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Mon, 18 May 2026NCI Response to Recent Coverage
The following statement is intended to provide additional context regarding those discussions, clarify the exploratory nature of recent board conversations, and reinforce NCInnovation’s continued focus on statewide research commercialization and long-term economic development outcomes for North Carolina.
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Tue, 12 May 2026NCInnovation Approves $7.9 Million for Nine University Projects, Expands Statewide Portfolio to $37 Million Across 47 Projects
The NCInnovation Board of Directors has approved $7.9 million in funding for nine university research projects, bringing the organization's statewide commercialization portfolio to $37 million across 47 projects. The May 2026 slate spans agriculture, energy, healthcare, transportation, manufacturing, and digital infrastructure.
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Mon, 11 May 2026Preventing Failure Before It Happens: Inside Self-healing Composites
Fiber-reinforced composites don't fail gradually—they fail suddenly, often from damage no one can see. Dr. Jason Patrick of NC State has developed a self-healing composite that repairs internal cracks more than 1,000 times, without human intervention, potentially extending the life of aerospace and energy structures by decades.
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Thu, 07 May 2026Why More Fertilizer Isn’t Fixing North Carolina’s Fields
In degraded soils, the problem isn't chemistry — it's biology. Dr. Rafael Loureiro of Winston-Salem State University is developing a microbial additive to restore the living processes that sustain soil health, with field trials across North Carolina now putting it to the test.
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Wed, 06 May 2026A Wearable System Aims to Change How Osteoarthritis Progresses—One Step at a Time
For most osteoarthritis patients, damage is already underway before pain ever signals a problem. Drs. Jason Franz and Brian Pietrosimone are developing a wearable system that measures joint forces during walking and helps patients change how they move—before the damage compounds.
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Mon, 27 Apr 2026NCInnovation Moving Synthetic Platelet Research Closer to Clinical Trials
Dr. Ashley Brown is developing SymClot, a synthetic platelet that mimics the clotting function of natural platelets. Designed for rural and military settings where blood products aren't available, SymClot can be stored long-term and administered quickly—giving first responders a way to act before it's too late.
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Thu, 23 Apr 2026Building an Accessible Platform for Early Movement Delays
In North Carolina, one in six children faces developmental delays—but for many families, especially in rural areas, help arrives too late. Dr. Gavin Colquitt of Appalachian State is building a platform designed to meet families earlier, at home, with tools they can actually use.
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Tue, 14 Apr 2026Where AI Breaks Down — and How to Fix It
AI systems are often only as good as the data they're trained on. Dr. Sambit Bhattacharya of Fayetteville State University is addressing that problem directly — developing synthetic data that trains AI on conditions too rare, too complex, or too risky to capture in the real world.
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Mon, 13 Apr 2026A Microscope Upgrade That Could Change How Research Happens
Rosario Porras-Aguilar has built her research around a fundamental challenge in microscopy: the chemical stains that make cells visible can also damage or destroy them. Now, with NCInnovation support, her label-free imaging device is moving from the lab toward the people who need it.
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Wed, 25 Mar 2026Predicting Electrical Failures Before They Start
Most electrical system failures are invisible until it's too late—halting production, compounding costs, and disrupting critical operations. At UNC Charlotte, researcher Jim Gafford is building smarter testing systems designed to catch those failures before they start.
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Mon, 23 Mar 2026Protecting North Carolina’s Waters Starts Before the Damage Begins
Robert Hughes, a professor of chemistry at East Carolina University, is working to solve one of marine science's most persistent problems: biofouling. His environmentally friendly, protein-based coatings—backed by NCInnovation—could benefit everyone from recreational boaters to commercial shipping industries.
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Fri, 20 Mar 2026NCInnovation Names Michelle Bolas President and CEO Following National Search
The NCInnovation Board of Directors today appointed Michelle Bolas President and Chief Executive Officer following a national search that attracted high-quality candidates from across the country.
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Wed, 18 Mar 2026A New Way to Treat Lymphedema
For many people living with lymphedema, the condition changes far more than their health. It changes how they dress, how they move through the world, and even how comfortable they feel in public.
