There are also legal firms, accounting firms, and anyone else who is, in the words of Jim Pannucci, vice president of entrepreneurship & ecosystem development at…

With Q1 2025 venture capital (VC) data stabilized and reports coming out on investment activity, it is a good time to review 2025 VC investment from a TBED perspective. Many published reports on VC activity include deals at the top end of the size range that—with individual transactions now reaching- billions of dollars—can swing some of the metrics and mask the underlying nuances facing smaller companies and markets. While investment levels are trending up, the totals are driven by mega deals and AI companies. Looking deeper into the numbers, there appears to be a broad shift away from smaller investments toward larger deals. This shift raises important questions for publicly supported innovation finance programs intended to close financing gaps and provide technical assistance that prepares companies for larger investments.  A recent report from Carta highlights a few important data points for the TBED community. First, Carta notes an 18% uptick in seed round valuations, but a 28% slowdown in early stage deals and a 37% drop in funding totals. A similar trend was observed in Series A rounds with…

The U.S. Small Business Administration posted a notice in the June 9, 2025, Federal Register of SBA’s intent to establish a Manufacturing in America Advisory Committee to “provide strategic guidance, advice, and recommendations to the U.S. government and relevant stakeholders on matters related to growth, supply chain resilience, and innovation of small manufacturing businesses across the country. The committee will act as the collaborative body to ensure the sector's needs, challenges, and opportunities are addressed. The committee's mission over the next two years will focus on supporting economic growth, job creation, on-shoring of critical manufacturing capabilities, and global competitiveness.” Adrienne Johnson, committee management officer in the Office of the Administrator, is listed as the SBA contact for those seeking more information. (202) 205-6685 or FACA@sba.gov.

The U.S. Department of Commerce recently announced that the agency formerly known as the U.S. AI Safety Institute has been renamed the Center for AI Standards and Innovation (CAISI). The center’s priority focus areas also have been adjusted so that CAISI can serve as industry’s primary point of contact within the U.S. Government to facilitate testing and collaborative research. According to the Commerce announcement, CAISI will: Work with NIST organizations to develop guidelines and best practices to measure and improve the security of AI systems, and work with the NIST Information Technology Laboratory and other NIST organizations to assist industry to develop voluntary standards. Establish voluntary agreements with private sector AI developers and evaluators and lead unclassified evaluations of AI capabilities that may pose risks to national security. In conducting these evaluations, CAISI will focus on demonstrable risks, such as cybersecurity, biosecurity, and chemical weapons. Lead evaluations and assessments of capabilities of U.S. and adversary AI systems, the adoption of foreign AI systems, and the state of international AI competition. Lead evaluations and…

In 1978, Massachusetts took a risk and made an $8.5 million investment into one of the earliest technology-based economic development (TBED) initiatives in the world. The commonwealth, among the states hard-hit by the global manufacturing restructuring underway at the time, which led to the deep recession of the early 80s, knew it needed to try something different to restore its economy and its long-term competitiveness. A new independent impact analysis of the cumulative impact from what became known as MassVentures, spanning its 46-year history, should serve as an example of what public seeding and sustained support for TBED can deliver as a highly effective, game-changing economic development strategy.  MassVentures President and CEO Charlie Hipwood said at the report’s release, “MassVentures is one of the most successful and impactful government-initiated programs on a per dollar basis in the United States.” The annualized impact figures and VC-envying returns bear out the proud statement. Based on an IMPLAN study conducted by the UMass Donahue Institute with MassVentures financial support, for every $1 million of taxpayer dollars (inflation adjusted),…

Tuesday, July 1 | 3:00 p.m. EST Whether your region is just beginning to address market failures in risk capital availability and performance for innovation-centered companies or your current efforts could use a refreshing check-in among peers, please plan to join us for the kick-off of our Innovation Finance Community of Practice Series.  This new educational series is intended to support the needs of technology-based economic development professionals who design, develop, manage and evaluate public-private risk and growth capital funding programs. The first session will focus on giving people a chance to weigh in on the proposed curriculum and providing an opportunity for participants to identify topics they would like to explore in more depth in the coming months. Looking forward, you will have an opportunity through a variety of introductory, advanced and expert sessions and tools to present your experiences, learn from real-world examples of field professionals, and apply your new knowledge toward increasing the outcomes from your innovation finance initiatives. You can sign up for SSTI’s Innovation Finance Community of Practice and register…

