ORIP participates in two federal grant programs that provide funding to small businesses: the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program. The primary goal of ORIP’s small business programs is to attract innovative SBIR/STTR projects that could benefit research resources and communities associated with ORIP’s mission.

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs are congressionally mandated initiatives providing funding to small businesses that have promising ideas with potential for commercialization. These programs are in place across many federal agencies and are vital to supporting and moving from the laboratory bench to the marketplace creative science generated by a diverse group of entrepreneurial thinkers, including those who may not have had the opportunity to pursue traditional academic or scientific career paths.