NUS grips $18m fund

National University of Singapore (NUS) unveiled the S$25m ($18m) Graduate Research Innovation Program (Grip) yesterday to seed, incubate and launch up to 250 companies over the next five years.

The program will focus on deep technology projects led by researchers, post-doctoral fellow and graduate students, selecting up to 50 per year for a three-month business validation and venture creation program.

Grip will be managed by NUS’ commercialisation arm, the industry liaison office, whose staff will be on hand to offer support with the design and building of prototypes, assist with the development of operational business models, IP licensing and go-to-market strategies.

Successful projects will receive an initial S$50,000 after the first three to six months with the potential for a S$50,000 second tranche once a spinout secures either an external grant or seed funding.

Grip is currently evaluating the first batch of applicants and is expected to announce the first 25 participants by next month.

Tan Eng Chye, president of National University of Singapore, said: “NUS is highly regarded for our cutting-edge research. Today, we are making an unprecedented commitment to accelerate the movement of our scientific breakthroughs out of the lab and into the market in a concerted manner, so that we can fully unlock the economic and social benefits of NUS’ inventions and discoveries.

 “Mentorship and funding are crucial for early-stage startups. NUS Grip aims to guide and support our talented graduate students and researchers as they kick-start their ventures. We hope to create a strong pipeline of research-based technology companies that will introduce innovative applications and technologies to Singapore and the global markets.

“Each of these tech-based startups would create innovation-based jobs, benefitting the Singapore economy in the long run.”