Welcome to NSF I-Corps

In January 2016, the National Science Foundation designated LSU an Innovation Corps (I-Corps) site to educate faculty, students and the community on entrepreneurial principles. Our goal is to help faculty and students answer important commercialization questions directly applicable to state and federal grant programs, and to identify industry partners and potential licensees.

In September 2022, NSF named LSU as one of the lead organizations for a new NSF I-Corps Hub Southwest -- encompassing universities from Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and New Mexico -- that will help propel more research out university labs and into the real world. LSU is supporting communications for the five-state hub and offering I-Corps training throughout Louisiana.

Soutwest I-Corps Hub logo

Our Mission

Our mission is to connect the academic and industrial worlds, helping talented individuals achieve real-world impact. We offer support, guidance, and financial opportunities to enable individuals and teams to transition their innovations from the research stage to market success.

Program Benefits

  • Improved chance of commercial success
  • Slash the time to take technology from the drawing board to market
  • Increase entrepreneurial skills
  • Identify customers and weaknesses in business model in weeks, rather than months or years
  • Increased likelihood of attracting follow-on funding, such as a federal grant to validate and commercialize your invention

Key Components of NSF I-Corps

1. The Team

Teams at the National level usually consist of an Entrepreneurial Lead, a Technical Lead (Principal Investigator), and a Mentor. Mentors are not required at the Regional level.  If you are interested in having a Mentor during a regional cohort, reach out to Jacob Clemmons ([email protected])

    • The Entrepreneurial Lead (EL) can be a post-doctoral scholar, graduate student, or other personnel with relevant knowledge of the technology and a strong commitment to exploring its commercial potential.
    • The Technical Lead (TL) is typically a faculty member, senior research scientist, or postdoctoral scholar with technical expertise in the innovation the I-Corps team is assessing for commercial viability. The Technical Lead usually also serves as the proposal Principal Investigator (PI).
    • The I-Corps Teams Mentor (IM) is someone who can guide the team through the I-Corps process and help them navigate the business ecosystem in the relevant application areas.

2. Curriculum

The NSF I-Corps curriculum has been designed to emphasize customer discovery, business models, and value propositions, and is usually presented by experienced instructors in a virtual format, although some cohorts will be presented in person.  The course emphasizes:

    • Training an entrepreneurial workforce
    • Translating technologies
    • Enabling positive economic impact
    • Nurturing an innovation ecosystem

3. Customer Discovery

The essence of the program is gaining insights directly from potential customers through interviews and feedback, a vital step in comprehending market demands.

Upcoming Cohorts

Dates TBA

Applications

A short application is required for each program that will be evaluated on the following criteria:

  • Team and Commitment
  • Intellectual Property Strength
  • Technology Strength
  • Commercial Potential & Applications
  • Fit with I-Corps Sites
  • Submit an Application

Applications will be accepted any time, and will be evaluated by the selection committee for admittance into the appropriate program.

Follow-On Resources

The goal of the program is to help LSU faculty, staff, and students commercialize their technologies and ideas. After completion of the program, several follow-on opportunities are available through the following:

  • NSF I-Corps Teams program, an intensive six-week National Science Foundation training with $50,000 grant
  • LSU Leveraging Innovation for Technology Transfer Program, LIFT2, prototyping grant of up to $50,000
  • LSU Innovation Park incubator
  • LSU Innovation business consultants' help applying for seed funding through the federal Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology transfer programs

For more information

Email Jacob Clemmons at [email protected].