NCInnovation will have a new CEO next year. But will it have its endowment?
NCInnovation will soon need a new CEO, presenting another question for the nonprofit that many state legislators look to defund.
In a statement Thursday, NCInnovation said Bennet Waters will step down in early 2026 after four years leading the organization which has received $500 million in public dollars to help UNC System researchers advance promising concepts into revenue-generating businesses. Board chair Kelly King, a former CEO of Truist Bank, will work with Waters on the transition, the nonprofit said.
“With goals met, results delivered, and NCInnovation in its strongest position to-date, my family and I have decided now is the right time to consider my next chapter,” Waters said.
NCInnovation was created with King’s backing in 2020 to carry North Carolina university researchers across the so-called “valley of death,” a period that often sinks proven concepts before they are mature enough to attract private investment. Three years later, the organization requested more than $1.4 billion in state reserves to launch statewide. Under GOP-control, the General Assembly ultimately provided $500 million for an endowment.
This spring, NCInnovation used interest on this endowment to award its second round of grants across a dozen public universities. Recipients included developers of electric bandages, stuttering treatments, and portable ultrasounds.
Pushback to NCInnovation funding has been there from the start. In their current budget proposals, the North Carolina House and Senate each require the organization to return all its endowment, with the Senate plan then giving NCInnovation $25 million annually for four years.
“I don’t think (NCInnovation is) appropriate for taxpayer funding,” said Donald Bryson, CEO of the John Locke Foundation, a conservative think tank in Raleigh. “And I wish Bennet Waters all the best. I hope he has a very successful and happy career. But my concern was never about him, it was always about a new organization and the appropriateness of this sort of use of public money.”
Last year, conservative businessman and political donor Art Pope requested the state audit the nonprofit’s financials. Pope, who serves on the NCInnovation board, has been a vocal critic of the organization’s public funding and has questioned its internal practices.
NCInnovation released the findings of an internal investigation Wednesday that found 16 of Pope’s 17 complaints were “completely unsubstantiated,” and the other issue was already corrected.
In a recent interview with The News & Observer, Waters argued NCInnovation should be given more time to realize its goals. “At the same time we’re facing calls to defund the organization, we are getting calls from other states who want to know how we did this,” he said.
Waters said the Senate budget would allow NCInnovation to continue without interruption for the next four years while the House’s total clawback would end its ability to give awards.
NCInnovation’s board commended Waters in its statement Thursday, highlighting that the organization has so far given UNC System researchers close to $20 million in grants.
This story was originally published August 14, 2025 at 5:43 PM.
