New Innovation Alliance hopes to turn more Michigan inventions into Michigan companies—and keep billions of dollars in future value from leaving the state.
LANSING – For decades, Michigan has been one of America’s great innovation engines.
The state is home to world-class research universities, global automotive and manufacturing companies, a growing artificial intelligence sector, and thousands of engineers and entrepreneurs developing technologies that could shape the future.
Yet despite those advantages, Michigan continues to struggle with one of the toughest challenges in the innovation economy: keeping promising startup companies here long enough to become the next generation of major employers.
Too often, entrepreneurs who launch companies in Michigan look elsewhere as they seek larger rounds of venture capital, experienced executive talent and broader business networks. When they leave, the state doesn’t just lose a headquarters—it can lose future jobs, investment and billions of dollars in company value.
A new statewide coalition believes Michigan can change that.
The recently launched Innovation Alliance of Michigan brings together more than 250 investors, universities, corporations, startup founders and entrepreneurial support organizations in what organizers describe as the state’s first coordinated effort to strengthen every stage of Michigan’s innovation ecosystem.
Rather than creating another standalone organization, the Alliance is designed to better connect the people and institutions already helping entrepreneurs launch and scale companies across Michigan.
Why This Matters
- Michigan ranks Top 10 in research and development.
- Michigan ranks 32nd in early- and growth-stage startup funding.
- The Innovation Alliance’s goal is to close that gap by helping more startups grow without leaving the state.
Building on Momentum
Michigan Economic Development Corporation officials say the timing reflects the state’s growing innovation economy.
“Michigan’s innovation economy has real momentum right now,” said Alison Todak, vice president of Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.
“We’ve produced six unicorns since 2018, we rank in the Top 10 nationally for the value of research and development happening here, and the coalition that came together to pass the bipartisan Michigan Innovation Fund showed what’s possible when investors, universities, founders and support organizations align around a shared goal.”
The Innovation Alliance builds directly on those relationships. Organizers say the collaboration that helped secure bipartisan support for the Michigan Innovation Fund demonstrated what can happen when investors, universities, entrepreneurs and economic development organizations work toward a common goal—and inspired the creation of a permanent statewide coalition focused on strengthening Michigan’s innovation economy.
Todak said the state already has many organizations supporting entrepreneurs, but they have often operated independently rather than as a coordinated statewide network.
“Now is the time to build on that momentum,” she said. “Competition for talent and capital is only getting tougher. The Innovation Alliance gives us a way to stay aligned, share what’s working, and compete as one Michigan.”
The Michigan Strategic Fund Board recently approved a performance-based grant to support the Alliance’s launch.
Michigan’s Six Unicorns
Michigan startups that achieved valuations of $1 billion or more
Company Industry Duo Security Cybersecurity StockX E-commerce Marketplace Rivian Automotive Electric Vehicles OneStream Software Enterprise Financial Software Coupa Software (formerly Llamasoft) Supply Chain Software HistoSonics Medical Technology Source: Michigan Economic Development Corporation
Closing the Capital Gap
Despite producing billion-dollar startups and nationally recognized research, Michigan continues to lag in one of the most important measures of startup success: access to growth capital.
The Business Leaders for Michigan Innovation Economy Scorecard, released in May, ranks Michigan 32nd among peer states in early- and growth-stage venture funding. The report further ranks the state 36th in seed funding, 23rd in early-stage funding and 35th in late-stage funding, highlighting one of Michigan’s biggest obstacles to building and retaining high-growth startup companies.
Supporters say the funding gap helps explain why some founders eventually look outside Michigan for investors, customers and executive talent—and, in some cases, relocate their companies.
Michigan’s research enterprise remains one of the nation’s strongest. The state ranks among the Top 10 nationally in research and development spending and has produced six unicorn startups since 2018. Supporters of the Innovation Alliance argue the next challenge is converting more of that research into high-growth companies that remain headquartered in Michigan.
Success Will Be Measured
Todak said the Innovation Alliance will be judged by measurable outcomes—not simply by the number of organizations participating.
“We’ll know it’s working when founders feel the difference and when the data backs it up,” she said.
Success, she said, means attracting more venture capital to Michigan companies, commercializing more university research, helping more entrepreneurs raise Seed and Series A funding without feeling they need to leave the state, and ultimately creating more high-paying jobs across Michigan.
One of the Alliance’s first-year priorities is developing public-facing dashboards so progress can be measured transparently.
Beyond the numbers, Todak said success will also mean creating a more connected statewide ecosystem.
“If we’ve done this well, Michigan won’t feel like a collection of individual entrepreneurial ecosystems,” she said. “It will feel like one connected innovation economy that helps more founders build and stay here.”
A Statewide Strategy
Invest Detroit will serve as the Alliance’s fiduciary and administrative organization while oversight will come from a statewide advisory board and multiple action councils representing investors, universities, corporations, founders and entrepreneurial support organizations.
More than 250 people and organizations have already joined the effort.
Initial priorities include developing a unified statewide innovation strategy, improving Michigan’s national visibility among investors and entrepreneurs, supporting policies that expand venture capital and commercialization, and ensuring founders help shape the Alliance’s agenda.
Rather than focusing on one stage of company development, organizers say the Alliance intends to support entrepreneurs from startup formation through growth and expansion.
Working Together Instead of Competing
Chris Rizik, founder and managing partner of Renaissance Venture Capital, believes Michigan’s biggest challenge isn’t generating innovation—it’s coordinating the assets the state already possesses.
“In many ways, Michigan has organically conquered the toughest part of being an innovation state,” Rizik said. “We have incredible innovation engines at our universities and some of our corporate research groups, both of which are the envy of other parts of the world. What we’ve lacked is an agreed-upon uniform vision to optimize those strengths.”
Rather than having regions compete against one another for funding and projects, Rizik believes Michigan should capitalize on each region’s unique strengths.
“Every region of the state is good at something, but none are good at everything,” he said.
Rizik said Michigan has too often spread innovation resources too broadly instead of concentrating investments where regions have established competitive advantages. He believes a more coordinated statewide strategy can help maximize limited resources while allowing different regions to build on their unique strengths—from mobility and automotive technology to advanced manufacturing, defense, life sciences and artificial intelligence.
Rizik also believes Michigan needs to do a better job telling its own success story.
“Sometimes our Midwest humility stands in the way of letting others know of the real opportunities here,” he said. “The Innovation Alliance is addressing all of these things in the most holistic fashion than any effort I’ve seen in Michigan to date.”
Michigan’s Next Challenge
Michigan has already proven it can create billion-dollar companies.
The challenge facing the Innovation Alliance is making sure more of those companies choose to build their future in Michigan.
If the Alliance succeeds, the state won’t simply be known as a place where great ideas begin. It could become known as a place where entrepreneurs find the capital, talent, partnerships and support they need to build the next generation of billion-dollar companies—without ever feeling they have to leave home.
