UWM’s Lubar Entrepreneurship Center, led by Ilya Avdeev, professor of mechanical engineering, and the UWM Research Foundation have received $100,000 to represent UWM on a new state-funded initiative to support high-growth startups.
The two organizations will join others in a collaborative effort called Founder Factory, designed to close critical early- and mid-stage gaps in the startup pipeline.
Founder Factory also includes the UW Center for Technology Commercialization, Milwaukee Tech Hub Coalition, and Midwest Founders Community. Together, the partners will provide an innovation bootcamp, accelerators, pitch events, matchmaking, networking, and more.
The Lubar Entrepreneurship Center will host and co-facilitate the program’s 10-week pre-accelerator that gets underway in the fall.
“Great founders don’t just need ideas – they need a coordinated system that helps them test, build, and scale,” Avdeev said. “Founder Factory brings together the training, mentorship, capital pathways, and partnerships required to move teams from concept to investment readiness.”
In total, the Founder Factory initiative is supported by a $772,000 grant from the Wisconsin Economic Development Commission through its inaugural Ignite program.
The initiative is guided by a 20-member consortium of universities, healthcare and research institutions, investors, and regional innovation organizations working to strengthen Southeast Wisconsin’s startup ecosystem.Top of Form
In addition to launching promising startups, the program’s aims in its first two years are to increase follow-on funding and commercialization, strengthen founder leadership, activate intellectual property, and build a durable, data-driven venture engine for the region, said Jessica Silvaggi, president of the UWM Research Foundation.