MARYLAND INDUSTRIAL PARTNERSHIPS

MIPS Program Impacts

705

Maryland companies have used MIPS to develop products through 1,003 projects

14,000

Current, direct jobs created

27,000

Total jobs supported

$52.7B

Revenue from top MIPS-supported products

63%

Of ALL startups funded by MIPS since 1987 are still in business today

87%

Of MIPS-funded startups still in business five years later

$125M

Annual tax revenues to counties from MIPS companies

$166M

Annual tax revenues to the state from MIPS companies

41 to 1

Cumulative return on investment to the state, per MIPS dollar

MIPS at a Glance

75

COMPETITIVE ROUNDS

506

FACULTY

705

COMPANIES

1,015

INDIVIDUAL PROJECTS

1,455

DIFFERENT CONTRACTS AND AMENDMENTS

2,723

APPLICATIONS RECEIVED

Leading Products Aided by MIPS Projects

Learn about how MIPS projects helped industry-leading Maryland companies develop successful products.

Synagis, by MedImmune/AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, MD

  • MedImmune’s first major product, Synagis, received crucial support from MIPS projects in the early, pre-market days of the company.
  • Synagis is a vaccine for RSV.
  • Synagis has $18B in total sales to date.
  • Bowie State MIPS projects helped secure patents on Synagis.
  • UMBC projects helped achieve FDA approval of the Synagis manufacturing process.
  • MedImmune was acquired by AstraZeneca for $15.6B and stayed and grew in Maryland.
  • AstraZeneca has created 10,000 jobs in Maryland

HughesNet, by Hughes Network Systems, Germantown, MD

  • HughesNet is the world's leading broadband by satellite service. Formerly called DirecWAY, DirectPC.
  • $31.2B in revenue
  • Acquired by EchoStar for $2B
  • More than 2 million systems ordered or shipped to customers in 100 countries
  • System based on breakthrough algorithms designed by John Baras, UMD Professor, under MIPS funding

Browse a special collection of successful MIPS projects in the MIPS 30th anniversary commemorative book.

More Leading Products Aided by MIPS Projects

WellDoc

Gel-e/Medcura

Impact Report
2025

Mtech Ventures Impact

$3.6B

Revenue generated, investments gained, contracts by, and acquisitions of Mtech Ventures companies since 1985

146

Mtech Ventures
historical companies,
current and graduated

1,000+

Jobs created in Maryland
by Mtech Ventures
companies

“The advisers at Mtech gave us the business and
customer development tools we needed to grow from
technology inventors into technology entrepreneurs.”
—Taylor Myers, CTO, MF Fire

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“The advisers at Mtech gave us the business and customer development tools we needed to grow from technology inventors into technology entrepreneurs.”
—Taylor Myers, CTO, MF Fire

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Select Mtech Ventures Graduate Companies

DataStream Content Solutions (DSCS) offered data conversion and enrichment services for a broad segment of government and business entities. DSCS was acquired by the Dolan Company in December 2010 for $20.5 million.

Digene developed the first gene-based test for human papillomavirus (HPV). The company’s test screened for the presence of high-risk types of the virus shown to be the cause of cervical cancer. The company was acquired by Qiagen NV in 2007 for $1.6 billion.

InventWood develops high-performance, cost-effective, and carbon-sequestering SuperWood and cellulose materials to replace unsustainable alternatives that are widely used today. The company’s lead product, SuperWood, is stronger and lighter than steel. InventWood is opening a 90,000-square-foot production facility slated to produce 1,000,000 square feet of boards and veneers annually.

Ion Storage Systems develops solid-state batteries that are safer, lighter, and enable form factors with tighter packing density that enhance system performance. The company recently commissioned one of the largest solid-state battery manufacturing facilities in the U.S., in Beltsville, Md.

Martek Biosciences developed and commercialized life’s DHA, a vegetarian source of the omega-3 fatty acid DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), for use in infant formula, pregnancy and nursing products, foods and beverages, dietary supplements and animal feed. At one point, Martek supplied DHA to infant formula companies representing 75 percent of the worldwide and nearly 100 percent of the U.S. retail markets. More than 200 domestic and international companies launched non-infant formula products containing Martek’s DHA product. Martek was acquired by Royal DSM for $1.1 billion in 2010.

