BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA & WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue and the Applied Research Institute (ARI) based in Indiana announced a partnership to accelerate the innovation and adoption of trusted technology to enhance global tech security within the State of Indiana.
As the preeminent authority in the new category of Tech Diplomacy, the Krach Institute will provide policy expertise, training, commercial partnerships, and foreign policy tools to support the strategic efforts of ARI to advance national security technology investment in what is rapidly becoming known as America’s Hard Tech Corridor.
“The Krach Institute and Applied Research Institute together bring expertise in emerging technology, diplomacy, and economic growth at both a local and global scale—and by working together, we will more effectively engage government and high-tech sector partners in our shared mission to ensure technology advances freedom and security,” said Michelle Giuda, Chief Executive Officer of the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue. “Our collaboration will bring new opportunities to spur innovation, extending from Indiana’s Hard Tech Corridor to global capitals worldwide.”
“We are thrilled to partner with the Krach Institute,” said Dave Roberts, Chief Executive Officer of ARI. “This strategic relationship will further solidify Indiana as a leader enabling a secure and prosperous future for our nation.”
The partnership will leverage and elevate Indiana’s role as a central hub in the Global Trusted Tech Network developed by the Krach Institute, which includes governments, companies, organizations and individuals dedicated to accelerating the innovation and adoption of trusted technology to ensure technology advances freedom.
Together, the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue and ARI will connect and integrate global business and diplomatic leaders in Indiana; and partner on training, education, and professional development while creating a talent pipeline for global partners and businesses in Indiana in the areas of critical technology and Tech Diplomacy; establish a new Tech Freedom Fellowship; and establish joint research and strategy efforts to support securing global freedom through the accelerated development and adoption of trusted technology.
Founded in 2017, ARI’s early focus was around facilitating efficient technology transfer and commercialization for the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division. In late 2022, ARI expanded its mission with the support of Governor Holcomb and through a partnership with the Indiana Economic Development Corporation to pursue complex, catalytic federal funding opportunities and promote industry-led public-private partnerships.
Under this new direction, ARI has secured line of sight to hundreds of millions in federal investment funds. ARI has already landed over $33 million from the Department of Defense for the Silicon Crossroads Microelectronics Hub, earning a national Microelectronics Commons designation; championed the Heartland BioWorks Technology Hub to its status as a Regional Technology Hub by the U.S. Department of Commerce that Sen. Todd Young envisioned as he championed enabling bipartisan legislation; and propelled the Midwest Alliance for Clean Hydrogen to become a recognized Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub by the U.S. Department of Energy.
The partnership with ARI is the latest in a series of strategic partnerships orchestrated by the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue. In June, Purdue University and the Krach Institute signed memorandums of understanding with NYCU and NCCU, two research universities in Taiwan, to bolster research and workforce development efforts in Tech Diplomacy and semiconductor-related areas. In April, Purdue University, the Krach Institute, the Semiconductor Industry Association, and SEMI brought together leaders across industry, government, and academia at the CHIPS for America Summit in Washington, D.C. to forge national solutions at scale to address the future of U.S. innovation in microelectronics and the semiconductor workforce.
Parties interested in learning more should visit www.techdiplomacy.org.
