Skip to main content

UNC North Carolina Business Startups

350+
Startups

8,000+
Jobs Created

$10+ Billion
Annual Revenue

 

At Carolina, the research, discoveries, and creative activity of our faculty and students translate into new businesses and jobs for North Carolina. A major force in the state’s economy, UNC–Chapel Hill drives economic prosperity by attracting the best and brightest minds to the University and providing an environment that inspires creativity and discovery. Carolina invests heavily to create a culture of entrepreneurship and a support network on campus that propels research and innovation into viable startup businesses. Today more than 300 UNC startup companies located in North Carolina provide jobs to nearly 9,000 state residents. These companies employ 72,000 worldwide and bring $10.5 billion in revenue back to the state each year.

UNC Startup Stats

  • There are 454 active startups connected with UNC-Chapel Hill. Of that total, 376 are headquartered across 16 North Carolina counties.
  • UNC startups employ 8,902 people in North Carolina.
  • 35 UNC startups manufacture products in North Carolina.
  • Of the $11.2 billion in annual revenue generated by UNC startups, 94 percent is earned by Carolina startups headquartered in North Carolina.
  • Out of all companies that got their start at the University, 79 percent are still active (454 out of 575).

Featured Startup: Bivarus, LLC

picture of Bivarus

Bivarus was created in response to frustration among health-care professionals with current patient satisfaction tools and their lack of scientific precision and actionable findings. In response, the company has created a platform to generate precise findings around the quality of a patient’s experience with health care and to provide sound data for improving care.

UNC Research Startups Per Year 2000-2017


Bar graph talking about all UNC Chapel Hill Startups. Pre-2000 there were 21 new startups. In 2000, there were 20 active startups and 9 new startups. In 2001, there were 29 active startups and 11 new startups. In 2002, there were 40 active startups, 5 new startups, and 1 merged/acquired. In 2003, there were 44 active startups and 3 new startups. In 2004, there were 47 active startups and 7 new startups. In 2005, there were 54 active startups, 7 new startups, and 1 merged/acquired. In 2006, there were 60 active startups and 4 new startups. In 2007, there were 64 active startups and 14 new startups. In 2008, there were 77 active startups, 8 new startups, and 2 merged/acquired. In 2009, there were 83 active startups, 14 new startups, and 1 merged/acquired. In 2010, there were 96 active startups, 17 new startup, and 1 merged/acquired. In 2011, there were 111 active startups and 19 new startups. In 2012, there were 125 active startups, 17 new startups, and 1 merged/acquired. In 2013, there were 139 active startups, 26 new startups, and 1 merged/acquired. In 2014, there were 163 active startups, 28 new startups, and 2 merged/acquired. In 2015, there were 182 active startups and 24 new startups. In 2016, there were 198 active startups, 14 new startups, and 4 merged/acquired. In 2017, there were 202 active startups, 4 new startups, and 2 merged/acquired.

 A map showing all the states that house UNC startups. There are startups in Washington State, Oregon, California, Colorado, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Indiana, New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
Click here for information on collection of data and UNC startup resources.