I-Corps ARS- A New Twist on NSF’s I-Corps Model Mojdeh Bahar, J.D., M.A., CLPMojdeh Bahar, J.D., M.A., CLP Assistant Administrator, Office of Technology TransferAssistant Administrator, Office of Technology Transfer

ROADMAP 1. Concept 2. Benefit 3. Unique Features 4. Pilot 5. Projects 6. Impact of I-Corps on Each Project 7. Lessons Learned for ARS and Other Federal Agencies

CONCEPT

The ARS Innovation Corps (I-Corps ARS) pilot was a set of activities and programs that prepared ARS scientists to extend their focus beyond the laboratory and broadened the impact of select ARS research projects. Combining experience and guidance from established entrepreneurs with a targeted curriculum, NSF I-Corps™, on which I- Corps ARS was based, taught the teams to identify the real problems facing stakeholders and to develop valuable products and/or market opportunities that can emerge from their own research. In addition, I-Corps ARS offered entrepreneurship training which helped the participants to be more innovative in their research programs. Each team was composed of one ARS scientist, one post-doctoral fellow and one technology transfer professional.

BENEFIT

For ARS, the benefit of I-Corps ARS was creating an entrepreneurial culture within the agency by engaging scientists in the business side of science. The paradigm offered in this program enables the scientist to do more impactful research.

UNIQUE FEATURES

NSF’s I-Corps™ program is one of the most innovative approaches to fostering an innovative ecosystem. So far, the I- Corps™ model adopted by federal agencies focuses on the agency’s grantees, not their intramural scientists. The proposed I-Corps ARS is the first program in a government- owned, government operated environment (GOGO) that has an intramural focus with the goal of creating and entrepreneurial scientific enterprise. Department of Energy (GOCO) has recently adopted a similar model called LabCorps.

PILOT

1.2 technologies and their corresponding teams were selected 2.Each team had at least three members: one ARS scientists, a post-doctoral candidate/students in the lab and a TT/Business Mentor 3.The team was supported by the Office of Technology Transfer, the Area Office and the Laboratory 4.After completing the program, the “graduates” would help educate their peers on the business side of science 5.One of the NSF I-Corps nodes (Michigan) had agreed to charge ARS a reduced cost per team for registration for the courses/program during the pilot phase.

PROJECTS

1. The development of instrumentation to rapidly characterize agricultural products and poultry meat through nondestructive microwave sensing. Through study of the object’s electric properties, one is able to understand its physical properties. 2. Simultaneous removal and recovery of nitrogen and phosphorus from manures and wastewater. The aim of the project was to use gas-permeable membrane technology along with aeration to remove nitrogen and combine this with phosphorus precipitation to more effectively remove and recover these nutrients.

IMPACT OF I-CORPS ON EACH PROJECT

Both projects gained more specificity from a scientific point of view and the identification of problems to be solved, but also as to market segmentation and how solutions will be adopted. In the case of project 1, a different customer than the one first envisioned was identified and the physical attributes that are important to industry were realized. In project 2, the need for the technology was proven, application in aquaculture was examined, and the interviews pointed to additional research and work that needed to be done to turn the research a viable product. The role of regulations and cost analysis were emphasized.

LESSONS LEARNED FOR ARS AND OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES

1. The six week program is a big a time commitment between customer discovery and actual instruction, mostly through webinars. 2. The Federal Agency could further customize the program to better fit the environment of a federal lab, and not a start-up entrepreneur. 3. Most of the activities are done by the Entrepreneurial Lead (post-doc fellow). 4. Prior to the start of the program, the Federal scientists and postdoctoral fellows should be better prepared for the method used in I-Corps. 5. Everyone involved in the projects should be on board, both philosophically and financially. 6. The inclusion of Technology Transfer Professionals was a great addition from an agency TT perspective. 7. There are pros and cons to a subject specific I-Corps, e.g. Agriculture. 8. This program will give rise to more impactful research. “Instead of finishing a project and trying to fit a square peg to a circular hole, the research project can be guided in the right direction from interviews with customers and stakeholders. Therefore, the end product is such that it fits the expressed needs of the customers and has immediate added value.”

QUESTIONS??