By: Tyler McCusker, Commercialization Network Coordinator at Tech Launch Arizona

The University Of Arizona

At the heart of NSF I-Corps is a powerful principle: challenge your biases and assumptions about the validity of your idea. Talk to customers, listen deeply, and be willing to let go of your original beliefs.

Through your I-Corps-trained listening, you will start to identify patterns in the responses that can be not only informative; they can be transformational. Often, an entrepreneur enters I-Corps laser-focused on their “brilliant idea,” only to realize halfway through training that customers don’t share the same enthusiasm or even experience the same problem.

Arriving at this point is by no means a dead end. It’s an opportunity. Some of the most successful ventures are those that had the courage to pivot early – sometimes, more than once.

Steve Blank, one of the architects of the Lean Startup movement and the I-Corps program itself, defines a pivot as “a substantive change to one or more of the nine boxes on the business model canvas.” You’re not just tweaking your idea haphazardly; you’re changing direction based on what the market is telling you.

A few types of pivots may include:

• Customer Segment Pivot: You discovered a different group of people who actually need your solution.
• Problem Pivot: You were solving a problem that didn’t really exist (or wasn’t painful enough).
• Technology Pivot: Your tech is great … but better suited for a totally different use case.
  

One core idea behind I-Corps is to reduce the risk of building something nobody wants. It’s better to “fail” on a whiteboard or during a customer interview than after you’ve spent two years and hundreds of thousands of dollars building a product that no one will use!

Here are a few real case studies of I-Corps teams from the University of Arizona. These teams pivoted to greater success, partly as a result of the conclusions they gained during their customer discovery experiences:

1. Lunewave 
   In 2017, Lunewave made a decisive shift. Originally founded as Tucson Microwave Innovation, the company rebranded and redirected its focus toward developing advanced radar and antenna systems, with an eye on applications like autonomous vehicles and next-generation wireless communication.
   
   The change was driven by the research of co-founder Hao Xin, a professor at the University of Arizona. His work led to the development of 3D-printed Luneburg lens antennas, which offer 360-degree sensing and high-resolution detection and are critical for self-driving technology and emerging connectivity infrastructure.
   
   Rather than staying the course in a crowded or legacy market, Lunewave adapted early to where demand was headed. It was a clear example of a strategic pivot and one that positioned the company at the forefront of a fast-moving industry.
   
   
2. Freefall Aerospace 
   FreeFall Aerospace underwent a significant strategic pivot in 2020. Originally focused on developing advanced antenna technologies for space and ground communications, the company identified an opportunity to apply its innovations to the burgeoning 5G market. This led to the formation of a new entity, FreeFall 5G.
   
   The pivot was driven by the realization that FreeFall’s patented antenna designs, initially intended for aerospace applications, could be adapted to meet the demands of 5G infrastructure. The newly formed FreeFall 5G aimed to develop intelligent antenna systems to enhance 5G connectivity, particularly in challenging environments.
   
   This strategic shift allowed FreeFall to leverage its existing technologies in a new market, demonstrating the company’s adaptability and commitment to innovation.
   

Pivoting doesn’t mean you failed. It means you’ve listened! I-Corps gives teams permission to question everything, guided by structured experimentation and direct customer feedback.

So, if you’re considering applying for NSF I-Corps, remember this: your idea might not survive 20 or 100 interviews, but your mission and your desire to create impact and help others can. Stay curious, stay flexible, and don’t be afraid to fail fast.