Created through Rutgers University’s Office of Research and Economic Development (ORED) to advance early stage technologies invented by Rutgers researchers toward commercialization, the TechAdvance® Fund has awarded $1.45 million to 22 researchers to date. Additionally, the first technology funded by the TechAdvance program has been successfully licensed to a third party.
Launched in June 2017, TechAdvance provides grants of up to $100,000 to Rutgers researchers whose inventions have the potential to become marketable products. Funded projects range from technologies in the life sciences and medical devices to materials science and engineering.
TechXpress, a program within TechAdvance, provides smaller grants of up to $10,000 for projects that require less funding and can be completed within six months. TechXpress funds may be used to create a prototype for a new device, purchase a compound for proof-of-concept studies, or fund a toxicology or efficacy experiment to increase the likelihood of patentability, for example.
Rutgers’ goal for this proof-of-concept fund is to bridge the gap between basic research and commercialization.
“Inventors often come to our office with hopes of marketing their new technologies to customers or industry partners. At the industry level, they often hear a common response that their technology is interesting but it’s too early or they need more data,” said David Kimball, Ph.D., Vice President for Innovation and Research Commercialization at Rutgers. “That’s where TechAdvance comes in. We provide funding with the goal of generating meaningful results that will increase the probability of follow-on funding, sponsored research, or commercialization through licensing, or the creation of a new startup. By giving these researchers the boost they need, we hope to bring more valuable Rutgers technologies to market and make a difference in the world around us.”
TechAdvance applications are evaluated by external industry reviewers to validate the market potential of each proposed technology and the goal is to support technologies that can be marketed via licensing to existing companies or the creation of new startups. All applications are accepted on a rolling basis, but applicants must be invited to apply. Information about the application process is available on the TechAdvance website.
The TechAdvance program was established with $1 million of seed funding from ORED and continues to be supported by the university as well as donors, including alumni, foundations, industry partners, and members of the business community.
Funded Projects to Date:
RESEARCHER | PROJECT TITLE |
AWARD TYPE |
David Shreiber | Platform Technology for Native Free Radical-Initiated Targeting and Immobilization of Therapeutics | TechAdvance |
Bill Welsh | Sigma-1 Receptor (S1R) Antagonists as Alternatives to Opioid Narcotics for Treatment of Pain |
TechXpress |
Joachim Kohn | Targeted Delivery of Vitamin E acetate to skin using Rutgers TyroSpheres |
TechAdvance |
Biju Parekkadan | Biopharmaceutical Manufacturing using Bioactive Cell Growth Capsules |
TechAdvance |
Arash Hatefi | Vector Development for Stem Cell Transfection |
TechXpress |
Thomas Papathomas | Diagnostic Application for Schizophrenia and mental disorders |
TechAdvance |
Rafael Benoliel | Biomimetic, Bioactive Dental Implants |
TechAdvance |
Chaoyang Xue | Development of a broad-spectrum antifungal vaccine |
TechAdvance |
Masanori Hara | Scale-up and Mechanical Testing of Polymers made from Silica |
TechXpress |
Fumio Matsumura | In vitro generation of antigen-specific memory T-cells |
TechXpress |
Gary Aston Jones | A novel composition and method for treating neuropsychiatric disorders |
TechAdvance |
Manisha Bajpai | Clinical Validation of FISH Based Assay for Early Detection of Esophageal Adenocarcinoma |
TechAdvance |
Richard Ebright | New Antibiotics: Microbial Extract Screening and Mutational De-Replication |
TechAdvance |
Ed Yurkow | Treatment of Fibrotic Diseases Using Agents that Disrupt the Structure of Collagen |
TechXpress |
Bill Belden | Synthetic Antibody Production for Immunotherapies |
TechXpress |
Judy Deutsch | VSTEP digital health platform using virtual environments (VE) for examination and rehabilitation of balance, coordination, mobility and fitness |
TechAdvance |
G. Charles Dismukes | Waste Carbon Dioxide into Renewable Chemical Feedstocks and Energy Storage via Electro-catalysis |
TechAdvance |
Joseph Freeman | Vascularized Regenerative Scaffold for Load Bearing Bone |
TechXpress |
Yicheng Lu | MZO Nanostructure-Modified Bulk Acoustic Wave Biosensor for Dynamic and Rapid Determination of Antimicrobial Efficacy and Resistance |
TechAdvance |
Jennifer Lynch | Graphene Enhanced Polymer Matrix Composites: Investigation of the Barrier Resistance to Small Gases and Fuel |
TechAdvance |
Prabhas Moghe | Optical Surveillance for Drug Discovery & Disease Tracking: “Ink and Scan” Infrared Nanotechnology |
TechAdvance |
Bill Welsh | First-in-Class Pan-TAM Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors for Cancer Therapy |
TechAdvance |