Transform
your research into real-world impact.
Faculty, Postdocs & Researchers
The Polsky Center has a dedicated team with deep experience in bringing research-based discoveries to market through technology licensing and startup creation.
From securing intellectual property protection, to identifying commercialization partners and executing licenses, to funding and commercialization strategy, we provide the expertise and resources needed to turn research at the University of Chicago into real-world impact.
Protect your intellectual property
Have an idea or research discovery? Disclosing your invention to the Polsky Center is the first step.
The Polsky Center protects, manages, and supports the commercialization of inventions generated through research at UChicago.
Explore an idea from the lab
Ready to test the commercial potential and impact of your research? Validate market needs, evaluate problem-solution fit, or find a team.
Polsky Center I-Corps
Identify and address real-world problems and learn how to assess “technology-problem fit,” the first critical step in the commercialization process.
Accelerate and fund your startup
Have a business idea and ready to move it forward, or need help scaling your venture? Apply to an accelerator and access funding.
Alchemist Chicago
Advance your early-stage startup with access to Alchemist’s Silicon Valley best practices and capital pathways, and UChicago’s innovation ecosystem.
George Shultz Innovation Fund
Access venture development support and the opportunity to pitch for up to $250,000 in potential investment.
Harper Court Ventures
Harper Court Ventures invests in transformative technologies emerging from the University of Chicago ecosystem.
New Venture Challenge
Launch and grow a company through the University’s nationally recognized startup accelerator program with four specialized tracks.
Tech Commercialization 101
This step-by-step guide is the “who, what, when, why, and how” for commercializing discoveries.
Connect with experts
Seeking advice or feedback on an idea? Connect with top business experts, entrepreneurs, and investors.
Venture Development Team
Meet with our venture development team, who helps navigate the hardest part of innovation: turning a breakthrough into a scalable business – from first customer conversations to investor engagement.
Take a course at Chicago Booth
The Polsky Center offers two free, non-credit courses for scientists at the University of Chicago and affiliated National Labs who are interested in learning more about entrepreneurship and venture capital.
Both courses are taught by Chicago Booth faculty members and cater to the scientific community. Each course requires a separate application to be considered for enrollment – current graduate students, faculty, researchers, and staff conducting scientific research and study at UChicago, Argonne National Lab, Fermilab, and the Marine Biological Laboratory are eligible to apply.
Entrepreneurship for Science and Medicine
Taught by Professor Robert Altman, Entrepreneurship for Science and Medicine provides an introduction to entrepreneurship, familiarizing participants with common topics and frameworks and introducing them to entrepreneurs and investors.
Given its audience, the course focuses on entrepreneurship in scientific fields and how scientists can play a role in the commercialization of their research and inventions. The goal is to provide a deeper understanding of what it takes to bring a research discovery or idea to market to achieve greater societal impact.
Individuals interested in an introduction to entrepreneurship are encouraged to apply – neither a team nor an idea is necessary for acceptance. This course can serve as a precursor to or a continuation of the Polsky Center I-Corps Program.
Introduction to Venture Capital
The Introduction to Venture Capital class is a combination of Professor Scott Meadow’s Commercializing Innovation and Entrepreneurial Finance + Private Equity classes taught at Chicago Booth.
This class will serve as a comprehensive introduction to venture capital and equip you with the tools to analyze a private enterprise. The first half of the course will focus on “building intellectual proof of concept” – a research- and data-driven approach to effectively communicating the strategy and underlying economics of a new venture.
The second half of the course will focus on the venture capitalist’s perspective on financing new enterprises and provide you with an understanding of valuation, security, and term sheet design, and the legal documentation and negotiation processes that occur around a startup financing event and exit.
You’ll learn the methods of analysis to make the proper judgment from the investor’s point of view. The course will require that you develop primary and secondary research skills, a data-driven approach to creating referenceable projections, presentation skills, negotiation skills, and the ability to do meaningful analysis (i.e., to think creatively and logically).
Access space
Need space for your startup? Access facilities, wet lab space, and more.
hyde park labs
UChicago Science Incubator
The UChicago Science Incubator provides early-stage life sciences, quantum, clean energy, and data science companies with access to state-of-the-art facilities and amenities, cutting-edge wet lab space and equipment, and seasoned management expertise.
Located in Hyde Park Labs, a 300,000+ square-foot facility near the University of Chicago’s main campus and medical center.
san francisco
Third Coast Foundry
Third Coast Foundry is a new physical space in San Francisco for partner university-founded startups and teams traveling to the Bay Area.
Designed to improve access to venture capital and networks on the West Coast without requiring startups to relocate, it provides opportunities for investors, alumni, and other partners to engage through meetings, events, and programming. At its core, Third Coast Foundry is a bridge between Midwest innovation and coastal capital.