U.S. SBA GAFC 2024 Award to New Indiana Center
Today, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced the Indiana Center for Emerging Technologies (ICET) as a Stage One winner for the 2024 Growth Accelerator Fund Competition (GAFC). The ICET is a collaboration between Evansville, Indiana's Circular Venture Lab and the University of Evansville's Center for Innovation and Change (CIC).
The ICET will receive a $50,000 cash prize for its impactful and inclusive approach to nurturing a collaborative innovation ecosystem that will advance small business research and development (R&D) from ideas to the market.
“SBA’s Growth Accelerator Fund Competition Stage One winners join the SBA’s incredible network of entrepreneurial support organizations contributing to America’s innovative startup ecosystem, ensuring the next generation of science and technology-based innovations scale into thriving businesses,” said Administrator Guzman. “In its tenth year of driving our nation’s innovation ecosystem forward, this competition provides a unique opportunity to recognize the critical importance of those who help entrepreneurs from all backgrounds access opportunities to scale and grow. These GAFC winners advance American competitiveness and help us build an innovation economy that works for everyone.”
By fostering connections between entrepreneurs, mentors, partners, philanthropies, corporations, investors, and other shared resources, GAFC 2024 catalyzes strategic ecosystem partnerships to build community and organizational capacity for the successful launch, growth, and scale of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)-based entrepreneurs.
The Center’s proposal specifically focused on the SBA’s National and Economic Security theme, which includes but is not limited to:
National Security and Defense
Artificial Intelligence
Microelectronics
Advanced Computing and Software
Quantum Computing
Human-Machine Interfaces
Other Critical and Emerging Technologies
Logan Jenkins, Executive Director of Circular Venture Lab, states, "The ICET empowers Indiana's talent to research, evaluate, and validate the market potential of emerging technologies. The Center will catalyze a new economic development model, where technology innovations are researched and applied. Students, industry leaders, and academia will collaborate to build new ventures and create spinoffs. Early validation of the concept through GAFC 2024 significantly bolsters our chances for success regionally and across Indiana."
Erin Lewis, the Executive Director of UE's Center for Innovation & Change remarked, "This collaboration between the CIC and Circular Venture Lab has now received its third federal award in five months; two from the U.S. Department of Energy, and now a third from the U.S. Small Business Administration. We're incredibly excited about that investment in our vision for inclusive access to entrepreneurial support, and look forward to sharing progress in the coming months."
About the Indiana Center for Emerging Technologies (ICET):
The ICET is a collaboration between Evansville, Indiana's nonprofit 501(c)(3) Circular Venture Lab and the University of Evansville's Center for Innovation and Change. The concept includes a centralized network and facility in Evansville to support our region's entrepreneurial ecosystem, which serves multiple purposes:
Collaboration Hub
The ICET is a resource for industry leaders to explore collaborations between academia, government research agencies, and Indiana manufacturers.
Talent Attraction
The facility will attract new entrepreneurs and new industries, spur the creation of new startups and spinoffs, and help retain our current entrepreneurial talent.
Industry Showcase
The ICET allows our regional technological capabilities and strengths to be showcased in a physical space, serving a multitude of economic development purposes.