Shapiro Administration Highlights the Need for Funding to Grow Pennsylvania’s Innovation Economy, Visits AlphaLab Health in Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh, PA – Today, Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) Secretary Rick Siger highlighted the importance of supporting and reinvesting in Pennsylvania’s innovation economy during a tour of AlphaLab Health, an accelerator program focused on bringing healthcare technologies into Southwest Pennsylvania.

Since taking office in 2023, the Shapiro Administration has focused on sparking Pennsylvania’s innovation economy. In his 2026-27 proposed budget, Governor Josh Shapiro is calling for increased funding for innovation in the areas of opportunity laid out in the Commonwealth’s 10-year Economic Development Strategy — including life sciences, robotics and technology, energy, manufacturing, and agriculture.

“AlphaLab Health is a state-of-the-art facility designed to support entrepreneurs, accelerate product development, and advance solutions to complex challenges in the healthcare industry,” said Secretary Siger. “The impact of their work will be felt through job creation, improvement of patient care, and enhanced innovation in the healthcare system. Pennsylvania continues to lead the country in the technology sector and AlphaLab Health is a great example of our commitment to growing the innovation economy in the Commonwealth.”

A collaboration between Allegheny Health Network (AHN) and Innovation Works (IW), AlphaLab Health is a business incubator, a place to solve real-world healthcare challenges. The results have a positive impact on the local community including increased tax revenue, job creation, and improvement of trust between the residents and institutions that serve them.

AlphaLab Health is based at AHN Suburban, a former acute care hospital in Bellevue, Allegheny County, that has been reimagined over the last six years as a life sciences and community innovation hub.

“We are proud to welcome Secretary Siger to AHN Suburban to see firsthand how AlphaLab Health is advancing innovation in our region,” said Jeffrey Cohen, MD, Allegheny Health Network’s Chief Physician Executive, Community Health and Innovation. “At AHN, we recognize that health care delivery and economic vitality are closely connected, particularly in underserved communities where hospitals too often struggle to survive. Through AlphaLab Health, we are advancing a unique collaboration among government partners, entrepreneurs, clinicians, and industry leaders to solve everyday health care challenges and ensure that innovation translates into meaningful benefits for the patients and communities we serve.”

“AlphaLab Health represents a unique model for life sciences innovation, combining the clinical expertise of Allegheny Health Network with the resources and experience of one of the nation’s most active venture development organizations,” said Ven Raju, President and CEO, Innovation Works. “Together, we help founders commercialize breakthrough technologies through access to domain experts, clinicians, capital, and mentorship. We also expanded that commitment through the launch of a follow-on fund to help our most promising life sciences companies continue to grow and scale here in Pennsylvania.”

As of the end of 2025, 35 companies completed the program which have received initial investments of approximately $3 million. The companies have raised more than $65 million in follow on funding and created 114 direct and 342 indirect jobs.

Governor Shapiro’s 2026-27 budget proposal increases funding for innovation to continue economic growth around the Commonwealth.

• Innovate in PA 2.0: Back in 2013 under a Republican Governor, Pennsylvania launched the Innovation fund. Building off of that legacy, this budget creates the Innovate in PA 2.0 program to deploy nearly $100 million into the state’s innovation economy. Innovate in PA 2.0 would provide capital for promising startups — following in the footsteps of companies like Gecko Robotics in Pittsburgh or Gilson Snow in Selinsgrove — fund clinical trials for the life sciences, and develop a workforce and education pipeline to help these companies succeed.
• Ag Innovation Grant Program: Pennsylvania agriculture supports over 48,800 farms, nearly 600,000 jobs, and contributes $132.5 billion annually to our economy. Governor Shapiro understands that economic success is dependent on our rural communities and farmlands ― that’s why Pennsylvania has leaned into the innovation found on our farms and has put real capital behind our farmers. The 2026-27 budget includes a $9 million increase ― a total of $19 million — for the first-in-the-nation Agricultural Innovation program.

The Shapiro Administration recognizes that Pennsylvania has always been a national leader in discovery and innovation — from Ben Franklin’s lightning rod to the polio vaccine. The Commonwealth has been a key supporter of that innovation, encouraging Pennsylvanians’ big ideas and funding many of our nation’s firsts, including the first public-private technology partnerships in 1983 and the first Agricultural Innovation Grant Program under Governor Shapiro in 2023.

For more information about DCED, visit the agency’s website, Facebook, X, and LinkedIn.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Penny Ickes, dcedpress@pa.gov

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