Three entrepreneurial leaders discuss the support available through the MII program
COLUMBIA, Md. (June 05, 2023) – 
TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, released a new episode of its innovation series, TEDCO’s The Leading Edge. Throughout this series, TEDCO thought leaders host a fireside chat with entrepreneurs discussing their experiences, providing advice to aspiring entrepreneurs, and more.
In this episode, TEDCO’s Maryland Innovation Initiative (MII), UM Ventures and Innovate Maryland come together at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP) for a live fireside chat. The discussion included Arti Santhanam, PhD, MII executive director; Ken Porter, UM Ventures, College Park director and MII Board member; and Srinivasa Raghavan, PhD, MII awardee, UMCP professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, and entrepreneur.
Throughout the discussion, the three leaders dove into the MII program and the various support avenues it provides, as well as the success Raghavan has seen throughout his time with MII.
“It's really important [during] those early stages to have sources of support, not just funding…” said Raghavan. “That is [what’s] amazing about MII… you reach out to people who can support you… MII is a wonderful program… it is there for you, and it could really open doors and take you in a new direction.”
“MII is more than just Ken and me—it’s a village…it’s a big village that takes care of you… We take you by the hand and take you through to the commercial product launch,” Santhanam explained.
The MII was created in 2012 as a partnership between Maryland and five academic research institutions in the region (Johns Hopkins University; Morgan State University; University of Maryland, Baltimore; University of Maryland, Baltimore County; University of Maryland, College Park). Over the years, this partnership has expanded to include a pilot program for two additional universities, Frostburg State University and Bowie State University.
Through this unique partnership, the MII team supports the transition of promising technologies found in the research labs of these five institutions to the commercial sector where these findings can be developed into products and services that will meet identified market needs.
Find out more about Raghavan’s entrepreneurial success, the MII program and UM Ventures by watching the full episode here. Then, make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to be notified each time we upload episodes of our thought leadership series’ TEDCO’s The Leading Edge, TEDCO Talks and TEDCO's Venture Talks.
Learn more about MII, how to apply, and the various grants awarded here https://www.tedcomd.com/funding/maryland-innovation-initiative.