Medcura is a commercial-stage medical device company developing versatile hemostatic products serving large surgical, medical, and consumer market opportunities. The company’s proprietary technology platform combines the use of safe, inert ingredients with patented chemistries, all aimed at introducing disruptively lower cost products capable of safely and effectively controlling bleeding across a broad spectrum of clinical applications.

NovaScreen Biosciences provided screening, profiling, and assay development services for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies worldwide, as well as for government agencies such as the National Institutes of Health. The company was acquired by Caliper Life Sciences, Inc. in 2005 for $30 million.

PAICE, a company formed in 1992 to develop hybrid vehicle technology that promoted lower emissions, superior driving performance, and the fuel-efficient operation of internal combustion engines, licensed all 23 of its domestic and foreign patents to Toyota in 2010.  PAICE also licensed its breakthrough 1994 hybrid vehicle patent (U.S. Patent 5,343,970) to Ford Motor Company in 2010, and more automobile manufacturers after.

Pixelligent manufacturers tunable, high refractive index (RI) nanocrystal formulations that enable next-generation electronics, including extended reality devices, OLED and MicroLED displays, and sensor applications. The company’s Baltimore-based 18,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art manufacturing and laboratory facility is supported by sales offices in the Republic of Korea and Taiwan. Pixelligent has acquired $88 million in funding and has 44 employees.

“Mtech Ventures has been a true model of a world-class technology incubator, nurturing an idea from infancy and supporting it to become an established technology and a global player. Without a doubt, we would not be able to come this far if we did not have the support from Mtech personnel and the University of Maryland community at every step of our long journey.”
—Mehdi Kalantari, president and CTO, Resensys

Recent Company Spotlights

Below are four spotlights illustrating the vibrant technologies recently commercialized by Mtech Ventures companies in the energy, food safety, infrastructure, and national security sectors.

Alchemity
Hydrogen-producing membranes and solid oxide fuel cells

Alchemity is a UMD spinout company that transforms abundant hydrocarbon resources into value-added products via ion-conducting ceramics, and develops solid oxide fuel cells for producing electric power.

The company is developing two products in parallel: membrane reactors and solid oxide fuel cells.

The company’s membrane reactors convert natural gas to hydrogen and useful chemicals, such as olefins and aromatics, without releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
It is the lowest-carbon technology for a hydrogen economy, according to Alchemity Founder and Executive Chair Eric Wachsman.

Alchemity’s second product is its solid oxide fuel cell, an electrochemical
conversion device that creates electricity by oxidizing fuel without combustion. Solid oxide fuel cells are already used for stationary power generation, mobile, and residential applications, with outputs from 100 watts to two megawatts.

Alchemity’s fuel cells have more power per square centimeter and operate at a lower temperature than commercial cells.

Intellectual Property:
37 licensed patents from UMD and the University of Florida

Founder:
Eric Wachsman, founder and executive chair, is also director of the Maryland Energy Innovation Institute (MEI2) and a University of Maryland Distinguished University Professor.

“Being close [to the Mtech Ventures incubator] enables me to be directly involved and see what’s going on. It also allows us to make cells in my lab and test them in the incubator.”
—Eric Wachsman, founder and executive chair, Alchemist

“Mtech Ventures staff members provide a support group for us to meet the right investors. They also offer guidance for what needs to go into our investment pitch package. They have been extremely helpful. We are not novices, but we still appreciate it.”
—Rodger McKain, CEO, Alchemity

Pathotrak
Faster food safety testing

Pathotrak’s mission is to enable a world with fresher, safer food and make food outbreaks a thing of the past.

The bottleneck for faster food safety testing in the lab is the sample preparation step known as enrichment. During enrichment, the food sample is mixed with bacterial nutrients and incubated for at least 22 hours to allow the number of bacteria to increase to detectable levels. Rapid detection using molecular methods such as qPCR adds 1-2 hours of testing time, bringing the total time to results to 24 hours.

Pathotrak’s AOAC-accredited Next-Generation Enrichment system reduces turnaround time by up to 90 percent, leading to substantial savings for both labs and producers. The company’s system meets and exceeds the requirements of both FDA and USDA regulations while providing the fastest time-to-results in the industry.

Pathotrak’s rapid solution reduces recalls and the holding costs of food production. In addition, getting products to retailers’ shelves a day earlier can reduce food waste by up to 50 percent, resulting in potential savings in water and greenhouse gases.

