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Applications are open for the NSF I-Corps Hub West programs, and registration is open for Translational Funding Week!
What Can We Do Together?
Upcoming Events and Opportunities
Therapeutics Customer Discovery Program
Application Deadline Tuesday, Sept. 30
Oct. 7-Nov. 4, Virtual Event
Open to Any Biotech Researcher and Early-Stage Innovator—CU Affiliation is Not Required
Do you have a therapeutic innovation that could improve lives? This program is a focused, five-week entrepreneurial training program designed to help academic researchers and early-stage biotech innovators explore the commercial potential of therapeutic technologies. Open to innovators inside and outside the University of Colorado.
Offered by Venture Partners and NSF I-Corps Hub West
CU Boulder Research & Innovation Week
Oct. 6-10, Various Venues
All Are Welcome—CU Affiliation is Not Required
The seventh annual Research & Innovation Week is designed to elevate awareness across campus, build a sense of shared community, create opportunities for collaboration and recognize exceptional leadership and outcomes. Join CU Boulder's research community as we highlight and shape tomorrow's leaders, showcase some of our most compelling innovations and demonstrate CU Boulder's positive impact on humanity.
Offered by the CU Boulder Research & Innovation Office (RIO)
Unlocking New Funding Opportunities for Research
Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025, 9:30-11 a.m., Sustainability, Energy and Environment Community (SEEC) S372
All Are Welcome and Great for Researchers——CU Affiliation is Not Required
Join Venture Partners at CU Boulder during CU Boulder’s Research & Innovation Week for an insightful discussion focused on translational research funding. Explore how Venture Partners can support you in securing funding, including SBIR/STTR grants, National Science Foundation Translation to Practice grants, Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT) Advanced Industries grants and more. We will highlight success stories and provide practical advice on navigating the landscape of funding opportunities. Whether new to these programs or looking to expand your research’s impact, this event will equip you with the knowledge and connections to take your work to the next level.
Offered by Venture Partners at CU Boulder and the CU Boulder Research & Innovation Office (RIO)
Brunch & Learn: The Do’s, Don’ts and Discoveries of Industry Research Partnerships
Thursday, October 9, 2025, 9-10 a.m., University Memorial Center Room 247
Open to CU Boulder Faculty
Join the Industry Research Partnerships team for an engaging Brunch & Learn featuring a panel of leaders from the energy and manufacturing industries alongside CU Boulder researchers. Together, they will share candid stories of collaboration—what worked, what didn’t and the lessons learned along the way. Through these real-world tales, you’ll gain practical insights and best practices to help you navigate and optimize your own research partnerships.
Offered by CU Boulder Industry Research Partnerships and Research & Innovation Office (RIO)
Research & Innovation Seed Grant Program
Application Deadline Monday, Oct. 13
Open to CU Boulder Faculty and Teachers
Seed Grants aim to stimulate inter- and multidisciplinary research, scholarship and creative projects with high potential for innovation and/or impact. These grants support creative, and sometimes high-risk, high-reward initiatives, including team development proposals for future large collaborative projects. Projects may take a variety of forms but should represent an investment in advancing the university’s future research, scholarly or creative activities.
Offered by the CU Boulder Research & Innovation Office (RIO)
Business Opportunities in Climate
Wednesdays, Oct. 15-Dec. 3, 1-3 p.m.
Open to CU Boulder Students
This program is designed for bold and ambitious innovators looking to solve climate issues with next-generation technologies. This seven-week seminar series will bring experts to campus to discuss the next big business opportunities in climate tech. It is a prerequisite for BCV's "Venture Discovery" class in Spring 2026.
Offered by Boulder Climate Ventures
Startup Variety Show
Tuesday, Oct. 21, Wolf Law Building, Wittemyer Courtroom
All Are Welcome and Great for Entrepreneurs, Innovators and Business Leaders—CU Affiliation is Not Required
Now in its third year, the Startup Variety Show is one of the best ways to connect with Colorado’s Front Range innovation scene. It brings together CU Boulder researchers, federal lab innovators, startup founders and technologists from established companies—all on one stage. The show highlights the region’s most creative minds and the ideas shaping what’s next.
Offered by CU Boulder Silicon Flatirons
Lab Venture Challenge Community Showcases
Oct. 22-23, Dairy Arts Center, Boulder
All Are Welcome—CU Affiliation is Not Required
Join us at the Boulder Dairy Arts Center for the Lab Venture Challenge (LVC) Community Showcases, where teams of top innovators from CU will pitch to a panel of judges and a live audience for grants of up to $125,000—$750,000 in total funding—for their early-stage projects in bio- and physical sciences with compelling market potential. Past pitches have included everything from next-generation batteries to cancer treatments and LVC has helped launch 64 new startups that have gone on to raise more than $350 million, including Darwin Biosciences, Manifest Technologies (prev. Vitro3D) and Mesa Quantum.
Offered by Venture Partners and the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT)
Translational Funding Week
Oct. 27-30 | Daily Lunchtime Sessions Noon–2 p.m. MT | All Sessions Available Virtually and Day 1 Available In Person
All Are Welcome and Great for Researchers, Inventors and Creators—CU Affiliation is Not Required
Are you a university researcher, inventor or deep tech founder exploring ways to translate your innovation into real-world impact? Join us for Translational Funding Week—a series of engaging lunchtime sessions designed to demystify the landscape of non-dilutive funding opportunities that support the journey from lab to market. These sessions are tailored to faculty, postdocs, PhD students and startup teams who want to learn how to secure early-stage funding to commercialize research, build ventures and scale innovation.
Offered by Venture Partners and the Center for Translational Research
Starting Blocks Customer Discovery Workshop
Application Deadline Thursday, Oct. 30
Nov. 6-20, Virtual Event
All Are Welcome—CU Affiliation is Not Required
Do you have an innovation that could make a difference? Whether a researcher, entrepreneur, inventor or problem solver, this workshop can help you transform your concept into a successful venture. Over three weeks, gain a deeper understanding of the commercialization process, test your ideas with real potential customers and accelerate your journey toward bringing your idea to market. This workshop is for anyone from a research or community institution—not just CU—motivated to bring their ideas to life, secure funding and create lasting impact.
Venture Partners and NSF I-Corps Hub West
Research-to-Market (R2M) Customer Discovery Program
Application Deadline Tuesday, May 5
May 12-June 23, Virtual Event
All Are Welcome—CU Affiliation is Not Required
This four-week program helps teams through customer discovery and finding a market for their innovation. Derived from the National Science Foundation's I-Corps™ program, R2M leverages the nationally recognized Lean LaunchPad and Business Model Canvas methodologies specifically designed for researchers, entrepreneurs, inventors and problem solvers from any research or community institution.
Venture Partners and NSF I-Corps Hub West