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NSF I-Corps™

Updates to NSF Research Security Policies

On July 10, 2025, NSF issued an Important Notice providing updates to the agency's research security policies, including a research security training requirement, Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Program annual certification requirement, prohibition on Confucius institutes and an updated FFDR reporting and submission timeline.

The U.S. National Science Foundation Innovation Corps (I-Corps™) program is an immersive, entrepreneurial training program that facilitates the transformation of invention to impact. This seven-week experiential training program prepares scientists and engineers to extend their focus beyond the university laboratory — accelerating the economic and societal benefits of NSF-funded and other basic research projects that are ready to move toward commercialization.

Widely recognized as an effective training program in the U.S. and internationally, I-Corps addresses four urgent national needs:

  1. Training an entrepreneurial workforce
  2. Translating technologies
  3. Enabling positive economic impact
  4. Nurturing an innovation ecosystem
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Mission

The mission of I-Corps is to reduce the risk associated with translating technologies from the laboratory to the marketplace. To do this, I-Corps uses experiential education to help researchers reduce the time it takes to translate promising ideas from the laboratory to widespread implementation.

Impact

1,357 Startups Formed & $3.16 Billion Funding Raised

More than 2,500 teams have participated in I-Corps since the program's inception in 2012. More than half of these teams, nearly 1,400, have launched startups which have cumulatively raised $3.16 billion in subsequent funding.

Learn more

I-Corps cohorts

Approximately 20 to 30 teams participate together in the I-Corps curriculum as part of a training cohort, which is hosted by an I-Corps Hub or Node. Read on for details about the upcoming I-Corps cohorts.

Webinars

Before applying, join one of our monthly introductory webinars to better understand the I-Corps program and the Teams application process.

Featured stories

The I-Corps training program has helped launch more than 1,000 startups. Read about the remarkable work performed by our funded researchers and their role in fostering technology commercialization.