The company’s initial technology was jointly developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Maryland and was licensed to the company. Since then, Pathotrak has developed a portfolio of technologies focused on expediting food safety tests and tailored to different food matrices, sample sizes, and pathogens. The company has two patents issued in the U.S. and Europe and five pending.

Frank Yiannas, a visionary in food safety, joined Pathotrak’s Board of Directors. Yiannas was formerly Deputy Commissioner, Food Policy & Response, FDA; Vice President, Food Safety, Walmart; and Director, Safety & Health, Walt Disney World Co.

Pathotrak has its products in use in eight different labs across the U.S., including the FDA and USDA, and one in Europe.

Funding:
$10 million in dilutive and non-dilutive funding. Pathotrak is closing a current round.

Programs:
Mtech Ventures,I-Corps, MIPS

Resensys
Sensors for large-scale structural health monitoring

Resensys develops and sells wireless, cloud-based sensors that constantly gauge the structural integrity of bridges and other entities. The company has more than 1,000 structural health monitoring projects in the U.S. and around the world.

Resensys’ products live on bridges and buildings, often in arrays, continuously collecting and transmitting data about a structure’s health. The company’s sensors reduce the need for manual inspection, saving costs while also providing real-time status reports and critical notifications.

The company’s sensors measure stress, strain, acceleration, vibration, temperature, humidity, and all of the other parameters that are needed to monitor a structure in an energy-efficient manner.

Landmark bridges in the U.S. are watched by the company’s products, including the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, Golden Gate Bridge, Hernando de Soto Bridge, Gold Star Memorial Bridge, Delaware Memorial Bridge, Arlington Memorial Bridge, and the historic Smithfield Street Bridge.

Many more of Resensys’ sensors are installed in states where over-height vehicles hitting overpasses and bridges can be a problem.

The company’s products also monitor high-voltage electrical towers, industrial equipment, and commercial buildings such as warehouses, and even the NASA Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Resensys recently released three new wireless sensors to meet the challenge of monitoring bridge foundations through increased floods and hurricanes. The new products detect erosion, depth under water, and water velocity.

Funding:
Resensys, founded in 2008, has been bootstrapped, aside from initial funding from TEDCO, MIPS, and the SAIC VentureAccelerator Competition. The company also received Small Business Innovation Research grants from the National Science Foundation for a total of $2.5 million.

Employees:
10

Programs:
Mtech Ventures, MIPS

TRX Systems
Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) systems for warfighters

TRX Systems strives to be the military’s choice in assured PNT products for dismounted warfighters, easily integrated ground systems, and other low size, weight, power, and cost platforms.

The company was founded in 2004 to deliver positioning systems that safeguard public safety and security personnel operating indoors and in other GPS-denied areas.

Subsequently, TRX brought its NEON® GPS-denied positioning, navigation, and mapping products to market. Powered by patented algorithms, NEON technology fuses satellite-based PNT information with inputs from inertial sensors, map data, and other sources to reliably track a user’s position in GPS-denied environments.

TRX has produced and shipped thousands of products powered by NEON positioning and navigation technology to military, security, and commercial users,

In March 2023, the U.S. Army awarded TRX a $402 million production contract to deliver DAPS (Dismounted Assured, Positioning, Navigation, and Timing System) GEN II systems, known commercially as TRX DAPS II. The TRX DAPS II system has undergone rigorous independent testing and is now in full-rate production.

TRX DAPS II is a small, handheld device that leverages satellite-based resources, integrated inertial sensors, and other technology layers to deliver continuous and reliable positioning and timing information to warfighters and their combat systems.

TRX Systems, led by UMD electrical and computer engineering alumnae Carol Politi (president and CEO), M.B.A., ‘97, B.S., electrical engineering, ‘86, Carole Teolis (CTO), Ph.D., electrical engineering, ‘94, and Ben Funk (VP engineering), B.S., electrical engineering, ‘05, is a spin-off from Techno-Sciences, founded by UMD’s Gilmer Blankenship, professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

ACR Group acquired TRX Systems in 2022.

Intellectual Property:
TRX Systems has been granted 49 U.S. patents, with several more pending.

Programs:
Mtech Ventures, MIPS

“Mtech Ventures has been a true model of a world-class technology incubator, nurturing an idea from infancy and supporting it to become an established technology and a global player. Without a doubt, we would not be able to come this far if we did not have the support from Mtech personnel and the University of Maryland community at every step of our long journey.”
—Mehdi Kalantari, president and CTO, Resensys

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