On October 27th, OTT held an SBIR/STTR educational panel focused on answering questions and clearing up misconceptions about these funding programs. Kevin Lei, our Director of Faculty & Startup Services, served as moderated for a distinguished panel, consisting of a group of professionals with a great deal of experience in applying for and obtaining SBIR and STTR federal grants. On the panel were Juliana Cyril, the director of Office of Technology & Innovation and SBIR Program Director at CDC; Connie Casteel from the State of Georgia’s SBIR Assistance Program; Vince LaTerza, serial entrepreneur and President and CEO of Aiye BioPharma; and Ernest Garcia, Emory Professor and Scientific Founder of Syntermed.
From that seminar we realized there were a lot of FAQs, so to help clear up some confusion about SBIR and STTR grants for those that couldn’t attend, we’ve put together this handy table!
SBIR vs. STTR
| SBIR | STTR | |
| Who applies? | For-profit U. S. small business | For-profit U. S. small business |
| Principal Investigator | Employed at least 51% by the small business with at least 10% effort | May be employed by either the small business or non-profit with at least 10% effort |
| Intellectual Property (IP) | Requires the small business and non-profit to have an agreement concerning IP and further research/development | |
| Amounts and timelines | Phase I: $150,000 for 6 months Phase II: $1M for 2 years |
Phase I: $100,000 for 1 year Phase II: $750,000 for 2 years |
| Is collaboration required? | Allowed | Required |
| Work distribution (R&D) | small business: minimum 66% Phase I, 50% Phase II Non-profit: maximum 33% Phase I, 50% Phase II |
small business: minimum 40% both phases Non-profit minimum 30% both phases |
| Number of participating agencies | 12 | 5 |
Take-aways
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Start early there are many steps in the process and it will take many months
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Consult with Emory department administration regarding Emory specific requirements, particularly as it relates to conflict of interest or commitment (effort)
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Speak to the program officer before beginning the application, they are a wealth of information
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Be sure that the application supports the aims/goals of the agency and program being applied to
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These grants (or contracts) are not alternative ways of funding basic research but are designed to launch market-worthy products and create jobs, think economic development
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It is now permissible to switch between SBIR and STTR between phases
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Agency set-asides are rising due to the recent re-authorization, more than $2B is available each year
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Not all agencies are large enough to participate in both programs or all aspects
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The total grant amount includes both direct and indirect costs
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Fast-track, or Direct to Phase II, applications combine the Phase I and Phase II activities for submission and review
Is your small business eligible?
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Less than 500 employees
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For profit U. S. business
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All funds must be spent in the United States<
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Small business must be 51% owned by U. S. citizens or permanent residents
Find additional information in our blogs “STTR Funding for Your Start-up” and “SBIR Funding for Your Start-up.”
Want to see the whole seminar and the great discussion that followed? If you are interested in discussing the SBIR/STTR process in more detail, please contact our office at ott-web [at] emory [dot] edu.