On June 3, SSTI will host a webinar exclusively for Innovation Advocacy Council members to receive an in-depth update on many of the confusing factors in play in the federal policy and budget environments—the key factors influencing the future of your state, regional and university TBED strategies. IAC partners at Van Scoyoc & Associates will be on hand to provide the latest news from the Hill and answer questions to help make sense of any new developments. From reconciliation to rescissions to possible impoundment to skinny and full budgets, the FY2025 and FY2026 budget process is one for future history books and too complicated for TBED leaders to stay fully abreast of while meeting your mission objectives. That’s where the IAC comes in! Keeping track of these developments and helping us map our best funding strategies for the best service delivery is why IAC has partnered with the amazing VSA team.  The Innovation Advocacy Council is the only group exclusively dedicated to educating Congress on the full spectrum of federal investments in public-private technology-based economic development initiatives, efforts proven to help grow stronger regional…

The list of technology-based economic development initiatives within the newly created Technology and Innovation Office of the New Mexico Economic Development Department covers the spectrum of critical policy aspects required for a strong state innovation economy: increasing R&D, business incubation, targeted emerging technologies and strong existing assets, startup capital, venture development, and innovation talent development and recruitment. With Governor Michelle Lujan’s signing of House Bill 20, which commits nearly $93M of public dollars—much or most requiring private match—the new office represents a serious investment from a state of just over 2.1 million people. The new Technology and Innovation Office will absorb the former Office of Strategy, Science and Technology and will include the following priorities:  $40 million to establish the Research, Development and Deployment Fund; $20 million for quantum technologies and business incubation; $5 million for infrastructure for innovation hubs; $5 million for operational support for incubators, accelerators, and venture studios; $8 million for grants in advanced energy; $4 million for science and…

Note: TBED101 is a new, occasional series for Digest readers visiting and revisiting fundamental topics for nurturing strong regional innovation economies. SSTI is introducing this series, with EDA support, as the field has entered one of its most significant periods of disruption and change in its 45-year history. Separately, SSTI members will be able to participate in more in-depth explorations of the issues in the coming months as part of their membership. Consider joining here. In public policy discussions and popular media, the terms “critical technologies” and “emerging technologies” are frequently invoked—but their meanings are often conflated. For policymakers, clearly distinguishing between the two is essential, as each category carries distinct policy imperatives for funding, regulation, and national security. Emerging technologies are primarily defined by their novelty and developmental stage. They represent the…

If you’re leading a knowledge work[1] organization and considering introducing generative artificial intelligence into your workflow, it likely would be helpful to know how its use may impact the day-to-day aspects of your team’s work, and the potential risks involved.  A recent study by researchers at the University of Chicago and Argonne National Laboratory provides a resource for understanding organizational adaptation of generative AI. They surveyed science and operations employees in the lab to learn about their perceptions and concerns of the potentially transformative or possibly disruptive technology. With responses divided between science and operations workers, the researchers then conducted follow-up interviews with one-third of the group. Their findings are relevant to knowledge-based organizations beyond national labs: the dichotomy between knowledge specialists and operations workers can be found in many science and non-science organizations. Also, similar to banks and government institutions, national labs regularly deal with sensitive data that heightens concerns and real risks regarding privacy and security. When surveyed employees…

For the United States to achieve greater security in chip manufacturing, the critical sector requires a much larger, better trained workforce. Between 2020 and 2022, annual postings for semiconductor jobs tripled from about 8,000 to almost 25,000, according to a new report, “The challenge of building a regional semiconductor workforce pipeline: What regions can learn from Austin, Texas and an agenda for cross-regional learning” from the Institute for Networked Communities (INC). As noted in the report, analysts expect that between 2023 and 2030, the industry will grow 33%, an increase of 115,000 jobs. At current degree completion rates, approximately 67,000 jobs would go unfilled. The INC report illustrates what it takes to build an industry-driven workforce system in the semiconductor industry based on the experience of Austin, Texas. The co-authors Francie Genz, Ryan Donahue, and Erin Sparks delve into what other regions can learn from Austin and why a cross-regional learning and action network is needed. “The stakes for getting regional workforce strategy right in the semiconductor space couldn’t be higher,” said Francie Genz, CEO of INC, in an email. “…