60 Awarded ‘Build to Scale’ Grants to Support Innovators, Entrepreneurs, and Startups Through Regional, Technology-Based Economic Development Strategies
Today, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced “Build to Scale” grants awarded to 60 organizations across the country — located in 36 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico — totaling $53 million for programs that support technology entrepreneurs, catalyze innovation, and fuel economic growth. This is the 10th cohort for this program.
The grants, part of the “Build to Scale” program administered annually by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA), aim to accelerate technology entrepreneurship by increasing inclusive access to entrepreneurial support and startup capital. These EDA investments support innovation industries, such as agriculture technology (agtech), blue economy, bioscience, advanced manufacturing, and health technology, among others.
The FY23 “Build to Scale” program was comprised of two competitions––the Venture Challenge and the Capital Challenge. Each challenge had multiple funding tiers that are designed to support organizations at different levels based on their needs, capacity and vision.
The 2023 awardees – which include nonprofits, universities, government agencies, and other entrepreneurship-focused organizations – will leverage an additional $55 million in matching funds from an array of private and public sector sources.
2023 Venture Challenge Grant Recipients
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20Fathoms (Traverse City, MI) - $2 million
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757 ScaleUp Alliance (Norfolk, VA) - $1.2 million
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Arch Grants (St. Louis, MO) - $750,000
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Arizona Regional Economic Development Foundation (Sierra Vista, AZ) - $298,504
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BRF (Shreveport, LA) - $1.3 million
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Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation (Brownsville, TX) - $1.2 million
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Cleveland State University (Cleveland, OH) - $1.8 million
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Cornell University (Ithaca, NY) - $2 million
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Elevate Rapid City (Rapid City, SD) - $100,494
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Georgetown University (Washington, D.C.) - $750,000
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Guilford College (Greensboro, NC) – $218,583
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Jumpstart (Cleveland, OH) – $2 million
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LifeX Holdings (Pittsburgh, PA) - $2 million
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Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge, LA) - $600,000
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Mansfield BioIncubator (Mansfield, MA) – $1.25 million
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Michigan Tech Enterprise Corporation (Houghton, MI) – $750,000
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Mid-Atlantic Gigabit Innovation Collaboratory (Westminster, MD) - $274,498
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North American Intelligent Manufacturing Initiative (Los Alamos, NM) - $300,000
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Northeastern University (Portland, ME) - $2 million
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Northeastern Vermont Development Association ( Johnsbury, VT) - $749,947
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Pacific American Foundation (Kailua, HI) - $300,000
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Puerto Rico Science, Technology and Research Trust (San Juan, PR) - $648,104
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Rock Hill Economic Development Corporation (Rock Hill, SC) - $50,000
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Rocky Mountain Innovation Initiative (Fort Collins, CO) - $2 million
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San Jose State University Research Foundation (San Jose, CA) - $300,000
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South Coast Development Council (Coos Bay, OR) - $300,000
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Southern Research (Birmingham, AL) - $748,469
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Spelman College (Atlanta, GA) – $749,896
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The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven (New Haven, CT) – $2 million
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The Idea Village (New Orleans, LA) – $2 million
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University of Arkansas (Fayetteville, AR) – $1.2 million
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University of Missouri at Kansas City (Kansas City, MO) – $2 million
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University of Nebraska Medical Center (Omaha, NE) – $637,710
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University of Nevada, Las Vegas (Las Vegas, NV) – $749,037
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University of Oklahoma (Norman, OK) – $1.9 million
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University of Wisconsin-Madison (Madison, WI) – $1.2 million
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University Lab Partners (Irvine, CA) – $2 million
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Urban Partnerships Community Development Corporation (Houston, TX) – $741,925
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Wabash Heartland Innovation Network (West Lafayette, IN) – $1 million
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Washington Maritime Blue (Seattle, WA) – $840,810
2023 Capital Challenge Grant Recipients
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Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Central & Northern Pennsylvania (State College, PA) – $412,598
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BRF (Shreveport, LA) - $655,436
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Center on Rural Innovation (Hartland, VT) - $260,379
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Central Indiana Corporate Partnership (Indianapolis, IN) - $400,000
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City and County of Denver (Denver, CO) - $750,000
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Clean Energy Trust (Chicago, IL) - $750,000
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Codefi Foundation on Rural Innovation (Cape Girardeau, MO) - $321,000
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Community Investment Corporation (Tucson, AZ) - $300,000
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Delaware Innovation Space (Wilmington, DE) - $750,000
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Entrepreneurs Center (Dayton, OH) - $400,000
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Greentown Labs (Houston, TX) - $400,000
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Gulf of Maine Research Institute (Portland, ME) - $669,433
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Jackson Hole Center for Global Affairs (Jackson, WY) - $168,500
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Michigan Technological University (Houghton, MI) - $400,000
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Tampa Bay Wave (Tampa, FL) - $396,000
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The Enterprise Institute (Brookings, SD) - $364,577
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University of California, San Diego (La Jolla, CA) - $750,000
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University of Kentucky (Lexington, KY) - $749,795
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University of Nevada, Las Vegas (Las Vegas, NV) - $400,000
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University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (Edinburg, TX) - $744,422
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