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Establishing and naming a new entity at MIT? New guidelines show the way

Featured in September 2026 newsletter

MIT’s entrepreneurial energy is one of its defining strengths. Members of our community are always exploring new ways to advance teaching and research, turn ideas into practical solutions for society’s benefit, and foster new collaborations. To do this, community members often form new, named entities, like labs, centers, initiatives, projects, and programs.

Until now, though, the path for creating and naming new entities has been informal and largely invisible, leading many community members to seek greater clarity about the process and expectations. New guidelines from the Committee on Guidelines for Establishing New Institute Entities (GENIE) aim to provide that clarity, creating an Institute-wide process for establishing and naming new entities, applicable regardless of funding source.

The committee, which was charged in 2026 by Provost Anantha Chandrakasan and chaired by Professor Anne White, crafted recommendations to bring consistency, transparency, and strategic alignment to the establishment and naming of new entities, while leaving intact existing systems for sponsored agreements, gift acceptance, compliance, and risk review.

If you are a PI, or a group of PIs, thinking about launching a new, named entity for any reason, the guidelines apply to you. The word “entity” is used in the broad, everyday sense: essentially anything with a public name and, most likely, a website. That includes alliances, centers, hubs, laboratories, initiatives, programs, projects, and more. The guidelines apply whether the work is funded by sponsored funding, philanthropy, membership fees, other revenue, or a combination of sources.

There is one important exception: PIs’ own research groups are exempt. The committee did recommend, however, that names for PI-led labs and groups clearly distinguish them from Institute-level entities — typically by association with the PI’s name or an equivalent descriptor (“X Lab,” “Y Group, led by Professor Z”). Existing groups with established identities are encouraged to add clarifying language to public-facing materials.

The Provost’s Office has created a new guidebook to the GENIE guidelines that tells PIs and other community members what they need to know. A core part of the guidelines is a new entity review process; here’s a short summary of that new process:

The entity review process in five steps

  1. Early buy-in. Talk with your DLCI head or director first if you are thinking about starting a new, named entity. Then, with the support of the head or director of your DLCI, talk with your dean — or the Vice President for Research (VPR), for VPR-reporting units. The goal is early leadership buy-in. Be ready to answer preliminary questions: What is the purpose of the entity? Do similar efforts already exist at MIT, and would joining one of them be a better path? How will it be funded?
  2. Intake form. Complete a brief intake form for the Office of the Provost, once you have the support of your DLCI head and your dean. (You can also use the form as a way to structure those early conversations — you’ll need to complete it eventually either way.)
  3. Funding path. If funding is already in place, submit the intake form to the Provost’s Office. If funding is not yet in place, submit the form and, in consultation with your dean or the VPR, contact the relevant office based on the funding source: OSATT (osatt@mit.edu) for sponsored funds, Resource Development (contact-rd@mit.edu) for gift funds, or the Office of the General Counsel (mitogc@mit.edu) for member fees. (When funding is uncertain or comes from a blend of sources, start with OSATT.)
  4. Provost’s Cabinet review. With the dean’s endorsement and the intake form completed, the proposal for the establishment of a named entity goes to the Provost’s Cabinet, which may approve it, reject it, or return it for modification. This review covers both the establishment and the naming of the entity. Where relevant, requests for a specific MIT web address may also be part of this review.
  5. Inventory. Approved entities are entered into a new Institute-wide inventory.

The guidebook provides much more detail on the GENIE guidelines, including information on a taxonomy for choosing a name for a new entity.

Two things to keep in mind

First, naming an entity does not authorize the underlying activities, funding, or agreements — and, conversely, securing a gift or sponsored project does not confer approval to use a particular name or to present the work as an Institute-level entity. Timelines for final approval for establishing and naming an entity can vary: for example, negotiating a name with a donor, or terms with a non-federal sponsor, can take weeks to months.

Second, the guidelines apply only to new entities; they are not retroactive. The GENIE committee did recommend the creation of a digital inventory of all entities at MIT, which could be reviewed over time for strategic alignment.

More information

The guidebook for PIs and other community members is available here. If you’d like to read the GENIE committee’s full report, you can find it here. If you have any questions, please write to genie@mit.edu.

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