Each year, universities across Illinois bring in more than $2 billion in research funding. This funding fuels discoveries targeted at unravelling society’s most pressing challenges, from debilitating medical conditions and food insecurity to climate change and education.
For universities, this funding carries an inherent responsibility and opportunity: to drive these discoveries to the public. Research breakthroughs moved out of the lab can elevate lives, uplift communities, and contribute to a healthier, more connected world. In short, translation matters.
At Northwestern University, for example, lab discoveries have been transformed into a drug treating millions of people with neuropathic pain and fibromyalgia, collaborative robots allowing humans and robots to work safely together in a wide range of industries, diagnostic platforms deployed during the COVID pandemic, and maternal monitoring systems to reduce obstetrical morbidity and mortality in lower- and middle-income countries around the world.
Northwestern’s two-year-old Querrey InQbation Lab (The Q) is an example of how forward-thinking funding can quickly nucleate a thriving community of innovators, entrepreneurs, and startup companies capable of serving the public good and the state.”
Eric Perreault, Northwestern University's Vice President for Research
But translation unlocks another key benefit. It provides the state’s research universities a powerful opportunity to drive economic growth in Illinois and cement the region’s technological leadership – important factors for the state’s financial health and its future.
Moving early-stage university innovations to market, however, is not straightforward. Advancing scientific discoveries out of the lab requires specialized, intentional, and sustained resources. Northwestern’s two-year-old Querrey InQbation Lab (The Q) is an example of how forward-thinking funding can quickly nucleate a thriving community of innovators, entrepreneurs, and startup companies capable of serving the public good and the state.
The Q was catalyzed by a grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) through its 2021 Rebuild Illinois Wet Lab Capital Program. DCEO’s initial $3 million grant, immediately matched by Northwestern, sparked the renovation of several floors of an existing university building into a 15,000-square foot space dedicated to enabling and accelerating the translation of research breakthroughs.
In its first two years, The Q has already become home to 18 startup companies – all spin-offs of Northwestern research – breaking new ground in cell and gene therapy, proteomics, protein production, devices for hydrocephalus care, lithium-ion batteries, water remediation, and much more.. Together, these companies have brought in more than 80 employees and their continued progress is attracting additional talent, industry partnerships, and external investment to the region to drive their growth.
The state’s initial capital infusion created much more than a physical space, however. Inspired by the commitment of DCEO and the university, Kimberly Querrey, a member of Northwestern’s Board of Trustees and chair of its Innovation and Entrepreneurship Committee, made a visionary gift to support programming. Today, The Q is also the hub for Entrepreneurial Fellows building new companies, MBA students who embed in research centers and institutes to align cutting-edge technologies and business acumen, executives-in-residence who share their years of experience with first-time founders, investor events, outreach to cultivate the region’s next generation of innovators, and numerous other valuable resources.
The state’s initial $3 million grant has stimulated a rich, deep, and diverse ecosystem at The Q. It’s empowering entrepreneurs, pushing innovation forward, positioning startups for long-term, sustainable growth, and creating a dynamic environment that amplifies and fosters additional innovation and entrepreneurship.
Continued investment in the state’s research universities, particularly funding that supports discovery, innovation, and entrepreneurial activities, can better society and improve lives. It also promises to generate continued economic dividends benefitting the region and beyond.