Some U.S. government agencies who participate in the Small Business Innovation Research program offer additional funding on SBIR/STTR award to select a commercialization services provider through an option called Discretionary Technical Assistance (DTA), or Commercialization Assistance. As part of The John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019, a new term for this assistance was introduced, “Technical and Business Assistance or (TABA). While some agencies in the SBIR/STTR program select a vendor to provide commercialization assistance to its awardees, recent legislation passed in 2018 also made TABA available as an alternative to in-house. TABA provides small businesses the option to select a vendor of their own choice as an alternative to the vendor that the agency has selected. As TABA is new, not all agencies have yet implemented it and the manner in which TABA is implemented varies greatly across agencies.
What Can You Do With TABA?
- Market Analysis- reviewing competitive technologies, market size, and dynamics
- Expert/End-User Interviews for Insights and Market Validation
- Company Resource and Team Building
- Web Presence and Social Media Consultation
- Technology Representation at Trade Shows, Conferences, or Events
- Market Analysis- reviewing competitive technologies, market size, and dynamics
- Expert/End-User Interviews for Insights and Market Validation
- IP Landscape Review
- IP Strategy Consultation
- Product Development Consultation
- Regulatory Path-to-Market Consultation
- Market Entry Launch Strategy
- Company Resource and Team Building
- Manufacturing Strategy Consultation
- Financial Plan Review
- Fundraising Strategy Development
- Preparation of Marketing Materials
- Identification and Outreach to Potential Partners
- Technology Marketing for Trade Shows, Conferences, or Events
- Deal Terms/ Licensing Advisory
To find out if an SBIR opportunity offers TABA read the solicitation or reach out to your program officer. Below are some of the potential funding amounts offered by various agencies.
- Agency Phase I Amount and Phase II Amount
- DoE $6,500 to $50,000
- DoD (varies by agency component) up to $6,500 up to $50,000
- DoT $6,500 to $13,000
- DHS $6,500 to $50,000
- NASA $0 to $10,000
- USDA $6,500 to $50,000
- NSF N/A $0 to $50,000
- NIST $6,500 to $6,500
- EPA $6,500 to $10,000
- NIH $6,500 to $10,000
We work with high-growth startups and organizations that support the startup and innovation ecosystem. We build highly specific non-dilutive funding menus, provide proposal preparation services, and measure outcomes of funding through evaluation. Schedule a consult call with us HERE.