Business and Industry Partnerships
UNC faculty, students, and staff frequently choose to apply their knowledge and expertise in areas beyond academia. The following resources can help facilitate your journey to develop innovations in partnership with industry leaders, businesses, and other organizations beyond the university.
Innovate Carolina
The Chancellor’s Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship works to strengthen UNC’s innovation ecosystem to meet the needs of faculty, students, staff, and community members as they translate their novel ideas into practical applications. They serve as a directory for programs across the University that bring innovation to the forefront of Carolina’s mission. Their filterable Get Funding page can help you identify centers and organizations on campus that host programs providing students and faculty with funding, mentoring, training, workspaces, and other support to act on your ideas.
Innovate Carolina believes that innovators must be able to connect to communities, recognize needs, turn needs into opportunities, have the passion to persevere, and work hard to implement their ideas. Innovators change the world. They see what others do not. They believe when others doubt. They execute when others merely talk.
The Office of Technology Development (OTD)
OTD works to support UNC’s mission to encourage innovation and disseminate knowledge and serves the university and the public by licensing innovations developed by faculty, students and staff. Services include evaluating, patenting, licensing and assisting faculty in obtaining research support from corporate sponsors. Innovators from UNC can use this site to learn how to protect their ideas, how to share their ideas with others, and when and how to start a company, including information about the Carolina Express License Agreement for startups. Companies can search or browse technologies or research tools (cell lines, transgenic animals, etc.) available for licensing or learn about exciting UNC Startups looking for investment. Researchers may want to start using the site by browsing Commonly Asked Questions and Answers About Patents Licensing.
Kenan Institute
Since 1985, the Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise (part of the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School) has encouraged cooperative efforts among privately owned businesses, higher education and government. The institute exists to connect people and organizations, create opportunities and resources, and accelerate the achievements of its partners. Their work currently centers on helping innovative entrepreneurs, supporting North Carolina economic development, and building bridges with other educational institutions for research activities.
Partnering with UNC
Partnering with UNC is committed to fostering mutually beneficial relationships between UNC scientists and corporation partners.The acceleration of cutting-edge research into health care applications is a core mission of UNC Chapel Hill and key to UNC’s vision of advancing innovation and entrepreneurship. Whether uncovering the fundamental mechanisms of disease or advancing new treatments and outcomes, our researchers stand ready to partner with industry. The close integration of our five nationally-ranked health sciences schools and comprehensive healthcare system gives UNC a powerful pathway for moving the results of biomedical research from laboratories to patient care settings.
iBridge Network
The iBridge Network provides a centralized online source for identifying research inventions, early stage technologies, and innovations, primarily at universities.