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Thu, 05 Mar 2026NCInnovation Connects UNC System Faculty to Engineering and Prototyping Services at WCU’s RAPID Center
NCInnovation is connecting faculty and project teams across the UNC System with engineering, prototyping, reverse engineering, and testing services available through Western Carolina University’s RAPID Center—helping researchers move ideas toward real-world application without leaving the system.
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Mon, 02 Mar 2026NCInnovation Awards Inaugural Pipeline Grants to Four UNC Asheville Faculty Projects
NCInnovation today announced the first faculty awardees of the NCInnovation Pipeline Grant Program at the University of North Carolina at Asheville, marking a milestone for the UNC System’s newest commercialization pathway.
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Wed, 25 Feb 2026Staff Spotlight: David Wyrick
For more than two decades, David Wyrick has focused on a single, persistent challenge: how to ensure that strong research doesn’t stop at publication—but becomes something people actually use.
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Tue, 24 Feb 2026Targeting Inflammation at Its Source: How Kerui Wu Is Rethinking Precision Treatment
At UNC Greensboro (UNCG), Dr. Kerui Wu is developing a targeted delivery platform designed to act on the immune cells that help keep inflammation running — aiming for more precise control with fewer systemic side effects.
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Mon, 23 Feb 2026Embedding Innovation with Purpose at Elizabeth City State University
Elizabeth City State University is entering a new chapter—one defined by intentional innovation and expanded opportunity for students and the region it serves. Under the leadership of Chancellor S. Keith Hargrove Sr., ECSU is deliberately embedding innovation into its academic programs, partnerships, and campus culture.
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Thu, 19 Feb 2026How North Carolina’s Innovation Ecosystem Is Aligning for Impact
North Carolina’s innovation ecosystem unites NC IDEA, RIoT and NCInnovation to accelerate startups, research commercialization and statewide growth.
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Wed, 18 Feb 2026Building a Biosecurity Platform to Safeguard North Carolina’s Agriculture and Supply Chains
The collaboration did not begin with a single grant or a single problem. It evolved over time, shaped by long-standing relationships and a shared interest in translating research into real-world protection.
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Tue, 10 Feb 2026An NCInnovation Supported Researcher Brings Dual-Use AI Work to MIT
An NCInnovation-supported researcher brings dual-use AI research to MIT, advancing defense and commercial applications through early-stage support.
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Wed, 04 Feb 2026NCInnovation and UNC Asheville Launch Service Model to Support Technology Needs Across UNC Research Projects
NCInnovation and UNC Asheville’s Department of Computer Science are announcing a first-in-the-state approach that makes it easier for UNC System research teams to access the technical expertise needed to advance innovations.
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Fri, 30 Jan 2026Staff Profile: Erin Hopper | Turning Public Research into Public Good for North Carolina
Erin Hopper serves as Vice President for Grants and Research at NCInnovation, where she leads the organization’s Statewide Innovation Grant Program and oversees its internal and external data collection, analysis, and reporting efforts.
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Fri, 23 Jan 2026NCInnovation Pipeline Program Launches at UNC Asheville, Marking First Awards Issued in UNC System
NCInnovation announced that the NCInnovation Pipeline Program is officially underway at UNC Asheville, making it the first institution in the UNC System to successfully launch the program and issue Pipeline awards to faculty.
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Thu, 22 Jan 2026Challenging the Assumption That Fibrosis Can’t Be Reversed
At the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, two scientists are challenging one of medicine’s most deeply rooted assumptions– that fibrosis is permanent and irreversible.
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Tue, 13 Jan 2026Redesigning Ultrasound for the Frontlines of Pregnancy Care
When a clinician has to make decisions about a pregnancy without knowing how far along it truly is, every choice becomes harder — and riskier.
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Tue, 13 Jan 2026Staff Spotlight: Erica Shrader
Erica Shrader didn’t set out to build a career in public policy—but a recession-era job application changed everything.
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Mon, 12 Jan 2026The Case for Prevention: A New Way to Assess Concussion Risk
By the time a concussion is diagnosed, the opportunity for prevention has already passed. We can diagnose a head injury and manage recovery. But when it comes to reducing risk before the next hit, the next fall, the next collision– too often, the tools are either incomplete or impractical.
