INDIANA – Indiana Governor Mike Braun is growing entrepreneurship and strengthening Indiana’s small business economy, today awarding grants through the state’s Community Collaboration Fund (CCF) that will support 22 community-led, regionally driven projects. These awards will help accelerate projects focused on entrepreneurial education, tech enablement, and small business acceleration statewide.
“Making Indiana the very best place to start, build, and grow a business is a driving force of my administration,” said Gov. Braun. “These grants will support programs identified by communities as critical to the growth and success of their entrepreneurial and small business economies, supporting long-term job creation and wage growth. Thanks to the commitment and creativity of our regions, these programs will help founders and leaders bring new ideas to life, implement new technologies, and future-proof their businesses.”
Indiana ranks in the top five in the US for small business survival and 12th in the nation for the rate of new entrepreneurs, according to the Kauffman Institute. CCF provides matching grants to support new community collaborations, services, and programming that are filling critical gaps in resources and further strengthening Indiana’s entrepreneurial ecosystem
The projects selected for 2026 CCF funding – which are outlined below – focus on helping entrepreneurs and small businesses start and scale more quickly, access capital and new markets, and leverage technology and artificial intelligence. The state’s grants, totaling $757,000, will support $1.18 million total invested in these projects, which are expected to serve more than 6,000 current and aspiring entrepreneurs and small businesses across the state.
2026 CCF Grant Awards include:
Artificial Intelligence
- AI in Action: From Learning to Implementation (Pantheon Educational Center, $15,500 award)
- This initiative will offer a series of instructional workshops and hands-on implementation labs designed to help entrepreneurs and small business owners integrate AI tools into their daily operations. The program, offered in partnership with the Southwest Indiana Small Business Development Center (SBDC), emphasizes applied adoption, allowing participants to actively test AI platforms, develop business-specific prompts, and build working outputs.
- AI Pocket Mentor: A Tech-Enablement Platform for Small Business Growth (The University of Notre Dame, $39,956 award)
- The University of Notre Dame, through the McKenna Center, will develop and deploy an AI-powered digital mentor designed specifically for low-income and disadvantaged microentrepreneurs in northwest Indiana, available 24/7 and built to adapt to varying literacy levels. The platform will provide personalized business guidance on competitor analysis, pricing, supplier sourcing, marketing, hiring, and compliance, and it will retain interaction history to function as an ongoing business coach rather than a one-time resource.
- The Builder’s Room (Amplify Bloomington, $39,834 award)
- This new cohort-based program from Amplify Bloomington and the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce equips established local business owners with the skills to create real, custom digital tools for their operations using AI-assisted development — no coding experience or technical background required. Think automated inventory systems, customer-facing chatbots, back-office dashboards, built by the owners themselves, in plain English. In six weeks, participants go from identifying a business problem to demoing a working solution at a live Showcase & Demo Day.
Business Transition and Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition
- Butler University ETA Rural Success Initiative (Butler University, $40,000 award)
- Butler University will lead a broad effort to preserve Indiana’s small businesses by preparing new leaders to acquire and operate existing companies in rural communities facing owner retirements. Butler will host a one-day summit, launch an eight-week accelerator for prospective buyers, and deploy student and faculty consulting teams to five to seven at-risk counties, developing both sale-ready businesses and qualified buyers to support ownership transition and preserve Hoosier jobs.
- ETA and Business Transition Initiative (Trustees of Indiana University, $40,000 award)
- IU Southeast, in partnership with regional collaborators, will launch a structured educational initiative providing programming for both aspiring business buyers and owners approaching retirement or succession. The initiative features an educational series and two regional summits aimed at increasing awareness of entrepreneurship through acquisition as a career pathway while also facilitating matchmaking for successful ownership transitions.
- Greater Lafayette ETA Initiative (Greater Lafayette Commerce, $40,000 award)
- Greater Lafayette Commerce will launch a collaborative program to support both buyers and sellers interested in the Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition model. Through cohort-based education, expert workshops, and facilitated matchmaking events, the initiative will help business owners with succession planning and ensure prospective buyers have the insight and resources needed to succeed.
- Ownership Transition Readiness Program (The Northeast Indiana Innovation Community, $35,000 award)
- The Northeast Indiana Innovation Community (NIIC) will develop and pilot a structured business ownership transition readiness program to help business owners and aspiring acquirers prepare for ownership transitions, guiding participants through intent clarification, readiness assessment, and risk identification. Following the pilot, NIIC will make the framework available at no cost to other Indiana-based entrepreneur support organizations.
Entrepreneurship Education
- Anchor & Accelerate (Orr Fellowship, $40,000 award)
- Anchor & Accelerate is an entrepreneurship competition for first-year undergraduate students across participating Indiana universities, creating an accessible, early on-ramp into entrepreneurship for students and increasing the density of entrepreneurially minded students in Indiana. Participants will receive curated data rooms for four startups addressing technology gaps relevant to Indiana’s economy, spend one week preparing a pitch, and present to a panel of Indiana executives, investors, and founders, gaining real-world exposure to how ventures are evaluated.
- Youth Entrepreneurship Pilot (High School Hustle, $40,000 award)
- High School Hustle, a fiscally sponsored project of Sagamore, Inc., will deploy a youth entrepreneurship program across three to five high schools in northeast Indiana, combining classroom-based education and mentorship engagement. Students will generate and track revenue through microbusiness activities, such as lawn care, detailing, photography, and reselling, and will be eligible for capital support in the form of equipment purchases after achieving program-related milestones.
