Advancing Regional Innovation Economies
Launched in 2021, Advancing Regional Innovation Economies is a multi-year initiative led by nonprofit and academic partners, with support from JPMorganChase and Nasdaq.
The initiative examines how policy, practice and markets expand access to venture capital and growth finance for entrepreneurs from emerging markets. We translate evidence into guidance for ecosystem builders, policymakers, investors and educators committed to innovation in entrepreneurship.
Current work connects state policy signals to outcomes in metropolitan regions. Initial findings highlight 20 metropolitan statistical areas that anchor about 60 percent of Angel Capital Association recognized angel groups and lead in U.S. Small Business Administration 504 scale-up lending, pairing talent inflows and higher education density with capital access across innovation and Main Street sectors.
This research is a collaboration among the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center, Heartland Forward and Penn State University’s Evidence-to-Impact Collaborative.
Research Partners / Collaborators
Innovative Research
Applied research that integrates founder experience with comparative state and metro analysis to inform access to investment in regional innovation economies.
Data-Driven Practices
Evidence from policy signals, capital stack indicators and talent pipelines supports just‑in‑time decisions across programs and practices.
Policy Change
Cross‑sector partners turn research into practical policy options that reduce barriers and strengthen innovative entrepreneurial ecosystems.
Where Regional Innovation Is Advancing
Building on state-level analysis that surfaced leading policy environments for founders from emerging markets, ARIE now maps how opportunity concentrates in city‑regions. The top 20 metropolitan statistical areas anchor about 60 percent of Angel Capital Association recognized angel groups and lead in U.S. Small Business Administration 504 lending, indicating that early innovation and small business scale‑up often grow in the same places. Strong talent inflows and higher education density help explain the performance of these hubs.
Penn State University analyzed state legislative activity and discourse. Heartland Forward evaluated business ownership among Black, Hispanic and women entrepreneurs using U.S. Census data. The Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center synthesized models from founder experience to connect policy, practice and outcomes.
Early Findings That Informed ARIE
An earlier phase united a coalition of 10 partners across research, policy and practice to test interventions that increase venture capital flow to entrepreneurs of color. Those findings strengthened ecosystem connectivity and set up the state‑to‑metro lens we apply today.
Stakeholder Mapping in Regional Venture Equity
In 2022, Transition Design workshops in the United States and the United Kingdom produced systems maps that visualize how funding barriers emerge for entrepreneurs of color and where coordination helps. In these short videos, Carnegie Mellon professor Terry Irwin explains the findings.
Angel Investor Network
Angel investors within the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center, Ecomap database of entrepreneurial support organizations.
