Robert Martin

Robert A. "Bob" Martin was appointed President of the Maine Technology Institute by Governor Paul LePage and confirmed by Maine's 125th Legislature in September 2012, following approval by the Joint Standing Committee on Labor, Commerce, Research, and Economic Development (LCRED). MTI is an industry-led, publicly funded nonprofit created by the Maine State Legislature in 1999 to stimulate the growth of technology-intensive companies through grants, loans, and equity investment; over its history it has distributed more than $372 million across 4,000+ projects statewide.

Martin brought more than 30 years of business experience to the role, including executive-level positions at national and international companies. His career spanned senior roles at The Washington Post Company and The Hartford Courant, and global responsibility for polymer and biochemical products at the Reichhold and Earthrise subsidiaries of Dai Nippon Ink & Chemicals (DIC). Immediately before MTI, he was managing partner of Strategic Equity Partners LLC, a Newcastle, Maine-based consultancy. He also held a range of civic and economic-development board roles, including the Foreign Direct Investment Board of the Maine International Trade Center, advisory boards for the Schools of Engineering and Business at the University of Southern Maine, a directorship at the Maine Center for Entrepreneurial Development, and leadership of the Blackstone Accelerates Growth initiative embedded at MTI.

His tenure ended abruptly in August 2014, when Governor LePage removed him after roughly two years in the post. The administration characterized the departure only as "a personnel matter" and declined to give further detail, prompting a group of Democratic legislators to call for more information. The timing drew attention because Ascendant Energy of Owls Head — an MTI grant and loan recipient — had filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy days earlier, listing about $327,948 owed to MTI; officials declined to comment on any connection. Defending his record, Martin said he "sought to challenge the status quo, remain apolitical, and fiercely defended the independent status" of MTI, adding that the organization "became a national model for best practices." MTI subsequently named an interim leader and, in early 2015, LePage nominated Brian Whitney as the permanent director.

• Deployed capital through MTI's tiered, non-dilutive-plus-equity model rather than as a personal angel — TechStart grants (up to $5K) for early technology investigation, Business Innovation Seed Grants (up to $25K) for advanced product design/development, Development Loans (up to $500K) for commercialization, and an equity/venture program for co-investment.
• Competitive, match-based discipline: all grants and loans are awarded competitively, require a 1:1 financial match, and are "subject to rigorous technical and financial review."
• Sector-targeted: funds are directed into Maine's seven strategic technology sectors (biotech, advanced composites/materials, environmental tech, marine & aquaculture, forestry & agriculture, precision manufacturing, and IT).
• Stated thesis (in his words): Martin argued the "unique combination of funding options available through MTI is unmatched anywhere in the country," giving Maine companies "an opportunity to innovate and grow" — positioning MTI as an economic-development catalyst for quality job creation statewide.
• Founder-fit signal: favored companies that could show a technical path to commercialization and secure matching private capital — i.e., ventures able to leverage public dollars into private investment.