Eight Leading Midwestern Universities Launch Third Coast Foundry, a New Bay Area Base for Innovation and Venture Collaboration

Together, the partner universities account for nearly $10 billion in annual research investment and educate more than 300,000 students, producing one of the nation's largest talent pipelines.

CHICAGO, March 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Eight leading Midwestern universities today announced the launch of Third Coast Foundry, a new San Francisco–based hub designed to strengthen the collective presence of Midwest research institutions in one of the world's most active venture ecosystems. The initiative brings together a select consortium of partner universities to support venture engagement and cross-institutional collaboration for university startups, researchers, and more. 

Third Coast Foundry is being launched as a two-year pilot supported by the following Midwestern Universities:

• Carnegie Mellon University
  
  
• Northwestern University
  
  
• Ohio State University
  
  
• Purdue University
  
  
• University of Chicago
  
  
• University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
  
  
• University of Wisconsin–Madison
  
  
• Washington University in St. Louis

Located at 625 Second Street in San Francisco's South Park neighborhood — steps from one of the largest venture capital communities in the world and the emerging AI corridor — the 3,500-square-foot ground-floor workspace will serve as a short-term base for university-founded startups and teams traveling to the Bay Area, creating opportunities for investors, alumni, and other partners to engage through meetings, events, and programming. It represents one of the first collaborative, multi-university Midwest bases in the Bay Area focused on venture engagement and innovation support.

"This is a significant moment for the Midwest's innovation ecosystem," said Samir Mayekar, managing director, Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the University of Chicago. "By establishing a visible footprint in the Bay Area, we're creating new opportunities for our founders to access capital, talent, and strategic partners while also strengthening ties between two of the country's most dynamic innovation communities."

The initiative is being driven by the entrepreneurship, innovation, and commercialization centers across the partner institutions, including the Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship and the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University; Northwestern Innovation + New Ventures (INVO); Center for Software Innovation at the Ohio State University; Purdue Innovates; UChicago's Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation; U of I's Technology Entrepreneur Center; Wisconsin Entrepreneurship Hub and Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF); along with WashU. Together, these centers bring deep experience in startup formation, technology commercialization, and venture engagement to support founders and strengthen cross-institutional collaboration through Third Coast Foundry.

"San Francisco is the global hub of innovation, technology, and venture capital, and with yet another investment from leading institutions of higher education, we are accelerating our city's recovery and strengthening our city center as a place where people live, work, play, and learn," said Mayor Daniel Lurie. "I look forward to welcoming students and leaders from the Midwest and partnering with these universities to open our doors to the next generation of innovators."

Third Coast Foundry will also support demo days, receptions, seminars, and workshops, expanding visibility for university startups and offering new ways for Bay Area investors and alumni to engage. Managed and operated by the Polsky Center at the University of Chicago, it will act as a shared resource for participating institutions, with each university contributing to programming and community-building efforts that elevate the collective Midwest innovation presence in San Francisco. 

Third Coast Foundry sponsors include G2C Venture Partners and the Wisconsin Investment Management Company (WISIMCO).

Grand opening details to be announced. 

SOURCE The University of Chicago