A Colorado coalition of government and business representatives is a finalist in the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s Build Back Better program, which brings with it a $500,000 award and the opportunity to compete for $100 million for bioscience and clean-technology enterprises.
The coalition got word Monday that it was one of 60 finalists out of 529 applicants from across the country. The $1 billion Build Back Better Regional Challenge aims to enhance economic recovery during the pandemic, strengthen regional industry clusters and increase the country’s competitiveness globally.
The Colorado application was led by Innosphere Ventures, a Colorado-based science and technology incubator for startups that also provides venture capital.
“This really sets us up for the application for the next round and that’s the big deal for us,” said Mike Freeman, CEO of Innosphere.
The second phase will award 20 to 30 coalitions up to $100 million for projects that will develop or scale up industry sectors, according to the Economic Development Administration. The deadline to apply is March 15.
Freeman said the coalition hasn’t heard specific feedback yet on its application, but he said the strength of the coalition likely helped boost the group to the next round. The coalition includes the state, three Colorado research universities, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and bioscience and clean-technology industry associations.
And Freeman said he thinks the coalition’s focus on leveraging the region’s research and development resources to speed up the process of commercialization likely hit a chord.
The coalition’s proposed projects and organizations are:
⦁ Prosper CO: Scale the existing Prosper CO strategies to recruit, retain and promote people of color across the cluster and connect more procurement opportunities.
⦁ Expand startup and scaleup support for new ventures: Extend early support for all inventors at research universities and federal laboratories, invest in entrepreneurial training for a more diverse workforce, expand product support, and improve industry access.
⦁ Colorado School of Mines — Sustainable Infrastructure Center: Construct a research and development center focused on manufacturing, sustainable resource management, sustainable and advanced energy systems, water and sustainable infrastructure.
⦁ Colorado State University BioMARC: Expand the existing BioMARC facility to create a national asset for infectious disease-related product development. BioMARC is a nonprofit that produces biopharmaceutical products for non-clinical, clinical, and commercial use.
⦁ Boulder wet labs – University of Colorado-Boulder, city of Boulder, and Innosphere. Construct startup wet laboratory spaces, including offices, meeting rooms, and entrepreneurial incubator programs and services. Liquids are used in wet labs to test and analyze drugs, chemicals and other biological matter.
⦁ Denver wet labs – Colorado School of Mines, city of Denver, and Innosphere. Construct startup wet laboratory spaces, including offices, meeting rooms, and entrepreneurial incubator programs and services.
⦁ Colorado State University: Expand the existing Powerhouse Energy Campus to provide advanced laboratories for clean-technology innovators to commercialize energy and climate solutions.
⦁ State of Colorado, National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Jefferson County. Public-private partnership to create a Global Energy Park adjacent to the NREL campus focused on equitable energy transition, decarbonization, new climate solutions, improved public health, and environmental sustainability.
