Albany Medical Center will receive more than $520,000 in federal grants from the U.S. Economic Development Administration to support biomedical research and commercialization of new medical products and technologies.
In a statement, U.S. Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand said the hospital will receive $399,585 for its biomedical acceleration and commercialization center, which is expected to open this summer. Those funds will come from an Economic Development Administration i6 Challenge Grant.
The center, at the second-largest hospital system in the Albany area, has space in the incubator for between eight and 10 companies. The incubator at Albany Med is among several accelerators in the region that are aiming to tie research to commercialization and create a regional support system for entrepreneurs.
“This funding will help build on collaborative efforts to develop a robust biomedical and biotechnology-based research and entrepreneurial community in the capital region,” said Vincent Verdile, dean of Albany Medical College, in the statement. “With this funding, we will expand research and entrepreneurship training and provide critical seed capital for emerging and innovative businesses.”
Hospital officials said in February that they had four biomedical startup companies in the queue to join the incubator when it opens.
Other grants totaling $124,910 will be used to create a Bio Innovation Seed Fund to support entrepreneurs, physicians and engineers in the development of medical device prototypes. Those funds will come from cluster grants through the Economic Development Administration’s Seed Capital Funds Program.
