The Center for Innovative Technology (CIT) recently partnered with the US Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate (DHS S&T) to create, ‘EMERGE! Accelerating Wearable Tech for First Responders’, a pilot program using business accelerators to speed the delivery of the latest innovative wearable technologies to responders. EMERGE! is part of a larger DHS S&T initiative to engage entrepreneurs in finding innovative ideas that address the unique needs of the Homeland Security community.
The Virgina, US-located non-profit organisation CIT has already chosen 2 accelerators for the EMERGE! pilot: B2B seed accelerator, Tech Wildcatters from Dallas, Texas, and TechNexus, of Chicago.
The EMERGE! Accelerating Wearable Tech for 1st responders is focused on wearable technology. This is inclusive of physiological sensors, high-performance materials, health support such as hydration, communications capabilities, situational awareness, among others. The key element, said CIT, was that a responder would have some portion of the system on their person during the response.
DHS S&T was looking at a variety of new mechanisms including accelerators, prize competitions and open dialogues to help foster innovation and speed the process of getting capabilities into the hands of users. Specifically for the wearable technology area for first responders, some estimates were that this was a one trillion dollar commercial market over the next few years, and certainly a market that was seeing significant investment and innovation. If DHS was able to leverage this commercial activity it should be able to get cutting edge technology into the field faster and at much lower cost to the Government than trying to develop these technologies on their own.
CIT said on it’s Website that its mission was to foster new technologies and new technology companies. This, it said, would be done through a variety of mechanisms including research grants, investments in early stage companies and by operating its own accelerator for cybersecurity companies, MACH37.
Under this, CIT was conducting research into the most effective ways for DHS to leverage accelerators.
Image Credit: CIT
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