Impact in Action: Polsky Center Year in Review (FY25)

Published on Thursday, October 16, 2025

2024-2025 Polsky Center Impact Report

This past year (July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025) at the Polsky Center was defined by momentum — from advancing innovation and entrepreneurship across the University of Chicago to deepening our impact in surrounding communities.

Our flagship programs reached new heights: the New Venture Challenge had another record-breaking year. The Polsky Center was honored with the Global Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers’ Outstanding Contributions to Venture Creation Award, and the Polsky Exchange remained a cornerstone of inclusive economic growth, supporting local business owners and entrepreneurs on Chicago’s South and West Sides. Major initiatives like Hyde Park Discovery with Deerfield Management, the new $25M Harper Court Ventures fund, and our inaugural Deep Tech Demo Day in San Francisco underscored our commitment to translating world-class research into real-world impact. With new programs empowering students, expanded partnerships, and a transformative $12.5M gift from Michael and Tanya Polsky to advance the energy transition, we’re building on a powerful foundation — one where ideas thrive, collaboration drives progress, and innovation leads to lasting change.

Explore additional highlights below and view the full report, here >>.

ADVANCING TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH

The Polsky Technology Ventures group is the central resource at UChicago for transforming scientific research into new products, services, and ventures. A dedicated team with technical expertise focuses exclusively on enabling technology commercialization through securing strong intellectual property, identifying partners, and negotiating licenses and other agreements for technologies based on the research of faculty and researchers. In addition, programs such as the Polsky Commercialization Fellowship and the Science and Technology Associates Program equip graduate students with the tools to transform research into real-world ventures that drive meaningful impact.

TRAINING FOR ENTREPRENEURIAL CAREERS

For more than 25 years, the Polsky Center has built on Chicago Booth’s hands-on approach to entrepreneurship, helping turn ideas into impact. Students, alumni, researchers, and faculty have access to a wide range of programs, events, competitions, and funding to launch startups or pursue careers in private equity, venture capital, or entrepreneurship through acquisition.

PARTNERING FOR COMMUNITY IMPACT

The Polsky Center supports small business owners in the communities surrounding UChicago through the Polsky Exchange, a hub for entrepreneurship that offers workspace, advising, mentorship, and a full calendar of programs and workshops to help launch and scale ventures. Programming includes the Tech Enablement series, which supports digital adoption; the Business Acumen series, which builds decision-making skills through sessions on finance, operations, and sales; and the Capital Access series, which connects founders with lenders and investors and teaches effective fundraising strategies. The Polsky Exchange also leverages Chicago Booth students, faculty, and alumni, who provide education, mentorship, and insights to help entrepreneurs overcome growth challenges and seize new opportunities.

ACCELERATING EARLY-STAGE VENTURES

The Polsky Center provides support for early-stage ventures through programming, accelerators, and funding opportunities, including access to a $25M deep tech fund, Harper Court Ventures. This comprehensive approach helps de-risk both market and technology challenges, harnessing UChicago’s faculty expertise and facilities to give founders the best chance for success and drive global innovation.

Explore the detailed full report, here >>.