Innovate UA is a university-wide program at The University of Alabama (UA) designed to ac-celerate the movement of research into practical, real-world solutions. Supported by the Na-tional Science Foundation’s Accelerating Research Translation (ART) program, Innovate UA enhances the university’s ability to turn discoveries into impact while fostering an ecosystem rooted in entrepreneurship, collaboration, and regional economic growth.

The program seeks to transform institutional culture by embedding innovation across disci-plines and building sustainable infrastructure to support commercialization. Innovate UA ad-vanced this mission through four strategic pillars:

• Technology & Commercialization Infrastructure – Building the systems, resources, and policies needed to move ideas from lab to market.
• Entrepreneurship & Startups – Empowering faculty and students to launch ventures through funding, mentorship, and clear pathways to scale.
• Industry & Regional Collaboration – Strengthen relationships with corporate partners, investors, and regional stakeholders to scale innovation.
• Next Generation of Innovators – Providing experiential learning, mentorship, and re-al-world problem-solving opportunities to train future leaders.

Through public-private partnerships, targeted training, and collaborative engagement, Inno-vate UA bridges the gap between discovery and application. The program positions The Uni-versity of Alabama as a regional leader in research-driven innovation – fueling scalable solu-tions, workforce development, and long-term economic impact.