IU’s Emerging Technologies Center, an incubator supporting 22 new ventures, is one of many resources dedicated to technology transfer.
Access to investment capital, entrepreneurial resources, and graduates from some of the world's best engineering, management, life science, and advanced manufacturing programs has enabled the city to emerge as a center for scientific and technological innovation.
Factors that help make Indianapolis a center for innovation include:
Education
The region's universities give rise to ground-breaking patents and technologies, entrepreneurs, and commercial ventures. IU (Indianapolis and Bloomington) created the first School of Informatics in the U.S. and was the first to offer a PhD in this discipline. The school brings together programs in computer science, new media, and health information technology. And, Purdue University's engineering program is ranked 9th in the nation.
Technology Transfer
Indianapolis is home to technology incubators such as the Indiana University Emerging Technologies Center, the Indianapolis Enterprise Center, and the Purdue Technology Center of Indianapolis. A network of 27 incubators statewide helps accelerate the development, growth, and retention of new ventures.
Investment Capital
Indianapolis businesses have access to funding sources such as the State of Indiana's 21st Century Research and Technology Fund and SBIR matching, as well as a growing number of private investment firms.
Economic Development Initiatives
The City of Indianapolis and the State of Indiana have launched a variety of economic development initiatives to promote business growth. One example is
BioCrossroads which, since its inception in 2002, has raised more than $120 million to promote growth through its Indiana Future Fund and Indiana Seed Fund.
Business Incentives
The city's technology businesses benefit from state tax exemptions on income derived from patents for new technologies and processes and are eligible for R&D sales tax credits on equipment such as computers and software.
Workforce Development
Conexus Indiana is a state initiative launched to build an advanced manufacturing labor force that will support today's and tomorrow's manufacturing businesses