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Innovation & Entrepreneurship

MIT was founded with the aim of providing students with an education that combines rigorous academic study with practical, hands-on learning. This emphasis on practice is infused into the Institute’s innovation and entrepreneurship (I&E) ecosystem.

The Institute offers more than 150 courses that intersect with I&E as well as a minor in entrepreneurship and innovation, an MBA E+I Track, and Independent Activities Period and summer opportunities. MIT has more than 50 I&E student clubs and initiatives, including the MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition and the MIT Clean Energy Prize, and events such as the MIT Arts Startup Incubator and Hacking Medicine.

Technology licensing

  • 38 companies supported using MIT intellectual property
  • 684 invention disclosures (including 116 from Lincoln Laboratory)
  • 623 new US patent applications filed
  • 282 US patents issued

Innovation and Entrepreneurship Hubs

MIT Innovation Headquarters (iHQ) is a home for the Institute’s thriving community of innovators and entrepreneurs. Offering 25,000 ft2 (2,323 m2) of workspaces, meeting rooms, and event spaces, iHQ encourages the cross-pollination of ideas among MIT students, faculty, staff, and the global innovation community.

The Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship provides frameworks, courses, co-curricular programs, facilities, advisory services, and processes to create a rigorous, practical, customized, and integrated educational experience.

Programs

There are a variety of programs and teams dedicated to fostering innovation and entrepreneurship at MIT. Here are just a few: