Interested in non-dilutive funding for R&D?

The Small Business Innovation Research/Small Business Technology Transfer (SBIR/STTR) programs offer research and development grants exclusively to small businesses through 11 federal agencies. These grants are aimed at giving promising high-risk technologies foundational support to prove the feasibility of their innovations, accelerating their transition to products and services with commercial and societal impact. Among those agencies, the National Science Foundation (NSF) may fund the widest array of innovations in almost every conceivable sector. NSF likes to say they are “technology agnostic” excluding only clinical trials for medical innovations. They also have a high bar for innovation and level of risk.

To narrow the vast number of possible applicants, a few years ago NSF instituted a Project Pitch step into their application process. To be eligible to submit a full application, you must submit a Project Pitch and receive an invitation to proceed to the full application step. The pitch is generally about two pages long, consisting of answers to four questions describing your technological innovation, the technical objectives and challenges needed overcome to prove feasibility, the market opportunity, and your company and team. Pitches are accepted anytime (365/24/7) and you will generally receive a reply within 2-3 weeks. A company can only have one pitch under review at any time and is limited to two pitches in any 12-month period.

If you are considering SBIR/STTR funding for your innovation, submitting an NSF Project Pitch is a great way to test the waters. No government registrations or official company formation are required at this stage, although they are required to submit a full application. And even if your technology is suited to other federal agencies (e.g., DoW, USDA, DOE or NIH), preparing an NSF pitch is a great way to organize your plans for getting your idea to market and forces you to consider what innovative R&D is needed/what risks remain unproven.

For more information visit: https://www.sbir.gov/ y NSF’s Seed Fund. MTI’s Technical Assistance Program (TAP) team offers pro bono support for preparing the Project Pitch, guiding the development of a competitive proposals by Maine small businesses interested in these programs and also provides help navigating agencies and topics. FMI visit the Soporte para la solicitud de fondos federales page on MTI’s website.