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Wed, 07 Jan 2026An Engineer’s Approach to Restoring the Bodys Natural Repair Process
For more than fifteen years, Amay J. Bandodkar, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at North Carolina State University, has been drawn to the question of how technology can improve human health.
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Tue, 06 Jan 2026A New Way to Tell Molecular Isomers Apart
Most people never think about how molecules move. Even many chemists, according to Dr. Liam Michael Duffy, don’t realize that gas molecules are not free to tumble however they please.
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Fri, 12 Dec 2025Response to the Carolina Journal: December 9, 2025 Article on NCInnovation
NCInnovation is committed to full transparency in our governance, operations, and communications. We appreciate the role that journalists play in reporting on public institutions, and we want to ensure that coverage of our work is factually accurate and helpful to the public.
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Tue, 09 Dec 2025Staff Spotlight: Scott Davis
Scott Davis spent much of his early life believing two things with complete certainty: that he would attend a U.S. military academy and that his life’s work would be about service.
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Tue, 09 Dec 2025Deanna Ballard: A Steward of Opportunity for All of North Carolina
Deanna Ballard grew up in the quiet stretches of rural Lincoln County, where community was not an idea — it was a rhythm. “Where I’m from,” she says, “community isn’t just a word. It’s a way of life.
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Mon, 08 Dec 2025NCInnovation Approves $10 Million to Support 13 University Research Projects across 11 UNC System Campuses
The NCInnovation Board of Directors unanimously approved the latest round of funded projects at North Carolina’s public universities, following a multi-month external review process overseen by the NCInnovation Programs Committee.
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Mon, 08 Dec 2025Kristen Dellinger: Turning Tiny Milk Vesicles into a Big Breakthrough for Brain Disease
What if treating neurological disease started with milk? NC A&T researcher Dr. Kristen Dellinger is engineering milk-derived vesicles as a drug-delivery system capable of crossing the blood-brain barrier — with NCInnovation funding helping move the work out of the lab.
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Thu, 04 Dec 2025Sustainable Fibers, Reimagined from the Molecule Up
What if high-performance fibers could be manufactured without toxic solvents or hazardous waste? NC State's Dr. Ericka Ford has developed AcrylFLOW — a solvent-free process that could cut the carbon footprint of fiber production by two-thirds and open a cleaner path to domestic manufacturing.
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Tue, 02 Dec 2025Cracking the Code of a Universal Flu Vaccine: The Breakthrough at UNCW
A universal flu vaccine has eluded researchers for decades. UNCW's Dr. Ying Wang may have found the missing piece — a stable molecular mimic of the precise structure the flu virus uses to enter human cells.
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Mon, 01 Dec 2025NCInnovation-Supported Melanoma Immunotherapy
ECU's Dr. Rukiyah Van Dross-Anderson has spent nearly two decades developing a molecule that works on two fronts — directly triggering cancer cell death while activating the immune system to recognize melanoma as a threat. Her drug targets the patients modern immunotherapies leave behind.
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Tue, 25 Nov 2025A New Way to Fight Mosquito-Borne Disease—Built in Western North Carolina
Most mosquito surveillance tools are slow, labor-intensive, and reactive. WCU's Dr. Brian Byrd and Dr. Scott Huffman are developing a light-based alternative that can detect species, age, and infection status in minutes — giving health departments the data to act before outbreaks occur.
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Fri, 21 Nov 2025UNC Charlotte Poler Team Passes Industry-Standard Filtration Certifications, Allowing Commercial Production on Water Filters
A patented nanomaterial water filter developed at UNC Charlotte has cleared industry-standard safety and performance certifications, paving the way for commercial production. Dr. Jordan Poler's technology features an engineered nanostructure that enhances selectivity and capacity while lowering regeneration costs.
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Mon, 13 Oct 2025When Science Meets Compassion: Dr. Pinku Mukherjee’s Path to Cancer Innovation
A childhood experience watching her aunt suffer through cancer treatment set Dr. Pinku Mukherjee on a lifelong mission. Today, her UNC Charlotte lab is developing a targeted antibody for pancreatic cancer — and NCInnovation funding is helping bring it closer to patients.
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