Small Business Innovation
Research & Small Business
Technology Transfer
Henry Ahn
SBIR/STTR Program Director
The National Science Foundation
• SBIR/STTR Overview
• NSF SBIR Stats
• NSF SBIR within NSF (Org Chart)
• NSF SBIR/STTR Program Specifics
• Unique Features of NSF SBIR
• What We Fund/Do Not Fund
• Review Process
• Tips on Strengthening Proposal
Agenda
WHAT IS THE
NSF
SBIR/STTR
PROGRAM?
Photo Credit: Graphene Frontiers, LLC
Congressionally mandated program
Overarching aim is to help build a strong national economy
Goals include:
• stimulating technological innovation in the private sector
• increasing the commercial application of federally supported research results
SBIR began at NSF in the 1970’s
STTR added in 1992
Currently 11 federal agencies participate
The SBIR/STTR Program
The NSF:
A federal agency that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering, currently with a $7.5 billion budget
NSF SBIR/STTR:
An approximately $190 million program that aims to catalyze the commercialization of high-risk technological innovations
Funds roughly 400 companies each year
SBIR/STTR at NSF
6
SBIR De-risks Later Investments
Academia
Industry
“Valley of Death”
--Phase I--
----Supplements-----
-----Phase II------
Resourc
es A
vaila
ble
($)
Discovery Development Commercialization
Investors
Special STTR Requirements• Cooperative research agreement between small business
and university/non-profit research institution in place to protect intellectual property
• A minimum of 40% of budget allocated to the small business; a minimum of 30% of the budget goes to the university/non-profit research institution; the remaining 30% can be distributed as appropriate for the project
SBIR• 2/3 of budget allocated to the small business
SBIR v. STTR
Phase I: ~16% funding rate
Phase II: ~39% funding rate
About 10-15 Phase II companies are acquired each year
About half of all Phase II grantees raise significant third-party funding during the Phase II award as a direct result of their NSF research (~ $60 million cumulative per year)
Program Stats (Past 3 Years)
• Recipients receive training and mentorship in key business areas
• Connection to other small companies performing innovative R&D
• Winning an SBIR/STTR award signals success to investors, partners and customers
Grants That Go Beyond Funding
QUESTIONS?
Photo Credit: Graphene Frontiers, LLC
SBIR WITHIN
NSF
Photo credit: NavillumNanotechnologies, Inc.
12
Office of the Assistant Director
Grace Wang (Acting)
Deputy Assistant Director
Barry Johnson (Acting)
Industrial
Innovation and
Partnerships
(IIP)
Graciela Narcho (Acting)
Grant Opportunities for
Academic Liaison
with Industry (GOALI)
Prakash Balan
IIP Division Director &
Acting Deputy Assistant Director,
Directorate for Engineering
Barry W. Johnson
Partnerships for Innovation:
Accelerating Innovation
Research (PFI-AIR)
Barbara Kenny
Advanced Materials and
Instrumentation (MI)
Debasis Majumdar
Program Support Manager
Mary Konjevoda
Partnerships for Innovation:
Building Innovation Capacity
(PFI-BIC)
Alexandra Medina-Borja
Program Analyst
Carl Anderson
Program Analyst
Dawn Patterson
Contract Staff
Semiconductors(S),
Photonic (PH)
Devices/Materials and
Internet of Things (IoT)
Rick Schwerdtfeger
Advanced Manufacturing &
Nanotechnology (MN)
Rajesh MehtaInformation
Technologies (IT)
Peter Atherton
Electronic Hardware,
Robotics and Wireless
Technologies (EW)
Murali Nair
Chemical and Environmental
Technologies (CT)
Prakash Balan, Anna Brady-
Estevez
Biological Technologies (BT)
Ruth Shuman
Smart Health (SH)
Jesus Soriano
Education Applications
And Technologies (EA)
Glenn Larsen
Innovation Corps (I-Corps)
Lydia McClure
Steven Konsek
Academic Cluster
Acting IIP Division Director &
Deputy Division Director
Gracie Narcho
Operations Specialist
Greg Misiorek
Program Analyst
Miki Templeton
Industry & University
Cooperative Research
Program (I/UCRC)
Raffaella Montelli
AAAS Fellow,
SBIR/STTR
Eric Keys
Communications
Specialist
Kelly Monterroso
Biomedical (BM) Technologies
Henry Ahn
SBIR/STTR Program
AAAS Fellow, I-Corps
Joe Bonivel
AAAS Fellow, I/UCRC
Joe Kliegman
Senior Program Director
Other Topics (OT)
Ben Schrag
Pathways Intern
Paul Shiller
PROGRAM
SPECIFICS
Photo credit: DeviceFarm
Must be a Small Business
• Set up as a for-profit organization
• Has 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)
• Located in the US
• >51% owned and controlled by US individuals (citizen or legal resident)
Qualifications:
NSF won’t buy anything from you
We don’t identify the application or technology space
You identify the market need and propose a tech-based solution
Broad program topics cover almost every area of technology:• Educational Technologies & Applications • Information Technologies • Semiconductors and Photonic Devices & Materials • Internet of Things• Electronic Hardware, Robotics & Wireless Technologies • Advanced Manufacturing & Nanotechnology • Advanced Materials & Instrumentation • Chemical & Environmental Technologies • Biological Technologies • Smart Health and Biomedical Technologies
Topic fit is much less important than meeting the technical and commercial requirements of the solicitation
What’s Different about NSF SBIR
R&D to overcome significant technical hurdles
• Novel, proprietary
• Prove feasibility/viability of a new product, process or service
• High technical risk, early-stage development
A significant commercial opportunity
• Game-changing technology in the chosen market/application space
• Product-market fit validated by customers/partners
What We Fund
• Basic research (i.e., research with the primary goal of knowledge creation)
• Incremental (evolutionary) improvement to an existing product or service
• Projects where:• There is no strong chance of commercial success• NSF funding can’t make a big impact on the company’s
prospects
• Analytical or “market” studies of existing technologies or products/services
What We Don’t Fund
LOGISTICAL
INFORMATION
Photo Credit: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH
• Applications require written proposals responding to a solicitation (solicitations released 90 days before the submission deadline)
• Deadlines in June and December
• Submitting a proposal to NSF does not constitute a public disclosure. All information is treated as confidential, and proprietary details may be marked.
• Proposals are reviewed by technical and commercial experts; process may last 4-5 months
• Awards begin about 6 months from submission
Basic Application Information
• Innovative product with significant societal impact
• Strong evidence that the technology works as intended
• Understanding of the market potential, customers and commercialization strategy
• Support letters from potential partners, customers or investors
• Strong management team/advisory board
• Communication with PD’s strongly encouraged
Strengthening NSF SBIR Application
Seed funding for high technical risk, high return innovations
Focus is on commercialization – important even at Phase I
NSF is not a customer – you identify the market need
Funding is only for R&D – you will need money beyond NSF funding
Pivots are OK, but must be evidence-based
Don’t stress over submission topic or sub-topic
Communicate with the Program Director
Start early!
Key Takeaways
Contact Us:
www.nsf.gov/sbir
@NSFSBIR
Henry Ahn
[email protected] 703-292-7069
THANK YOU