Research & Development
Albany/New York’s Capital Region has a long history of innovation, dating back to Thomas Edison and General Electric more than 100 years ago. This tradition of innovation continues today, with Schenectady County having the second highest patenting intensity among U.S. counties between 2000 and 2020. Inventors at the Albany Nanotech Complex have also helped generate more semiconductor patents than those in most states. And institutions, such as Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the University at Albany’s College of Nanotechnology, Science and Engineering (CNSE), provide these research hubs with the engineering talent that keeps them at the cutting edge.
University R&D
The Capital Region is home to several world-class research centers, including two R1 research universities: the University at Albany (UAlbany) and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The success of the Capital Region’s R&D to Commercialization Cluster has been enabled by our educational institutions, which deliver a pipeline of more than 4,000 STEM graduates annually, including more than 500 advanced STEM degrees.
Each year, Capital Region universities expend nearly $700 million on research, with private businesses contributing millions in funding and projects ranging from semiconductors to artificial intelligence/quantum computing to mRNA. Some of the region’s premier university research centers include the Center for Semiconductor Research (UAlbany CNSE), the Cancer Research Center & Center for Functional Genomics (UAlbany East Campus), Center for Computational Innovations (RPI), the RNA Institute (UAlbany), and Center for Future Energy Systems (RPI).
Business R&D
The Capital Region is where talent and technology meet. Albany is one of 59 metro areas where businesses spend more than $1 billion annually on R&D, and it has more than 7,600 workers employed in the private physical/engineering/biological research industry.
Major business R&D centers in the Capital Region include GE’s Niskayuna campus that houses research operations for GE Aerospace, GE Healthcare and GE Vernova. The Albany Nanotech Complex houses Applied Materials’ Materials Engineering Technology Accelerator (META) Center, Tokyo Electron’s TEL Technology Center America, and IBM Research’s AI Hardware Center.
Other companies with significant research facilities and laboratories in the region include the contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) Curia Global in Albany and Rensselaer, the resins producer SABIC in Selkirk, the silicones manufacturer Momentive Performance Materials in Niskayuna, and the open-source software developer Kitware in Clifton Park.
Albany/NY’s Capital Region R&D Assets
University R&D
- Albany Medical Center: Biomedical Acceleration Commercialization Center, Interdisciplinary Research and Clinical Trials Center
- NYCAP Research Alliance between Albany Medical Center, RPI and the University at Albany
- Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute: Center for Automation Technologies and Systems, Center for Future Energy Systems
- SUNY Polytechnic Institute: SUNY Polytechnic’s Solar Energy Development Center, U.S. Photovoltaic Manufacturing Consortium (PVMC)
- Union College: Science and Engineering Center
- University at Albany: The Cancer Research Center, RNA Institute
Business R&D Labs
- Applied BioPhysics, Troy: real-time automated cell-based assays powered by the technology of ECIS
- Applied Materials, Albany: materials engineering
- Criterium, Saratoga Springs: phase I-IIIb clinical services, including monitoring, statistics, and BA/BE studies
- Curia, Guilderland: pharmaceuticals
- Ecovative Design, Green Island: mycelium materials
- GE Vernova, Schenectady: renewable energy
- GE Research, Niskayuna: biotechnology, nanotechnology, renewable energy
- IBM/Samsung, Albany: semiconductors, AI, quantum computing
- International Electronic Machines Corporation, Troy: transportation safety and security solutions
- Kitware, Clifton Park: open source software
- Mechanical Technology Inc., Albany: metrology equipment
- Mohawk Innovative Technology, Colonie: oil-free, high-speed rotating machinery
- Plug Power, Latham: hydrogen fuel cells
- Pulmokine, East Greenbush: inhalable pulmonary drugs
- Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, East Greenbush: pharmaceuticals
- SABIC, Selkirk: chemicals
- SI Group, Niskayuna: chemicals
- StemCultures, East Greenbush: controlled-release reagents that provide a stable micro-environment for improved cell growth
- Symmetrix, Clifton Park: provider of OEM component technology, software tools, and services for CAD/CAE integration
- Taconic Biosciences, East Greenbush and Germantown: commercial animal models
- Tokyo Electron, Albany: semiconductors
Funding Partners
