The Innovation Space™ Expands Lab and Office Space Available to Startups

September 17, 2021 – 

WILMINGTON, Del. – The Innovation Space™, an ecosystem with funding, resources, and programs tailored to accelerate and scale science-based startups, announced today that 50,000 ft2 of Class A laboratory and office space will be available in April 2022. This space, located in The Innovation Space’s Wilmington, Delaware headquarter building is comprised of 33 laboratories, 76 offices, and a network of shared conference rooms, collaboration spaces and amenities. Residential clients also gain access to the Experimental Station, a secure, 24/7 supported, innovation campus with a cafeteria, fitness center, exercise classes, and critical infrastructure support resources.

The lab and office footprint aims to enable biotechnology, chemistry, and material science startups as they grow and attain key milestones for expanded facilities. The space available in April 2022 is currently occupied by a large biotechnology client and supports both the advancement of their research and development of their business. Upon this client’s graduation from The Innovation Space in early 2022, the space will be made available to the next generation of startups and scaling companies.

“We are very pleased to be able to intensify our commitment to the growth of science-based startup companies and drive economic growth,” said Bill Provine, CEO of The Innovation Space. “This space would be a perfect fit for biotech or chemistry-based companies and can support multiple smaller growth companies or be a great home for a rapidly scaling larger company.”

“The Innovation Space has been a critical partner for Prelude Therapeutics in support of our rapid growth,” said Kris Vaddi, CEO of Prelude Therapeutics. “We continue to gain value from their entrepreneur-first business focus and flexible engagement strategies which have provided us with the framework to expand our company with them from 5 employees in 2017 to over 100 employees today,” said Vaddi.

“Whether you are just starting out your journey as a science entrepreneur or are have recently raised a multi-million-dollar round of investment, you will find supportive programs and capabilities across The Innovation Space that will enable you to move your startup forward more aggressively,” said Provine. “We are an entrepreneur-first organization and have both physical assets such as leveraged scientific equipment and world-class laboratory capabilities in addition to our supportive suite of business building programs. These programs include our First Fund™ where we provide investment, our Science INC™ cohort-based accelerator where we work intensely over a four month program with early startups on their business models and connect them with partners and investors, and our Spark Factory™ mentoring program where we provide access to and advice from seasoned functional experts and business leaders.”

About The Innovation Space™:

The Innovation Space is a multi-dimensional, non-profit entrepreneurial support organization and an ecosystem where entrepreneurs, scientists, business leaders, community members, investors, and service providers in the advanced materials, industrial and agriculture biotechnology, chemical ingredients, renewable energy, nutrition, therapeutics, diagnostics, and healthcare fields can build business concepts together and accelerate the path to commercialization of each startup. The Innovation Space was formed from a public-private partnership between the State of Delaware, DuPont, and the University of Delaware. The Innovation Space™ is also known as Delaware Innovation Space™ and the Home for Science Entrepreneurs™.

Learn more: innovationspace.org; https://bit.ly/TheInnovationSpace; and www.firstfund.org.