UW Startup Company Unlocked Labs Selected for NIH Market Research Grant

Unlocked Labs, an innovative startup company incubated at IMPACT 307 Laramie and a client of the University of Wyoming’s Wyoming Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (WyCEI), has been selected to participate in a National Institutes of Health (NIH) I-Corps market research program grant.

This immersive, entrepreneurial training program facilitates the transformation of inventions into thriving businesses.

Unlocked Labs is shifting the probiotic paradigm with a single-strain probiotic thoughtfully designed to perform a specific task. By leveraging its development platform, Unlocked Labs can “unlock” a microbe’s dormant power to degrade specific compounds such as oxalic acid. The company is making its probiotics the critical ingredient for targeted dietary supplements.

WyCEI Director Penelope Shihab is mentoring the Unlocked Labs team while it explores firsthand the needs, wants and opportunities of the kidney stone market.

“We are very excited to have the opportunity to participate in NIH’s I-Corps program,” says James Francis, one of the startup’s co-founders. “Learning how doctors and people manage their oxalic acid levels now will teach us how to make consumers aware of our targeted and Unlocked Probiotics.”

WyCEI was established in 2022 as part of the Wyoming Innovation Partnership to support the state’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, provide internships and mentorship to Wyoming startups, and promote resources for students and entrepreneurs across the state.

Unlocked Labs’ participation in the I-Corps program will provide it with the help and mentorship necessary to bring its innovative probiotics to market.

For more information about Unlocked Labs and its products, visit www.unlocked-labs.com. For more information about WyCEI and its services, visit www.uwyo.edu/innovation.

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