Main Street & Rural Entrepreneurship
- Boone County Storefront Design Accelerator (Boone County Economic Development Corporation, $30,000 award)
- The Boone County Economic Development Corporation, in partnership with Boone County’s Main Street organizations and municipalities, will deliver three expert-led workshops focused on retail layout, merchandising strategy, and experiential customer engagement. Fifteen participating businesses will be selected to receive a professional storefront design assessment and a $1,000 implementation grant to execute recommended improvements, supporting small business competitiveness and the regional customer experience.
- Ignite SEI: Fuel the Small Business Spark (Genesis: Pathways to Success Inc., $40,000 award)
- Grant funding will be leveraged to host a regional small business conference for entrepreneurs and business owners across southeast Indiana, providing a forum to learn, connect, and collaborate. Programming and sessions will be uniquely designed to support the region’s rural and small-town businesses.
- Regional Entrepreneur Pipeline (Rush County Economic & Community Development Corporation, $40,000 award)
- The Regional Entrepreneur Pipeline (REaP) is an eight-week, implementation-based cohort program serving Rush, Henry, and Fayette Counties to support the launch and growth of small businesses in rural communities. The program offers hands-on guidance in business formation, financial systems, succession planning, and digital market access to produce measurable outcomes and support long-term economic resilience in the region.
- Start Local, Grow Local (Grow Wabash County, $40,000 award)
- This new entrepreneurship initiative is designed to support rural founders and small business owners in Wabash County. The program will provide structured workshops and entrepreneurship certification training, one-on-one advising, access to professional services, test-market funding, as well as a new, dedicated navigator to help startups and existing small businesses learn about and access the many resources and financial opportunities available to support their long-term growth and success.
Industry-Driven
- Business Operations Training for Early Childhood Centers & Ministries (Muncie BY5, $40,000 award)
- Muncie BY5 will launch two nine-week cohorts for small businesses providing childcare services in centers and ministries across the region, offering business training and individual coaching to help business owners and leaders operate more efficiently and effectively. In tandem, the organization will provide childcare-specific insights and training to Indiana SBDC business advisors to help them support these businesses and their unique needs, such as staffing, revenue, licensing, and regulations in the future.
- The Creator Lab (Be Nimble Foundation, $40,000 award)
- The Creator Lab is a 12-month fellowship program that helps content creators build venture-backable and acquisition-ready CPG and tech solutions with and for their audiences. Two cohorts of participants will receive an intensive product development curriculum built on Be Nimble’s 4CAP methodology, access to commercial facilities, AI-powered development tools, connections to manufacturing and supply chain resources, and pathways to investment capital.
- Greenlight Lab (Pattern Inc., $40,000 award)
- Pattern, in partnership with Hoodox, will launch a six-week, cohort-based acceleration program for 12 early-stage nonfiction filmmakers across Indiana. The program is focused on providing the entrepreneurial infrastructure needed to move from creative concept to sustainable career. Participants will receive guided instruction in business modeling, capital stack design, legal and IP structuring, budget and financing strategy, and grant, investor, and client readiness — with each founder producing a documented 12-month sustainability and financial plan.
- Impact Studio Project (Wayfinders Inc., $25,000 award)
- Wayfinders Inc. will launch an entrepreneurial activation pipeline for leaders developing service-based, nonprofit, faith-driven, or community-centered ventures across central Indiana. The initiative will include community workshops to shape early-stage ideas, a six-month cohort with mentorship and coaching, and a leadership retreat, culminating in a public showcase where participants will pitch to potential investors and like-minded community leaders.
- Trade Up Indiana (Indiana Association of Plumbing, Heating, Cooling Contractors, $37,000 award)
- The Indiana Association of Plumbing, Heating, Cooling Contractors, in collaboration with Fuel VM and Launch Fishers, will create a comprehensive entrepreneurship education and accelerator program designed for licensed plumbers and HVAC technicians ready to transition from employee to business owner. The program will include up to six regionally distributed business workshops, individual coaching, and a dedicated technology enablement component introducing AI-powered tools.
Critical Acceleration Resources
- CDFI Collaborative Referral Platform (LISC Indianapolis, $25,350 award)
- LISC Indianapolis will build a ticketing and referral platform for the Indianapolis Small Business CDFI Collaborative, an alliance of six mission-driven lenders, to streamline connections between business owners and the flexible financing options provided by CDFIs. The project also includes updated website messaging to better educate referral sources and entrepreneurs about how and when to engage with a CDFI, strengthening the inclusivity and coordination of Indiana’s small business financing ecosystem.
- Maker to Market Accelerator (MadJax Maker Force, $32,200 award)
- MadJax Maker Force will launch a six-month pilot accelerator for up to 20 makers, artists, and small manufacturers in Delaware and Blackford Counties who have existing products and are ready to strengthen their market presence. Participants will receive cohort-based education, hands-on technical support, and opportunities to apply new skills through established market opportunities across the region, including the Muncie Makers Market and The People’s Marketplace.
- NWI BizHub (Legacy Foundation, $12,050 award)
- NWI BizHub is a centralized online platform connecting current and aspiring small business owners across the region to more than 85 local resource partners, helping entrepreneurs find the right resources to support every stage of their journey. The program’s resource navigator offers complimentary access to resources that may otherwise be difficult to locate or utilize, while those seeking more personalized support can match with an NWI BizHub partner for one-on-one guidance.
- Traction Cohort @ 16Tech (16 Tech Community Corporation, $40,000 award)
- 16 Tech Community Corporation will launch a cohort-based execution program for early-stage founders in central Indiana, ready to move from validated ideas to prototype development. The program leverages 16 Tech’s Machyne makerspace for product execution and the IoT Lab in Fishers for complementary technical expertise and mentorship, bridging a critical gap between early ideation programs and next-stage accelerators while strengthening the region’s pipeline of growth-ready companies.
To learn more about the many resources available to Indiana entrepreneurs and small businesses, visit iedc.in.gov/entrepreneurship.
