The Institute for Integrative and Innovative Research (I³R) at the U of A today announced that it has been selected to join the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health’s Investor Catalyst Hub, a growing national network of government, industry, finance, healthcare and academic institutions seeking to accelerate the commercialization of groundbreaking and accessible biomedical solutions.

"We are incredibly excited about the opportunity to add our unique research expertise and capabilities to the ARPA-H Investor Catalyst Hub in service of catalyzing breakthrough discoveries and solutions to some of our most pressing health challenges,” said Margaret Sova McCabe, U of A vice chancellor for research and innovation. “This initiative aligns perfectly with the university’s commitment to fostering innovation, driving economic development and serving the public good.” 

The Investor Catalyst Hub is one of three regional hubs anchoring ARPANET-H, a recently launched nationwide health innovation network using an innovative hub-and-spoke model designed to represent a broad spectrum of expertise, geographic diversity and community perspectives with the ultimate aim of delivering scalable healthcare outcomes for all Americans.

The hubs are mission-focused, regional centers with a growing network of spokes from around the country representing the diversity of people, settings and capabilities that encompass the American health ecosystem. Together, the hubs and spokes will collaborate with ARPA-H to catalyze game-changing breakthroughs in science and medicine.

"Our spoke network embodies a robust and representative range of perspectives and expertise," said Mark Marino, vice president of growth strategy and development for VentureWell and project director for the Investor Catalyst Hub. "Our spokes comprise a richly diverse network that will be instrumental in ensuring that equitable health solutions reach communities across every state and tribal nation."

Spokes are selected based on their ability to act with urgency in response to immediate health demands and deliver solutions into disparate communities in every state and tribal nation. The spoke network’s activities are built on competitive and agile ideation, to be applied against any known health challenge. 

As one of the Investor Catalyst Hub spokes, I³R gains access to potential funding and flexible contracting for faster award execution compared to traditional government contracts. Hub membership also offers opportunities to provide input on ARPA-H challenge areas and priorities, along with access to valuable networking opportunities and a robust resource library. 

"As an institute dedicated to translational research and deployment of scalable solutions, our participation in the ARPA-H Investor Catalyst Hub is a pivotal step towards reaching rural and underserved communities, a precept of the university’s land-grant mission,” said Ranu Jung, associate vice chancellor and I³R founding executive director. “Spoke designation paves the way for I³R to build new and stronger partnerships with collaborators like the Community Clinic, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, Arkansas Center for Health Improvement, University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and the upcoming Alice Walton School of Medicine, among others, ensuring that health technology dissemination is both effective and inclusive. By doing so, we aim to enhance wellbeing and health outcomes and demonstrate the true potential of collaborative innovation to address the unique challenges faced by rural and underserved areas."

This news comes on the heels of the institute’s announcement that the National Science Foundation Convergence Accelerator awarded I³R an additional $5 million for continued development of Cultivate IQ, an AI-driven platform designed to empower smaller farms and strengthen the resiliency of regional food systems.

View I³R’s 2023 highlights report.

View full list of Investor Catalyst Hub spokes. 

About the Institute for Integrative and Innovative Research (I³R): Established through a transformational gift from the Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation, the Institute for Integrative and Innovative Research at University of Arkansas pioneers solutions to wicked problems through convergence research across academic, industry, government, and non-profit sectors to make a positive societal impact by creating and deploying innovations at scale. Learn more at i3r.uark.edu.