Nov. 7, 2025

The University of Rhode Island and the RISE-UP program are hosting an information session Wednesday, Nov. 12, from noon to 1 p.m. in the Ocean Technology Center conference room at the Narragansett Bay Campus, 215 South Ferry Road, in Narragansett. Organizers are looking for people interested in participating in the immersive entrepreneurial training program NSF I-Corps Spark, focusing on the blue economy and blue tech.

Researchers, innovators and entrepreneurs, and those who have solutions or technologies that help support the idea of sustainable uses of the ocean are encouraged to attend. This includes those who work in marine robotics, tools for climate and coastal resilience, renewable energy and clean tech, and aquaculture.

The National Science Foundation launched the I-Corps program to increase U.S. economic competitiveness, enhance academic and industry partnerships and help commercialize cutting edge technology.

Like RISE-UP, the NSF I-Corps program guides researchers, innovators and entrepreneurs through the customer discovery process allowing them to quickly assess their inventions’ market potential. 

Also as part of the RISE-UP program’s efforts to help innovators bridge the gap between invention and market, URI will co-host a blue economy-focused NSF I-Corps Spark program in February in collaboration with the I-Corps program at Brown University. This blue-focused program will consist of two training sessions and a special customer discovery session at the 2026 Blue Innovation Symposium, New England’s leading ocean technology meeting that brings together over 400 participants for three days of education, networking, and matchmaking in Newport, Rhode Island.

Those looking to attend the Wednesday, Nov. 12, information sessions are asked to register. A virtual option will be available.