Unlocking Economic Growth Through Regional Tech Ecosystems and Innovation

(This blog is part 2 of a series. Read part 1 for more about our work in Kentucky and recent state investments in supporting regional universities’ innovation capabilities.) 

Far from the Silicon Valley hype-machine or Harvard’s ivy-covered walls, organizations in Tennessee and Kentucky are unlocking the economic potential of innovators at regional universities. Building ecosystems to transition great ideas out of labs and into the market is part of a broader trend where states and regions outside of the traditional tech hotspots are betting on the potential of innovation to create new economic opportunities. 

Building a Statewide Technology Ecosystem in Tennessee

Launch Tennessee (LaunchTN) has been building a network of people and programs to support budding tech companies across the Volunteer State since 2012.  Working with partners around Tennessee, LaunchTN saw innovators and ideas getting left behind. An RTI report last year produced by the Center for Applied Economics and Strategy found that the state lags many of its peers in the Southeast at getting innovations out of university labs and into the market. Particularly outside of the state’s flagship institutions, researchers who needed more support to secure funding, often lack the expertise to evaluate the commercial viability of their inventions, and don’t have the resources to bring new technologies to market.  

Creating a Technology Ecosystem to Support Innovation

So, LaunchTN created the Tennessee Technology Advancement Consortium (TTAC), a pilot collaboration between the state’s two flagship research institutions (University of Tennessee and Vanderbilt University) and three regional universities (Tennessee State University, Tennessee Technology University, and University of Memphis). The idea is to create a statewide network t​o provide guidance along the complex path from idea to market. ​​     ​ 

Then, TTAC hit the road. 

The first step was to get on campus across the partner institutions. TTAC held dozens of events to engage commercialization champions at each university and in just the first year, they developed relationships with over 500 academics and students. The consortium also provided nearly 200 hours of consultation with researchers exploring the market potential of their research. 

Early Success Stories in the Tennessee Tech Ecosystem

The pilot year uncovered promising technologies that could have gone unnoticed or under resourced. Some notable early wins include: 

• Identifying 36 promising inventions, an 88% increase over the previous annual average 
• Conducting assessments of commercial potential and intellectual property strategy (in partnership with university tech transfer offices and TreMonti Consulting) of 12 technologies 
• Identification 3 technologies to advance for patenting and potential commercial development, including a cobalt catalyst for hydrogen production, a UV system for pasteurization (see FloUV Technologies), and a technology for subterranean energy harvesting

Building Capacity for Technology Transfer and Commercialization

The first year also validated the need to connect more research institutions with a statewide ecosystem to commercialize academic research. As Robert Turner, Director of Technology Transfer and Innovation at Tennessee State University, observed, “TTAC has been instrumental in building long-term capacity for IP commercialization and translational research. As a result of this partnership, we’ve effected a significant growth in our innovation portfolio and interest from faculty and students in commercialization programs and resources.” 

Moving forward, with reauthorization from the state of Tennessee, TTAC will expand to serve additional universities, with the goal of licensing technologies and generating revenue over the coming years.  

Forging Multi-State Partnerships for Tech-Based Economic Development

The TTAC pilot drew inspiration from what their neighbor’s with Kentucky Commercialization Ventures (KCV) has been doing (see previous blog for more details). Now both organizations are looking beyond their state lines. 

KCV and TTAC are currently participating with Georgia’s Partnership for Inclusive Innovation’s (PIN’s) Leaders Program, which brings together tech-based economic development and entrepreneurial ecosystem support innovators from around the country. PIN works to foster open innovation, catalyze economic mobility, and serve all of Georgia, from its urban centers to rural communities.   

TTAC and KVC are looking to forge alliances with partners in other states to create a regional ecosystem. As Kayla Meisner at KCV remarked, "We've witnessed firsthand the transformative power of the statewide model to kickstart and support innovation activity across our Kentucky communities. The statewide technology transfer model isn't just a promising approach, it's the blueprint for a more equitable and prosperous future." Charles Layne at TTAC echoed this sentiment, adding, "Every community has unique strengths and challenges, but the need for innovation infrastructure at our research institutions is universal. Kentucky's success in addressing this need on a national scale has paved the way for us to lay the groundwork for a similar transformation in Tennessee.” 

Stay tuned later this year when the alliance formally launches and keep an eye out for similar efforts to expand the benefits of tech-based economic development with the help of RTI's Center for Applied Economics and Strategy.