staciepeterson
Moderator
National Science Foundation Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships Translational Impacts |
November 22, 2022 - March 01, 2023
March 02, 2023 - July 05, 2023
July 06, 2023 - November 01, 2023
The proposer must receive an official invitation via the Project Pitch process to submit a full proposal. Small businesses can submit a Project Pitch at any time. Small businesses that have been invited to submit a full proposal can submit a proposal based on that Project Pitch at any time during a submission window (up to one year after the receipt of the invitation). Visit the program website (https://seedfund.nsf.gov/apply/project-pitch/) for more information about the Project Pitch or visit section V.A of this document. Invited proposers may submit one Phase I proposal to either the NSF SBIR or STTR program and note their choice on their proposal Cover Sheet. (See section V.A. for more information.)
SBIR and STTR proposals are nearly identical but differ in the amount of work required to be performed by the small business and a not-for-profit institution or a Federally-funded research and development center (FFRDC) (as noted in the budget). NSF SBIR Phase I proposals submitted to this solicitation may, at NSF's discretion, be considered for award as an STTR Phase I. For more information about unique requirements for STTR awards, please refer to the Eligibility and Proposal Preparation sections of this solicitation.
NSF proposals are confidential and will only be shared with a select number of reviewers and NSF staff (as appropriate). All reviewers have agreed to maintain the confidentiality of the proposal content. Proposals to NSF do not constitute a public disclosure. If selected for a Phase I award, the company will be prompted to write a publicly available abstract that summarizes the intellectual merit and broader impact of the project.
Submission windows, unlike deadlines, allow small businesses to submit a full proposal during the specific dates listed at the top of this document. The proposal submission system, Research.gov, will stop accepting proposals at 5:00 p.m. "submitter's time" on the submission window closing date, but, with the exception of the last submission window, will then reopen for new submissions the following morning. After the last submission window closes a new or updated solicitation may be posted shortly thereafter.
The NSF SBIR/STTR program provides non-dilutive, firm-fixed price grants for the development of a broad range of technologies, based on discoveries in science and engineering with potential for societal and economic impacts.
The NSF SBIR/STTR program does not support clinical trials or proposals from companies whose commercialization pathway involves the production, distribution or sale by the company of chemical components, natural or synthetic variations thereof, or other derivatives related to Schedule I controlled substances.