The first beneficiaries of the governor's START-UP NY program are heavily concentrated upstate, but two will be moving into incubator space owned by SUNY Downstate—where they will enjoy a completely tax-free existence for 10 years.

Americord Registry, a cord-blood bank, and Modern Meadow, a synthetic meat cultivator, were chosen as part of the START-UP NY initiative launched last fall by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Americord Registry, a six-year-old company, will be moving more of its operations to Brooklyn in the coming months. The company collects and stores stem cells from umbilical cord blood for future medical use, such as treating leukemia or lymphoma—cases in which a bone marrow donor could be hard to find. The company currently contracts with a lab in Indianapolis to process collected cord blood, said chief executive Marty Smithmyer.

"We probably wouldn't be doing this expansion if it weren't for this program," he said. "It'll help us reduce our costs in terms of hiring and operations, and will enable us to grow faster. Our profits, while they're still small, won't be taxed in the same way."

Companies in the program do not have to pay income, business, corporate, state or local, sales and property taxes, or franchise fees. Mr. Smithmyer aims to open a lab inside the biotech incubator on SUNY Downstate's campus by October, and plans to hire about 10 employees to work there, he said.

Modern Meadow, which grows synthetic meat and leather products, will be moving to New York from Columbia, Mo., where the company was founded. The company will move into the BioBAT incubator operated by SUNY Downstate at the Brooklyn Army Terminal in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. The company's founder, Andres Fogacs, previously told Crain's he was relocating to be closer to New York's restaurant and fashion industries.

Modern Meadow will invest $6.5 million into the move, according to the governor's office; Americord Registry will invest more than $402,000.

The SUNY Downstate Medical Center acted as a sponsor for the two startups, vetting their business and financing plans and helping them apply to the state program. The university broke ground last month on an expansion for its biotech incubator, located next to its central Brooklyn campus, which will double the facility's available space.

For the university, proximity to biotech companies means more job opportunities for students—an important factor at a time when jobs in academia are scarce, said Eva Cramer, Downstate's vice president for Biotechnology and Scientific Affairs.

"Several times a week, companies are calling me about the possibility of relocating" to New York, said Ms. Cramer. "We have a company from China, who was looking at space in Florida, saw the [governor's] ad on TV, and said 'I'd rather be in NY.' So now we're in discussions with them."