Building a successful startup is nearly impossible to do alone. Entrepreneurs need access to mentors who have been through the process, researchers who can help advance an idea, investors who can provide capital, and industry partners who understand the challenges of bringing a new product to market.
Across Wisconsin, a growing network of organizations is helping make those connections and giving entrepreneurs access to resources that can help them move from an idea to a scalable business.
Leaders working throughout the state’s entrepreneurial ecosystem point to the value of these connections, particularly as Wisconsin develops opportunities in emerging industries such as agriculture technology, healthcare technology, artificial intelligence, quantum technology, and fusion energy.
Helping entrepreneurs find the right connections
For entrepreneurs, knowing where to turn can be just as important as having access to resources in the first place.
The New North, the regional economic development organization representing 18 counties in Northeast Wisconsin, uses its broad network to connect entrepreneurs with organizations, programs and opportunities throughout the region.
“We’re using the New North brand to help amplify and make sure people are aware of the opportunity [in Wisconsin],” says Juan Corpus, vice president of strategic initiatives at New North.
New North’s new Launch Alliance is one resource helping build those connections. The alliance brings together entrepreneurs, mentors, investors, educators, accelerators, and other entrepreneurial support organizations across the region. Its monthly meetings provide opportunities to learn from entrepreneurs, discuss capital and resources, and connect with other organizations and business leaders.
The network also hosts entrepreneurial pitch competitions, giving emerging businesses opportunities to present their ideas and connect with a broader business and investment audience.
Moving Wisconsin research toward the marketplace
For technology-based entrepreneurs, the path from an idea to a business can look very different than for other types of startups. Research may need to be validated, intellectual property evaluated, funding identified and a team assembled before a company is ready to scale.
The Center for Technology Commercialization (CTC), part of the Universities of Wisconsin Office of Business & Entrepreneurship, provides no-cost assistance to Wisconsin entrepreneurs and emerging technology companies. Its services include commercialization consulting, entrepreneurial training and support for businesses pursuing federal Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer (SBIR/STTR) funding.
CTC Director Margaret Ramey sees an opportunity to connect entrepreneurs with those resources earlier in their development.
Founder Factory, an initiative involving CTC and regional partners, has been working to connect university intellectual property with interdisciplinary teams that can explore opportunities to commercialize it. Ramey said the broader goal is to create a stronger pathway for entrepreneurs as they develop their businesses.
“Founder Factory not only has programming to get new-to-business folks up to snuff with their business skills,” Ramey says, “but also making connections with the ecosystem, to investors, to mentors, to other entrepreneurs.”
Those connections can be particularly valuable for researchers who may have deep technical expertise but limited experience building a company.
CTC also helps entrepreneurs navigate federal SBIR/STTR funding, which can provide an important source of early-stage capital for technology companies pursuing research and development. The organization offers one-on-one consulting, training, and assistance with funding applications.
Creating pathways for “frontier” technologies
Wisconsin’s emerging technology industry is another great example where multiple organizations are coming together.
The Wisconsin Technology Council connects entrepreneurs, investors, researchers, and business leaders through programs and initiatives focused on technology and innovation. Its offerings include the statewide Launch Wisconsin startup competition, the Wisconsin Quantum Alliance, and the Wisconsin Frontier Technology Consortium.
The Frontier Technology Consortium brings together the Wisconsin Technology Council, UW–Madison, the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, gener8tor, Waukesha County Technical College, and the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce to support the commercialization of technologies such as advanced materials, artificial intelligence, energy storage, robotics, and quantum technologies. Its programs include a technology lab, accelerator, industry roundtables, and commercialization assistance.
Maggie Brickerman, president of the Wisconsin Technology Council, said the state’s existing strengths give it an opportunity to build something distinctive around emerging technologies.
“Wisconsin is really uniquely positioned by virtue of our research universities, our private universities, our private research institutions, and our corporate innovation,” Brickerman says.
She also sees an opportunity to connect Wisconsin’s emerging technologies with industries where the state already has expertise.
“Many of those things intersect with a core sector, a strength that we already have,” Brickerman says. “And those things combine to produce differentiated opportunity or advantage for the state.”
Programs such as gener8tor also provide a bridge between early-stage companies and the broader entrepreneurial ecosystem. The organization operates accelerator programs that connect founders with mentors, investors, and other resources, and is a partner in Wisconsin’s Frontier Technology Consortium.
Turning emerging fusion energy into new industries
The opportunity is particularly visible in Wisconsin’s growing fusion energy ecosystem.
Bill Murphy, a UW–Madison faculty member and director of the Badger Tech Foundry, said the state’s opportunity extends beyond creating fusion companies themselves. The fusion industry could create opportunities throughout an expanding supply chain.
“There are fusion companies, and you’re probably thinking to yourself: How many fusion companies can we build?” Murphy said. “But there’s a whole supply chain to support around it.”
That supply chain could include companies working in areas such as semiconductors, high-temperature superconductors, 3D printing, precision electronics, and other advanced manufacturing technologies.
For Kevin Little, vice president of external affairs at the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce, connecting those emerging opportunities with Wisconsin’s existing industrial base is an important part of the state’s potential.
“What [fusion companies] need is precision manufacturers,” Little said. “And when you think about the history of our state and what we are really good at, for generations, is our industrial capabilities and our advanced manufacturing excellence.”
That combination of research, talent, manufacturing, and entrepreneurial support can give Wisconsin companies a foundation for growth while helping emerging industries develop locally.
Across the state, organizations are working to make those connections easier to find, whether an entrepreneur is starting with an idea, a researcher is exploring commercialization, or an established company is looking for the next technology to strengthen its business.
For founders, that means Wisconsin’s entrepreneurial ecosystem is not one single program or organization. It is a network of resources that can help them find the expertise, connections and opportunities they need at different stages of the journey.
And as those organizations continue to collaborate, they are helping create more pathways for Wisconsin entrepreneurs to turn ideas into businesses and emerging technologies into new thriving industries.
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