How Philly is keeping the Tech Hub dream alive

Despite not being chosen for the first round of EDA Tech Hubs funding, the Philadelphia region is prepared to find a way to turn its precision medicine vision into reality. 

After a yearlong process, the US Economic Development Administration earlier this summer selected 12 of 31 designated hubs to receive implementation awards.

Philadelphia was not on the list. 

But all hope is not lost, according to Tony Green. Chief scientific officer for Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern PA, which led the regional Tech Hubs effort, Green said being a designated hub comes with future perks. And all the partner organizations that helped develop the idea for PROPEL: The National Center for Precision Medicine are committed to continuing work on the project, he told Technical.ly. 

“We haven’t given up,” Green said. “We’re still talking. [The] steering committee is still talking. We’re talking to all our partners.” 

The EDA is hoping to find more funding so it can grant more implementation awards in the future, an official from the US Department of Commerce confirmed to Technical.ly. The Tech Hubs program was appropriated $10 billion through the CHIPS and Science Act, but so far Congress has only greenlighted $541 million.

Intended to support development, manufacturing and commercialization of technology across the United States, the EDA Tech Hubs program specifically targets regions without the funding or name recognition of Silicon Valley. 

The process started last summer, when around 400 regional consortia applied. Last fall, 31 applications were chosen, including Baltimore and Philadelphia. Each then had until the end of February to put together a proposal for how they would spend $40 to $70 million.

The Greater Philadelphia Region Precision Medicine Tech Hub, aka PROPEL, stretches across southeastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey and northern Delaware. 

Led by Ben Franklin, stakeholders from the region put together an $80 million proposal that covered governance, biomanufacturing, workforce, access and entrepreneurship, with input from over 100 organizations. 

A promise of future financial support 

The Philadelphia region consortium will have a debrief meeting with the EDA this month to get feedback on its proposal. Federal officials will also be coming to Philadelphia for a site visit this fall, which is another opportunity for face time with them, said Green, of Ben Franklin Technology Partners. 

The EDA’s funding choices for this first award were logical, said Zakiyyah Ali, executive director of the Tech Council of Delaware, a member of the Philly region consortium.

Industries and sectors proposed by the winning regions will allow the United States to compete more quickly with other countries, she said. The meeting with the EDA will hopefully clarify where the region can make changes to better align with the government’s goals for national security and global competitiveness. 

“Really just get a chance to hear from them how they interpreted what we put forth and just where we can do better,” Ali said. “It’s all about continuous improvement.” 

Being a designated tech hub comes with its own perks, such as priority access for future funding opportunities, access to capital providers, loan and insurance products, a capital database and networking opportunities with potential funders, Green said. Tech Hubs also have an advantage for the EDA’s Good Jobs Challenge in the future. Philadelphia Works already received a $22 million grant from the Good Jobs Challenge in 2022. 

The EDA along with other government agencies hosted a conference at the end of July in DC for all of the designated tech hubs and the National Science Foundation Regional Innovation Engines awardees. The conference was an opportunity to network, but also to pitch to venture capitalists, philanthropists and family offices who may be interested in parts of the proposals, leading to follow up opportunities for potential funding, Green said. 

“What we also learned is that EDA is committed to supporting all of the hubs, including the ones that were not given the implementation award,” Green said. “We don’t know what that is, but we know they’re going to be providing some sort of support.” 

Keeping the momentum for a collaborative effort 

There’s still momentum for this project and the intention is to not let that excitement fizzle out, Green said. 

Everybody from Philadelphia’s 70 partner consortium is still committed to pursuing this project, he said. The steering committee is discussing what the next steps are to move forward with their plan without an implementation award. 

The Tech Council of Delaware co-led the workforce section of the proposal with Philadelphia Works, and is interested in finding funding to implement that plan in whatever way makes sense, per Ali, the Tech Council’s executive director. 

“We want to integrate them in a way that not only maintains employment for them long term and ensures economic mobility, but where they’re  a valued critical part of the PROPEL Tech hub,” she said. 

The project can be split into components and find funding for some parts, but the region’s proposal was put together with sustainability in mind, which requires more money, Green said. Ideally, they would find a way to fund the whole thing or most of it. 

The next steps are considering options for both public and private funding. While putting together the proposal, the consortium received $9 million in matching funds from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the State of Delaware, the City of Philadelphia and private sources. Both Delaware and Pennsylvania still seem willing to support the project, Green said. 

“The work’s important,” he said. “It needs to happen and where we get that funding, what’s the messaging we need to put together to attract that funding is going to be critical.”