SSTI Digest

Hoping to capitalize on Tennessee's "entrepreneurial spirit," Gov. Bill Haslam today announced today a $50 million innovation strategy as part of his regional jobs plan outlined last month. Named INCITE for its focus on innovation, commercialization, investment, technology and entrepreneurship, the initiative encompasses four components, including:

In support of Gov. Martin O'Malley's Bio 2020 Initiative, lawmakers increased funding for stem cell research and provided $8 million in tax credits for biotechnology investments in the FY12 budget approved last month. Lawmakers also passed a bill providing a two-year eligibility extension for companies using the biotech tax credit and allocated $2.4 million to fund nanobiotechnology projects.

The Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO) will receive $15.7 million in FY12, up from $13.9 million approved last year. This includes $12.4 million to administer the state's stem cell research fund (a $2 million increase) and $3.3 million for technology development, transfer and commercialization.

Lawmakers last week passed the 2011-13 biennial budget, providing $12 million for the state's Centers of Research Excellence program. Although it is less than Gov. Jack Dalrymple's request of $20 million to expand the program and provide additional funding for three new centers, the legislature's appropriation will allow for continued investments in infrastructure and research capacity at a time when many states are reducing funding for TBED to help fill budget deficits. The approved budget also includes $1 million for technology-based entrepreneurship grants and establishes a program to provide matching grants for startup technology businesses.

New York Gov Andrew Cuomo has announced the launch of the NYSUNY 2020 Challenge Grant Program. In its first phase, the program will make $140 million available (up to $35 million per institution) to SUNY University Centers in Albany, Binghamton, Buffalo and Stony Brook for partnerships with the private sector. These partnerships are intended to create new jobs and revitalize regional economies.

Indian and Chinese immigrant professionals trained in the U.S. are increasingly returning to their home countries with aspirations of becoming entrepreneurs, according to the Grass is Indeed Greener in India and China for Returnee Entrepreneurs — a new report funded by the Kauffman Foundation. Using survey data, the researchers found three significant factors that draw both Indian and Chinese entrepreneurs home including the availability of economic opportunities (60 percent of Indian respondents; 90 percent of Chinese respondents), local markets (50 percent of Indians; 78 percent of Chinese) and family ties (76 percent of Indians; 51 percent of Chinese). In contrast, respondents indicated that an expired U.S. visa (9 percent of all respondents) did not factor significantly into their decision. The authors provide two reasons for this increasing trend:

The Great Recession has diminished the professional opportunities for immigrants. China and India have a competitive advantage due to lower operation costs, lower salaries and better access to emerging markets.

 

A larger number of states are positioned to capitalize on rising employment due to high-growth industries, according to a new report from Wells Fargo's Economic Group — Employment Dynamics and State Competitiveness. These states (i.e., Georgia, North Carolina, Arizona, Virginia and Texas) have been able to couple several high-growth industries with a skilled workforce to build their competitive advantage. The report utilized 20 years of employment data in 25 major industries to project industries that are likely to see high employment growth nationally, including finance & insurance, professional & technical services, accommodation & food services, other services and healthcare & social assistance industries. The researchers also found that more than a majority of states (more than 26) possess a competitive advantage in at least 16 of the 25 industries. However, the effects of the Great Recession may severely hinder some states' ability to capitalize on their competitive advantage due to limited worker mobility (e.g., Florida).

Since 2005, the distribution of U.S. venture capital (VC) investment has remained fairly steady, with California companies receiving about half of all venture dollars. California's share of total dollars reached its highest point in 2009, when the state's firms received 50.6 percent of all U.S. investment. While California's share decreased a bit in 2010, VC activity remains highly concentrated in a handful of states. Over the past five years, the top ten states for venture investment have represented about 85 percent of all U.S. venture activity. Since PricewaterhouseCoopers began tracking VC activity by state in 2005, the overall trend has been toward greater concentration in a few hotspots, particularly the Silicon Valley region.

The number of venture capital deals also is highly concentrated in California, though there has been a slight trend over the past five years toward greater geographic diversity. In 2005, California received 41.3 percent of all VC deals and the top ten states together received 80.4 percent of all deals. Five years later in 2010, California received 39.3 percent of VC deals and the top ten states received 78.9 percent of deals.

A larger number of states are positioned to capitalize on rising employment due to high-growth industries, according to a new report from Wells Fargo's Economic Group — Employment Dynamics and State Competitiveness. These states (i.e., Georgia, North Carolina, Arizona, Virginia and Texas) have been able to couple several high-growth industries with a skilled workforce to build their competitive advantage. The report utilized 20 years of employment data in 25 major industries to project industries that are likely to see high employment growth nationally, including finance & insurance, professional & technical services, accommodation & food services, other services and healthcare & social assistance industries. The researchers also found that more than a majority of states (more than 26) possess a competitive advantage in at least 16 of the 25 industries. However, the effects of the Great Recession may severely hinder some states' ability to capitalize on their competitive advantage due to limited worker mobility (e.g., Florida).

TBED PeopleSSTI board members Rob Atkinson and Rebecca Bagley and SSTI member Stephen Tang were appointed to the U.S. Department of Commerce Innovation Advisory Board. The 15-member board will guide a study of U.S. economic competitiveness and innovation to help inform national policies.

Tom Thornton, who recently resigned as president and chief executive of the Kansas Bioscience Authority, has joined Cleveland Clinic Innovations as its general manager of alliances.

North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple named Alan Anderson to head the North Dakota Department of Commerce. Paul Govig has been serving as the acting commissioner since December of last year when Shane Goettle left the department. Govig will continue to serve as deputy Commerce commissioner.

The Economic Development Administration (EDA) in partnership with 15 other federal agencies and bureaus intends to commit $33 million in direct federal funding and provide technical assistance resources for the Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge — a new public-private initiative focused on supporting and accelerating the growth of regional innovation clusters that exhibit high-growth development potential. Approximately 20 industry clusters will be selected through a nationwide competitive process that includes all industry sectors. Three agencies will provide direct funding with the additional 13 agencies and bureaus providing technical assistance resources to support customized solutions for each awardee. Challenge investments also are intended to serve as a catalyst for leveraging private capital in the regions from sources including foundations, financial institutions, corporations and other private sector partners. Sometime in May 2011, EDA will announce the competitive solicitation for this challenge.

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Steven Chu announced that DOE intends to commit up to $130 million to support advanced research projects on rare earth alternatives and breakthroughs in biofuels, thermal storage, grid controls and solar power electronics. The five new program areas supported through the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy's (ARPA-E) fourth round of funding include:

Generous individuals and foundations are stepping up to support university-based initiatives designed to expand research and encourage young people to create high-growth jobs at a time when operating budgets for higher education are facing drastic funding cuts across the U.S. Colleges in Michigan and Ontario will establish endowed chairs in medical research and entrepreneurship with funding from individual donors, and a 23-year-old former student of the University of Waterloo is launching a $1 million seed fund for student startups.

On the foundation front, a private-equity firm will donate $3.6 million to initiate an entrepreneurship network with North Carolina universities to mentor startup companies around Research Triangle Park and a $10 million gift to Drexel University will be used for a biomedical translational program. Details on the aforementioned funding commitments are highlighted below.