GLOBAL TECH LAUNCH

Hosted at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, the Global Tech Launch (GTL) program is developed in response to the demands in the regional entrepreneurial ecosystem for training born-global business innovators. The GTL program is an intense incubator-style course to develop globally-minded tech innovators and business leaders. The program works especially closely with the tech-intensive innovators, ranging from pre-seed labs to growth start-ups to new product development teams at corporations. In the GTL program, each team consists of three groups of members: (1) business/technology partners that provide internship projects for Charlotte students; (2) Charlotte students serving as entrepreneurial leaders; and (3) global virtual team partners who are competitively selected from international partner universities and business schools in a business/tech partner’s targeted foreign market. Over an 15-week program, each team will complete a global market research to support the business/technology partner’s launch of a new product or service into the targeted foreign market. 

The GTL program partners closely with the region’s most influential incubators and business associations, including Ventureprise, Charlotte Regional Business Alliance (CLT Alliance), and the World Affairs Council of Charlotte (WACC). Such partnerships will provide GTL teams with access to the venturing ecosystem, international business communities, mentorship, and business outreach events. 

This unique partnership among Charlotte, business associations, and enterprises has established and strengthened the linkages among Charlotte students, the business community in the region, and international partners. In addition to a novel experiential learning approach for the students, the GTL program connects technology-intensive businesses in the US, from start-ups to new product teams in corporations, to accelerate their process in global customer discovery and integration within the global value chain. 

GTL has ended in 2022 after Professor Victor Chen left the academia. 

The GTL program strives for measurable impact and results:


  • Two business/tech participants earned NSF SBIR/STTR grants within 12 months after the program
  • One business/tech participant earned NC IDEA Seed grant within 12 months after the program
  • One business participant discovered its first international corporate customer during the program
  • Perfect course evaluation by graduate students who participated

Alumni of Business/Tech Participants

Sponsors

Institutions Where Foreign Students Were Selected