How to Fund Innovation for Free
Summary
HSC received a $2M grant from Tarrant County to develop a program that helps make it easier for innovative Tarrant County small businesses to apply for funding through Americas Seed Fund. Each year the Federal Government sets aside money in Americas Seed Fund (technically called the SBIR and STTR programs) to award to small businesses that are engaged in research and development with an effort to commercialize their technologies or products. There is approximately $4B available annually; these funds are nondilutive, meaning that companies that receive these funds keep their IP and arent required to give up an equity stake in their company. While the funds can be instrumental in helping a company launch and grow, applying for these funds is nuanced and can be difficult for companies to navigate. To help solve this problem, HSC Next has developed an SBIR Phase 0 Program that enrolls qualified companies into a one-month program.