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For additional information Information regarding incubators in Washington DC can be found on the entrepreneurial ecosystem Economic Development Council websites for each of the cities within the Washington DC, please refer to the following reportsmetropolitan area: [http://startupsusarockvilleredi.org/globalabout/redi-startupto-citieshelp/report.pdfbusiness-incubators/ Rise of the Startup CityRockville]; [httpshttp://wwwincubatemaryland.1776.vcorg/incubators/wpBethesda-contentMaryland]; [https:/uploads/2017dmped.dc.gov/10page/Innovationincubators-thataccelerators-Mattersand-2017co-2.pdfworking-spaces/ Innovation that MattersWashington DC]; and [https://indicators.kauffmanideagist.orgcom/datalist-of-startup-accelerators-and-incubators-in-virginia-tableusa/ Kauffman Indicators or EntrepreneurshipArlington].
Ecosystem: Washington DC (view source)
Revision as of 13:39, 21 September 2020
, 13:39, 21 September 2020no edit summary
{{Project
|Has project output=Content
|Has sponsor=Kauffman Incubator Project
|Has sponsor=Kauffman Incubator Project
|Has title=Ecosystem: Washington DC
|Has owner=Elisabeth "Libby" Bassini,
|Has project status=Active
}}
==''Research Pages''==
[[:Obstacles in Finding Incubators in the Washington DC Ecosystem]]
[[:Process Notes for Identifying Incubators in the DC Ecosystem]]
[https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1gv9BRXb34XX1128aERyF9llh37B5bJuS6HHaOhHYBFs/edit?usp=sharing/ Spreadsheet with Process Notes for Identifying Incubators in the Washington DC Ecosystem with Incubator List]
==''Introduction to the Washington DC Project''==
This page shows the progress, findings, and relevant information on the Washington DC Project that belongs to [[:Kauffman Incubator Project]]. Washington DC for this project includes: Washington, DCD.C.; Arlington, VAVirginia; GermantownAlexandria, MDVirginia; Bethesda, MDMaryland; Fairfax, Virginia; Frederick, Maryland; Gaithersburg, Maryland; Reston, Virginia; Rockville, MDMaryland; AlexandriaSilver Spring, Maryland [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_metropolitan_area/ (Principal Cities of the Washington DC Metropolitan Area)]. For additional information on the entrepreneurial ecosystem of Washington DC, please refer to the following reports: [http://startupsusa.org/global-startup-cities/report.pdf/ Rise of the Startup City]; [https://www.1776.vc/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Innovation-that-Matters-2017-2.pdf/ Innovation that Matters]; and [https://indicators.kauffman.org/data-table/ Kauffman Indicators or Entrepreneurship]. Since most DC incubators are government-funded, university-funded, or both, most do not directly provide seed funding or other resources to their clients, but connect their clients to existing government resources for services, VAsuch as mentoring and seed funding (i.e. [http://www.mcinnovationnetwork.com/about/resources-and-partners/ Example DC Government-Funded Incubator]).
==''What is the assessment of the performance of that ecosystem for entrepreneurship?''==
'''Analysis:''' Washington DC has largely been assessed as a low-performing ecosystem for entrepreneurship, in particular for [https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/why-the-dc-areas-tech-incubators-struggle/2017/10/21/bfabfc98-b5d8-11e7-9e58-e6288544af98_story.html?utm_term=.74782e1185a5/ the success of privately-owned incubators]. Privately-owned incubators have difficulty succeeding in Washington DC due to a variety of factors, including: the complexity of arranging funding from public and private sector partners due to the metropolitan area spanning two states and the District; the difficulty of meeting target objectives for funding due to the complexity of determining metrics, such as job creation, in each state. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/why-the-dc-areas-tech-incubators-struggle/2017/10/21/bfabfc98-b5d8-11e7-9e58-e6288544af98_story.html?utm_term=.74782e1185a5/ More information.]
'''Poor Early-Stage Capital Investment.''' A 2017 study conducted by a large DC incubator in conjunction with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce ranked Washington DC as 23rd out of 25 in terms of entrepreneurship, 23rd in density of startups, 20th in talent, 13th in culture, 18th in capital, 14th in industry specialization, and 19th in connectivity. In particular, the report found that DC has relatively low levels of total capital investment and investment in next wave startups relative to other cities. Previous annual reports by these same organizations have found that DC has been declining in its ranking for entrepreneurship, rather than improving.
'''High Levels of Entrepreneurship in Biotech & Culinary Industries.''' I have observed that the Washington, DC metropolitan area has incubators, accelerators, and shared workspaces concentrated in the biotech and culinary industries. A.) Biotech: Biotech entrepreneurship is primarily found in Bethesda, MD and Rockville, MD and these areas are ranked highly nationally in biotech. This prestige in the biotech space can be attributed to the number of federal research facilities and BioHealth-focused agencies located in Bethesda and Rockville and the number of strong, local research-focused universities, such as Johns Hopkins University. However, recent 2015 reports by the U.S. Economic Development Administration found that these areas are very highly ranked in research and development, but are lowly ranked in terms of business creation (IPOs) from this research, partially due to low-levels of seed stage investment in the area. B.) Culinary: Culinary entrepreneurship is primarily concentrated in the city limits of Washington, DC. DC has 6 food-focused accelerators and incubators, including Mess Hall, Union Kitchen, Tastemakers, Eatsplace, and Tastelab. Moreover, DC has the DC Food Policy Council, which identifies regulatory burdens for local food businesses and entrepreneurs.
'''Most Incubators Are Affiliated with Larger National Incubator Networks or Are Government/University-Backed.''' I found that most incubators in the DC metropolitan area are government-supported (i.e. FedTech and the Rockville Innovation Center) or are university-affiliated (i.e. MEC Fairfax, In3, and the AU Entrepreneurship Incubator). I noticed that most incubators unaffiliated with a government entity or a university were usually a part of a larger national incubator network (i.e. 1776 and the Global Development Incubator). I identified very few incubators that existed solely in DC that were not university or government-affiliated, except culinary incubators. While are there are relatively few incubators, Washington DC has many [https://www.mach37.com/ accelerators].
Sources: [http://startupsusa.org/global-startup-cities/report.pdf/ Rise of the Startup City]; [https://www.1776.vc/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Innovation-that-Matters-2017-2.pdf/ Innovation that Matters]; [https://indicators.kauffman.org/data-table/ Kauffman Indicators or Entrepreneurship]; [https://www.1776.vc/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Innovation-that-Matters-Index-2017.xlsx/ Innovation that Matters Spreadsheet]; [http://www.greaterbaltimore.org/sites/default/files/biohealth%20index.pdf/ Central Maryland Biohealth Innovation Index]; and [http://www.greaterbaltimore.org/sites/default/files/InnovationBrief.pdf/ 2014 Innovation Brief].
