New Grant Win, New Opportunity to Make a Lasting Impact

$40,000 grant will fund accelerator, positioning small, non-traditional, Indiana defense companies to grow and prosper

(Carmel, IN, July 15, 2025) – The Defense Innovation Networking Group (D!NG) is proud to be the recipient of a third $40,000 grant from the Indiana Economic Development Corporation’s Community Collaboration Fund (CCF).  

The two previous grants (each for $40,000) allowed D!NG to travel the state, in both rural and urban areas, holding informal “roadshows” bringing together small businesses, government officials, and academia.

“During the roadshows, we identified a critical gap in Indiana’s current approach to proactively growing and maturing our defense companies,” said D!NG Executive Director, Heath Murray.

That realization led to the creation of the Indiana Strategic Defense Accelerator (INSDA) —leveraging D!NG’s full “interstate network of weaponized connections” that spans not just Indiana, but the broader Midwest and global defense ecosystem. 

“We aren’t a group that waits for opportunities to appear; we create them. Through INSDA, we will grow, mentor, and drive Indiana’s businesses to compete and thrive in the ever-evolving national security marketplace,” explained Murray. 

INSDA is built to work simultaneously with businesses at all three levels of defense engagement—whether brand new to the DoD ecosystem, mid-tier firms with some government experience, or seasoned contractors already operating at a high level within the defense industrial base.

INSDA will kick off, with additional details on how to get involved,  on September 18, 2025, at a networking event in Fort Wayne, Indiana. 

“These community projects will ensure that current and future entrepreneurs across the state have access to the programming, resources, and support needed to start and scale a business right here in Indiana.” Said Secretary of Commerce David Adams.

This training program will help businesses compete for DoD opportunities through education, connection initiatives, and utilizing Indiana’s already vast number of business and DoD-related resources.

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About D!NG: The Defense Innovation Networking Group, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, is a catalyst for connection and collaboration between existing defense organizations in the Midwest and beyond. It was created to underpin the ultimate mission of innovation for the warfighter and will act as a force multiplier, supporting all organizations that do the same. D!NG hosts a variety of fun and "purposeful collision" events with the federal government, large contractors, non-traditional businesses, academics, elected officials, and venture capitalists to spark innovation and focus on growing entrepreneurship and economic development at a regional level.