New data brief: UNC-Chapel Hill innovation, startups drive thousands of jobs, billions in revenue in North Carolina

This week, Innovate Carolina announces the release of its fiscal year 2024 startup data that shows the economic impact of startups connected with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill continues to grow. The latest findings come from Innovate Carolina’s Data Hub, which for more than a decade has provided a comprehensive snapshot of startups launched by faculty, students, staff and recent alumni, including a cumulative record of outcomes for both intellectual property (IP) and non-IP-based ventures. Data insights are available on the Innovate Carolina impact dashboard and fiscal year 2024 innovation and economic impact brief [PDF].

“As we celebrate the power of foundational research and its impact during Carolina’s University Research Week, it’s essential that we continue to strengthen our efforts to connect and translate the pipeline of research and ideas from campus to the broader world. Innovate Carolina remains at the forefront of driving innovation and fostering community prosperity, both within our state and beyond as we empower individuals on campus, in the local community, and across the state to transform their inventions and ingenuity into meaningful, real-world outcomes.”

Dedric A. Carter, PhD, MBA, Chief Innovation Officer and Vice Chancellor of innovation, entrepreneurship and economic development at UNC-Chapel Hill

Data from fiscal year 2024 shows the impact of UNC-affiliated startups across North Carolina and beyond:

• Since 1958, startups connected with the University have raised a total of $19.8 billion in cumulative funding, with $319 million raised in FY24. 
• Carolina startups are growing into midsize firms: There are 31 active companies with 100 or more employees. 
• UNC-affiliated startups have a significant economic impact, generating $19.2 billion in annual revenue during FY24, with 96% of this revenue coming from startups headquartered in North Carolina.  
• There are 574 active startups, with 478 headquartered in North Carolina, creating 115,098 jobs in total and more than 12,000 jobs in the state.
• IP-based startups, particularly in life sciences, contribute substantially with $340 million in annual revenue and 2,556 jobs.

Innovate Carolina, the university’s campuswide initiative for innovation, entrepreneurship and economic development, offers support and services to faculty, staff and student entrepreneurs at UNC-Chapel Hill and to those outside the university. These include patent landscaping and market research services, which help entrepreneurs ensure that their ideas are market ready, as well as design thinking consultations and workshops that guide entrepreneurs to develop products and services that customers want. 

A number of UNC-affiliated startups have made significant advances: 

• Couplet Care launched its bassinet product and won a Phase 2 SBIR award of $1,341,487.
• WeyeZE and its student founder Sasha Surkin are ones to watch, with than $30,000 raised in grants and pitch competition wins this year—including a top two finish at the ACC InVenture Prize.
• GameFlo launched its card game PickUp, designed to help youth build confidence and skills in math and critical thinking, in 1,780 Target stores nationwide. 
• Premirr Plastics and was acquired by textile impact company Syre for its technology that enables chemical recycling of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastics, one of the most commonly used plastics in the world. 

Through its Office of Technology Commercialization (OTC), Innovate Carolina connects and translates the pipeline of research and ideas from campus to the outside world. Since 2006, OTC has facilitated the commercialization of 39 research-based products.

• In FY24, Carolina’s commercialization team worked with researchers on 131 invention disclosures and 71 new provisional patent applications, contributing to a cumulative total of 4,618 and 1,898, respectively. 
• Licensing revenue for the fiscal year reached $7.8 million, bringing the cumulative total to $139.1 million. 
• Eight IP-based startups were launched in FY24, adding to a cumulative total of 185 ventures.
• Executed licenses and options increased by 23% during the same period, rising from 43 in 2023 to 53 in the latest fiscal year.

Innovate Carolina’s annual startups analysis is powered by the Innovate Carolina Data Hub, a novel, proprietary database platform that captures and reports on how the University’s commercial and social ventures make an economic and social impact. The data platform makes it possible for the Innovate Carolina team and departments across the university to capture key information and data about UNC-affiliated startup companies. Startups supported by Innovate Carolina’s programs and services are also included.