ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ

Collage of three images with ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ faculty, staff and students networking during the 2019 Celebration of Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

Gap Funding Programs

Transforming new ideas and research outputs into disruptive solutions in the market and society is a challenging task. Thanks to generous alumni donors, the ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ Engine is able to offer Gap Funding Programs that enable the advancement of technologies from the labs to the marketplace and entrepreneurial skills development through project funding and personalized business mentorship and training.

TechAccelR, William and Rhea Seath Awards in Engineering Innovation (WRSA), and the Innovation Fellowship grants are directed toward increasing the technology transfer potential (licensing to an existing company or to a ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ spinoff) and thus commercial viability of an invention/technology that has been disclosed to ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ's Office of Innovation + Partnerships, and has been assessed by your Technology Transfer Manager, preferably at least 2 weeks in advance of proposal submission deadlines. Personalized business mentorship by our Ronald Chwang Entrepreneurs-in-Residence is included in all of these programs.

Impact since 2013

$1.4M+ in awards, stipends and fellowships awarded
60+ projects supported
110+ researchers trained

Program Comparison (A research team cannot be simultaneously in more than one program for the same invention/technology.)Gap funding programs comparison

Comparison TechAccelR

William and Rhea Seath Awards in
Engineering Innovation (WRSA)

The Chwang Seto Innovation Fellowships Program

Upcoming Application Deadlines April 1, 2025 January 12, 2025 February 16, 2025
Award Length 6 months 12 months 12 months
Funding Up to $15,000

Up to $25,000

Up to $60,000

Project Start Date

May 1, 2025

March 1, 2025 May 1, 2025
Business Mentorship Matched with a Ronald Chwang EiR Matched with a Ronald Chwang EiR Matched with a Ronald Chwang EiR
Description Supporting ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ University tenure-track professors by enabling them to accelerate their technology (TRL3) that is reported as an invention but needs further validation prior to commercialization.Ìý

Supporting ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ University Faculty of Engineering tenure-track professors and their graduate students by enabling them to accelerate their technology (TRL3-4) that is reported as an invention but needs further validation prior to commercialization.

Supporting the development of a technology (TRL4-6) in order to bring it closer to the marketplace and allow the Chwang Seto Innovation Fellow to gain further knowledge and experience in business and technology commercialization through entrepreneurial training and mentorship.
Technology Transfer Requirements 

The technology must be reported as an invention to ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ's Office of Innovation and Partnerships.Ìý

Included in the application:

The technology must be reported as an invention to ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ's Office of Innovation and Partnerships.Ìý

Included in the application:

The technology must be reported as an invention to ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ's Office of Innovation and Partnerships.

Included in the application:

Awards Granted Up to 5 per round, 2 rounds per year. Up to 2 annually.Ìý Up to 2 per round, 2 rounds per year.
Group shot of 4 ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ faculty members receiving plaques for patents that were awarded to them in 2019.

TechAccelR Grants

The TechAccelR Grants are intended to help professors in the Faculty of Engineering accelerate their research-based ideas that are reported as inventions but need further validation prior to commercialization.

Image of students explaining their project during the 2019 Celebration of Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

William and Rhea Seath Awards in Engineering Innovation

These Awards recognize outstanding graduate students and professors, who have innovative technological ideas or research results with potential for commercialization.

Image of students presenting their project during the 2019 Celebration of Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Innovation Fellowships

The ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ Engine Innovation Fellowships Program supports the recipient and the team on the development of a technology in order to bring it closer to the marketplace and allow the Chwang-Seto Innovation Fellow to gain further knowledge and experience in business and technology commercialization.

Laptop and books on a table

Invention to Impact Program

I-to-I provides tools and training to support researchers to translate their fundamental research to the marketplace and have their solutions benefit society. The program imparts an evidence-based methodology that students and professors can use for the rest of their careers, and it also enables the transformation of inventions to impact.

Back to top