Maryland Innovation Initiative aims to expand beyond five universities, reports $800M in follow‑on funding and 400 sustained jobs

Abhishek ("Abi") Khosreshtha, executive director of the Maryland Innovation Initiative, told the Economic Matters Committee that MII was founded in 2012 by five institutions and has supported technologies from early discovery through commercialization in multiple phases. "We're unique in that we provide grant and investment funding over multiple phases to get technologies first at our universities to the point that they're ready to be taken to the market," he said.

Abi cited concrete program outcomes: MII has awarded about $60,000,000 since inception, created 400 sustained jobs and attracted over $800,000,000 in follow‑on funding (about two‑thirds private), which he described as roughly a 13‑times return on the dollar. He highlighted Scene Health (a Johns Hopkins spinout) that supported COVID response and now employs more than 80 Maryland workers, and North American Wave Engine Corporation (a University of Maryland College Park spinout) that has remained headquartered in Baltimore and begun deliveries on a propulsion unit.

Looking forward, Abi listed fiscal‑year priorities for MII: expand participation beyond the original five universities (pilots with Bowie State and Frostburg State were cited), host roundtables to better align academic research with industry needs, and coordinate place‑making and real‑estate strategies with other economic‑development agencies. He noted a 2025 law called the MII Partnership Extension Program rolled pilots into a broader initiative but did not include funding when passed. "There was no funding passed alongside that last year," he told the committee.