State awards $5.25M to SE Michigan to fuel tech innovation

Tech entrepreneurship doesn't just happen. Sometimes it needs a push or helping hand. The state has awarded strategic funds to organizations like the Institute for Research on Labor, Employment and the Economy at the University of Michigan, the Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center in Plymouth, and the Macomb-Oakland University Incubator in Sterling Heights. Excerpt: "The awards, which are designed to help organizations fill gaps in entrepreneurial service areas, were among several items approved Thursday by the Michigan Strategic Fund. A total of $3.25 million in assistance will help Next Energy in Detroit, the Macomb-Oakland University Incubator in Sterling Heights and the Michigan Small Business Technology & Development Center, housed at Grand Valley State University, to provide commercialization matching funds to companies receiving federal technology research grants. Next Energy will receive $700,000 over three years; Macomb-OU will receive $766,036 over two years, and the Small Business Technology & Development Center will receive $1.75 million for one year, according to state information." Read the rest here.