America's Seed Fund: Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer Awards
Welcome to the U.S. Department of Energy’s SBIR/STTR Phase 1 Grant Application Guide. In the following pages, small business applicants will find step-by-step instructions for completing each section of an SBIR or STTR Phase 1 Grant application, along with sample documents and pro tips to assist with the application process. The guide will also address common mistakes along the way to help applicants avoid the usual pitfalls associated with SBIR and STTR applications. But first, a little bit about the history and purpose of the programs that have come to be known America’s Seed Fund.
History & Purpose
The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs are U.S. Government programs intended to help certain small businesses conduct R&D. These programs were established to support scientific excellence and technological innovation through the investment of Federal research funds in critical American priorities to build a strong national economy. Federal agencies with large research and development budgets set aside a small fraction of their funding for competitions specifically among small businesses. Importantly, the small businesses that win these awards keep the rights to any technology developed and are encouraged to commercialize the technology.
Since its inception in 1982, small businesses have received over $3.194 billion in funding in SBIR awards alone. The STTR program, created in 1992 to encourage cooperative research between small businesses and research institutes, has extended this support by another $423.3 million in funding as of 2019. To read about some of the exciting projects and small businesses that the DOE has sponsored through SBIR and STTR, please visit +++++EXTERNAL LINK ++ Success Stories+++++
The major goals of the SBIR Program, established in 1982 by Public Law 97-219, are to:
- Stimulate technological innovation
- Use small businesses to meet Federal R/R&D needs
- Foster and encourage participation by the socially and economically disadvantaged small businesses, and those that are 51 percent owned by women, in technological innovation
- Increase private sector commercialization of innovations derived from Feder R/R&D, thereby increasing competition, productivity, and economic growth
The major goals of the STTR Program, established in 1992 by Public Law 102-564, are to:
- Stimulate and foster scientific and technological innovation through cooperative research and development carried out between small business concerns and research institutions
- Foster technology transfer between small business concerns and research institutions
