More than $52 million in grant funds are available for Michigan companies pursuing additional mobility-related training and consulting services.
The Global Epicenter of Mobility (GEM) initiative is working to expand Michigan’s mobile capacity and boost our economy.
With funding provided by the U.S. Economic Development Administration and led locally by the Detroit Regional Partnership (DRP), the GEM monies are available to eligible Michigan manufacturers to assist in their mobility transformation, develop their organization and remain competitive.
The GEM grant is a targeted funding program and is available to companies in all 11 southeast Michigan counties, including Macomb.
Key benefits of the program include:
- Up to $100,000 in matching grant funds to qualifying companies for technical assistance projects.
- A comprehensive assessment and valuation report.
- Development of an opportunity plan.
Global Epicenter of Mobility Coalition projects include workforce training, direct assistance to legacy manufacturers and entrepreneurial support for start-ups in the mobility space, which includes electric vehicles, autonomous vehicles and other mobility technology.
The coalition will work with businesses across the supply chain to recruit, train and re-skill workers to meet talent needs.
The coalition, which includes the Big Three automakers; United Auto Workers; universities; and state, local, and community leadership, aims to build a more collaborative and equitable regional economy.
It is expected that the grant will vastly transform the Detroit region into a the Global Epicenter of Mobility, building on existing automotive expertise to create an inclusive and sustainable advanced-mobility cluster.
This grant and the additional investment it will spark will enable the region to launch into a second century of advanced mobility prominence while deeply embedding economic equity into every aspect of industry cluster growth. Advanced mobility includes the multi-dimensional movement of people or goods and the products, materials, processes, and technologies that support it.
The GEM grant program ends in October 2025, and applications are accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis. Companies must meet certain criteria to be eligible for GEM grant funding, including:
- Having fewer than 500 employees
- Deriving more than 10% of annual revenues from the mobility or transportation sectors
- For those that do not have 10% annual revenue in mobility, companies demonstrating the critical potential to address a particular need in the advanced mobility supply chains may also be eligible.
- Priority will be given to companies in the internal combustible engine (ICE) supply chain as well as those considered high risk for disruption in historically excluded communities and those that have clear leadership commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).
If you’d like to learn more about GEM grants, contact our economic developers at 586-469-5100 for free and confidential assistance.
