New Jersey creates $20M fund to support AI startups
New Jersey is putting new money behind artificial intelligence startups and launching a $20 million investment fund designed to give early-stage companies access to capital, mentorship and business support to grow in the Garden State.
The New Jersey Economic Development Authority, in partnership with AI infrastructure company CoreWeave, announced the creation of the NJ AI Hub Fund on Tuesday. The money will support startups connected to the state’s NJ AI Hub Strategic Innovation Center, which launched in 2023 at Princeton University and works to advance the ethical use of AI and support new technological developments throughout the state.
Gov. Phil Murphy said the initiative will help create jobs, strengthen local economies and bolster New Jersey’s reputation as a center for innovation.
“The growth of New Jersey’s innovation ecosystem creates immense opportunities for residents and entrepreneurs, helping create jobs in growing industries, transform communities, and catalyze new startup creation,” Murphy said in the announcement. “With this new Hub Fund, along with our ongoing efforts to shape AI’s future, we are reviving the Garden State’s legendary legacy of innovation and, in the process, making our state more competitive in the global economy for decades to come.”
The announcement also includes a major role for Plug and Play, an international startup accelerator that will manage an AI-focused accelerator program at the NJ AI Hub. Through this program, selected startups will be paired with mentors, investors and industry partners to help them refine their products and attract additional funding. The company plans to run startup cohorts each year to support companies at varying stages of development.
In addition, Plug and Play received a $3.8 million grant to run a statewide challenge that will invite residents, students, researchers and businesses to propose AI technologies that can solve to problems facing New Jersey. Winning teams will have the chance to pilot test or commercialize their ideas with the help of AI experts.
New Jersey joins several other states that are investing in the AI industry through various programs, grants and funding for AI startups.
The Massachusetts AI Hub, run by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, which calls itself a “a unique public agency,” provides grants and challenges to foster AI development. A recent initiative, the Massachusetts AI Models Innovation Challenge, offers more than $3 million for AI model development in key economic sectors.
San Jose, California, awards grants to local AI startups through its AI Startup Incentive Program to encourage the establishment of operations in the area.
And New York has continued throughout the year to expand its Empire AI Consortium, a project funded by the state and philanthropic funds aimed at advancing supercomputing and AI general research projects hoped to further the public good.
