# Illinois Science & Technology Coalition

Illinois Science & Technology Coalition is an other based in Chicago, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** other
- **Headquarters:** Chicago, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** Chicago, IL, United States
- **Founded:** 1989
- **Assets under management:** Undisclosed
- **Website:** istcoalition.org

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

The Illinois Science & Technology Coalition was founded in 1989 as a nonprofit organization based in Chicago. This policy and data entity operates at the intersection of industry, academia, and state government — working to strengthen Illinois's technology economy through research, advocacy, and convening — rather than as a direct investor. The Coalition does not manage a proprietary pool of investment capital in the traditional family-office or venture-firm mold. The Coalition's primary programs include the Illinois Innovation Index, a data effort that tracks venture capital, patent, and startup activity across the state, and the Illinois Corporate-Startup Challenge, which connects large companies with early-stage ventures for commercial pilots. Sectors covered by these programs span enterprise software, life sciences, digital health, industrial technology, and clean energy — aligning with Illinois's concentration of corporate headquarters, national labs, and Big Ten research universities. Scale is not expressed in AUM but in influence. The Coalition works with corporate members including AbbVie, Caterpillar, and Motorola Solutions alongside the University of Illinois system and National Labs like Argonne and Fermilab. March 2025: Amy Young joined as Director of Innovation, bringing experience from the clean-energy venture studio Evergreen Climate Innovations. The Coalition also publishes the Illinois Talent Network report analyzing tech workforce trends in the state. The Coalition is structurally distinct from a family office or venture capital fund in that its output is public-good analytics and policy advocacy rather than portfolio returns. Its value proposition versus similar state-tech organizations rests on the depth of its proprietary Innovation Index data, and its ability to convene Illinois's concentrated asset base of federal labs, large industrials, and research universities in a single policy pipeline.

## Sectors

- Enterprise Software
- AI/ML
- Digital Health
- Industrial Tech
- ClimateTech
- AgriTech & FoodTech
- Hardware & Devices
- Life Sciences

## People

- Mark Harris — President & CEO

## Questions

### What investment vehicle does the Coalition operate?

The Coalition does not operate a traditional investment vehicle. Its programs include the Illinois Innovation Index, the Corporate-Startup Challenge, and workforce data reports — all of which are policy-and-data tools rather than capital-deployment programs. Companies that engage through these programs do not receive balance-sheet investment from the Coalition itself.

### Which companies and institutions are affiliated?

The Coalition's corporate members include AbbVie, Caterpillar, and Motorola Solutions. Institutional partners include the University of Illinois system and the National Laboratories Argonne and Fermilab, per the Coalition's public communications. This creates a convening surface across large-cap industrials, life sciences, and federally funded research.

### What is the Illinois Innovation Index and why do investors use it?

The Illinois Innovation Index is a public data effort tracking Illinois's VC deal volume, patent output, and startup-formation rates. Institutional allocators and venture firms use it as a third-party, publication-quality view into the state's deal flow environment. It does not track individual-manager performance or portfolio company outcomes — it is a market-level data product.

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Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z

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