Who Is Funding the Science That's Too Early for Venture Capital?
April 22, 2026
Cornell University
#14 in Universities
14Institution Overview
Overall
Ranking
14
20
Rank in
Research Capabilities
13
Rank in
Entrepreneurial Readiness
14
Rank in
Market Translation
Ithaca, NY
Cornell University ranks 14th among universities in the Cure Innovation Index, with its main campus in Ithaca, New York. The university places 13th in Entrepreneurial Readiness and 14th in Market Translation, with Research Capabilities ranking 20th. Cornell holds a Clinical and Translational Science Award and offers MD-PhD and MD/MBA programs, an incubator, an entrepreneur-in-residence program, and biomedical entrepreneurship training. That breadth of infrastructure, paired with consistent performance across all three domains, reflects a university as attentive to commercialization as to scientific inquiry.
Ranking Metrics
Research Capabilities
Cornell University ranked above average for Research Capabilities, a measure of the foundational infrastructure and resources that enable an institution to conduct high-quality, innovative science. Out of the factors in this category, Cornell University fared best in Funding Support.
Learn MoreEntrepreneurial Readiness
Cornell University ranked above average for Entrepreneurial Readiness, a measure of whether the institution has built a supportive ecosystem for entrepreneurship and whether faculty are engaged in and incentivized toward commercial activity. Out of the factors in this category, Cornell University fared best in Ecosystem Support.
Learn MoreMarket Translation
Cornell University ranked above average for Market Translation, a measure of how effectively a research institution moves scientific discovery out of the lab and into real-world clinical and commercial applications. Out of the factors in this category, Cornell University fared best in Health Impact.
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Cure Innovation Index Methodology
From a pool of more than 6,000 institutions, the top 303 were ranked using two dozen indicators — from scientific foundation and lab infrastructure to patents, products, and partnerships — drawn from more than a dozen federal and commercial databases, an original audit of all institutions, and surveys of more than 3,300+ scientists, industry leaders, and biomedical experts.
Insights From the Cure Innovation Index
Explore by Category
Innovation isn't a single moment — it's an entire ecosystem. The Index evaluates institutions across two dozen indicators, grouped in three core domains that reveal the full picture of what it takes to turn groundbreaking science into real-world impact.
