Collaboration to enable dual-use semiconductor startups to access government markets and scale technologies vital to U.S. national security
Dayton, OH, and Silicon Valley, CA, March 9, 2026 — ScaleBridge Labs (SBL), the venture lab powered by MMEC, and Silicon Catalyst, the world’s only accelerator focused on the global semiconductor industry, today announced a strategic collaboration aimed at accelerating the transition of commercial semiconductor innovation into the U.S. Defense Industrial Base (DIB).The Midwest Microelectronics Consortium (MMEC) leads the acceleration of microelectronic technologies and delivers solutions to establish a trusted and resilient domestic supply chain. The MMEC is the premier collaborative, public-private ecosystem that engages broadly across innovative partners from industry, academia, and government to rapidly advance defense and commercial applications. This unique environment empowers members to discover new technologies, share capabilities, develop a skilled workforce, and launch groundbreaking innovation into scalable commercial production for the benefit of national security and economic dominance.
The collaboration addresses a growing national priority:
ensuring that promising U.S. microelectronics companies rapidly scale into defense and national security markets
While many semiconductor startups originate in commercial sectors such as AI, edge computing, communications, and sensing, few are structured to navigate government procurement, defense partnerships, or federal funding pathways. The collaboration between ScaleBridge Labs and Silicon Catalyst creates a coordinated pathway designed to help these companies establish government-focused lines of business while continuing to scale commercially.
Silicon Catalyst offers a comprehensive semiconductor accelerator ecosystem, providing access to Strategic Partners, investors, along with technical and business advisors. ScaleBridge Labs contributes a defense-aligned venture infrastructure embedded within MMEC, one of eight regional hubs established under the CHIPS and Science Act’s Microelectronics Commons program.
Together, the organizations will provide semiconductor startups with structured access to:
- - Defense market entry and acquisition pathways, including SBIR, OTA, and Phase III programs
- - Strategic partnerships with defense primes and system integrators
- - Non-dilutive federal funding opportunities and mission-aligned capital
- - Infrastructure and ecosystem resources through Silicon Catalyst’s and MMEC’s national microelectronics networks
“Many of the technologies that will define the next generation of national security capabilities are being developed by commercially focused semiconductor startups,” said Paul Colestock, Director of Commercial Innovation, ScaleBridge Labs. “Our goal is to make it dramatically easier for those companies to engage with the defense ecosystem while continuing to scale in global markets.”
Silicon Catalyst leaders said the collaboration reflects increasing recognition that semiconductor innovation must be supported by coordinated national infrastructure.
“Semiconductors sit at the center of economic competitiveness and national security,” said David Dwelley, Managing Partner, Silicon Catalyst. “By aligning commercial semiconductor incubation with a defense-focused venture platform, this initiative helps ensure that breakthrough U.S. technologies can transition into mission-critical systems faster and more reliably.”
Industry participants also see the collaboration as a meaningful step toward strengthening the domestic semiconductor ecosystem.
“Bridging commercial semiconductor innovation with defense deployment has historically been difficult,” said Cormac Conroy, CEO of TeraSpatial. “Connecting commercial innovation with national security missions helps companies like TeraSpatial rapidly transition dual-use technologies into real-world defense deployment.”
“Programs like this are critical to growing the next generation of suppliers to the Defense Industrial Base,” added Kevin Yoder, CEO, Niobium Microsystems. “By lowering barriers for dual-use companies to engage with government customers, the initiative strengthens both innovation and supply chain resilience.
As global semiconductor competition intensifies, the collaboration between ScaleBridge Labs and Silicon Catalyst represents a scalable model for accelerating domestic microelectronics innovation into production, deployment, and long-term industrial capability.
Stop by GOMACTech 2026
MMEC and ScaleBridge Labs will be exhibiting at GOMACTech 2026, March 9-12, (Booth #401) in New Orleans and look forward to connecting with partners across government, industry, and the defense innovation ecosystem.
Daniel Bailey, Head of Operations at ScaleBridge Labs, will participate in a panel hosted by IQT and Intel Capital on Tuesday, March 10, from 3:30–5:00 PM titled “Accelerating Innovation and Scaling Dual-Use Technologies.” The session will explore how investors are approaching defense and government markets, emerging trends in dual-use funding, and practical lessons for scaling companies that serve both commercial and federal customers. The discussion will bring together government leaders, early-stage startups, and defense industrial base stakeholders to examine how accelerators and investors can help bridge the gap between commercial innovation and national security missions.
If you are attending GOMACTech, stop by Booth #401 to meet the team and learn more about how ScaleBridge Labs is helping grow the next generation of microelectronics companies supporting the U.S. defense industrial base.
About ScaleBridge Labs
ScaleBridge Labs is the nation’s venture lab dedicated to accelerating dual-use microelectronics companies into the U.S. defense industrial base. Operated by the Midwest Microelectronics Consortium (MMEC), ScaleBridge Labs identifies, incubates, and scales high-impact startups developing critical technologies—from AI hardware and advanced sensors to edge computing, quantum systems, and secure communications. Through its incubator and accelerator programs, ScaleBridge Labs provides founders with access to capital, infrastructure, strategic partners, and government transition pathways that help bridge the gap between commercial innovation and national security missions. By enabling the next generation of microelectronics companies to scale and deploy their technologies, ScaleBridge Labs is strengthening America’s technological leadership and the resilience of the defense industrial base. Details at www.scalebridgelabs.com.
Link to Press Release