A new online educational training platform — known as InsiteXccelerator — is under development in Delaware to equip medical technology entrepreneurs with skills, resources and connections that can help them succeed in bringing technologies to market. 

The big idea: save biomedical entrepreneurs time and money by teaching them about common bottlenecks in the innovation pipeline and how to avoid or overcome them. 

The potential outcome: more life-saving solutions available to those that need them, and personalized curriculum and direct-learning experiences to position biomedical entrepreneurs for product commercialization and scale-up.

The training is a collaborative effort of the University of Delaware, InsiteHub and Delaware Sustainable Chemistry Alliance (DESCA), funded through a grant announced last year from the National Institutes of Health’s regional entrepreneurship development program for states that traditionally have received low levels of NIH funding for biomedical research, known as IDeA states. The program offers two tracks: a pilot program with up to $50,000 in funding, and an educational track that includes coaching as funding is available.

“We have developed an engaging, educational platform that will ultimately decrease time to market and improve the chances for success for biomedical entrepreneurship in the Northeast IDeA region,” said Julius Korley, associate vice president for UD’s Office of Economic Innovation and Partnerships (OEIP). “The InsiteXccelerator team is taking a model-systems approach to improving the biomedical entrepreneurship paradigm. Furthermore, as we receive feedback from participants, we will use this insight to improve the program.”

Survey data collected during phase I of the project confirmed that entrepreneurs often see fewer knowledge gaps in themselves than stakeholders see. Targeted information to address these gaps is critical, but so is connectivity to industry experts, who often impart “intangible” knowledge simply by virtue of proximity. Additionally, because resources can be siloed, an easy-to-access, unified roadmap for commercialization is needed — it does not yet exist. 

Core features of the training program under development for entrepreneurs include:

• Industry-specific knowledge, especially as it pertains to business-related topics

• Biomedical-specific examples and case studies

• Facilitated mentorship with subject-matter experts

• Student dashboard indicators to track course progress and completion,

• Customizable personal content library,

• Live interaction for one-on-one and small workgroup coaching,

• Micro-credentialing badges at smaller increments (i.e., by concept) leading to certification with options to post to social media platforms.

Full proposals from biomedically-focused innovators who would like to be considered for the InsiteXccelerator pilot program are due by September 27, 2024, no later than 11:59 p.m. Details on what to include are available at this webpage. Full proposals should be emailed to info@insitexccelerator.com. Award winners will be announced in early November 2024.

Applicants to the program will be evaluated across the following major criteria: ecosystem and connectivity engagement, economic impact and startup outcomes, sustainability and growth. Because not all entrepreneurs are made equal, awardees will have an intake assessment that will chart their personalized pathway through the curriculum.

Future cohorts to the program, expected to be offered biannually, will follow a multi-step selection process to include a letter of interest, full proposal and pitch event.