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What is SBIR and STTR?

Yarrowia lipolytica surrounding and growing on polyolefin oil droplets (large red circles). Cells were stained blue to show the chitin cell walls and red to show the lipid bodies inside the cells and the oil droplets outside the cellsThe Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs are competitive non-dilutive funding programs that fund eligible small businesses to engage in Federal Research/Research and Development (R/R&D).

At DOE, the funding takes the form of grants and cooperative agreements.

Projects must have the potential for commercialization and be responsive to DOE topics which are published in advance of each funding opportunity announcement. Our topics are formulated to advance DOE’s mission.

DOE offers more than sixty technical topics and 250 subtopics annually, spanning research areas that support the DOE mission in:

  • Energy Production & Use
  • Fundamental Energy Science
  • Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation
  • Environmental Management

Please get started on your SBIR/STTR journey by watching our two-minute Programs Overview Video.

New to the DOE SBIR & STTR Programs?

We encourage all newcomers to watch this recorded Funding Opportunity Webinar. It is 1 hour and 20 minutes and provides an in-depth understanding of the purpose of the programs, the technology areas covered, and the grant application process. To just view the presentation slides, click here (5.6MB pdf).

Overview of Website Resources

Review this slide deck to help you understand the resources available on our web site.

Interested in currently available funding opportunities?

Illustration of a model three-story home with a car parked in the backgroundThe DOE SBIR/STTR Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOA) are listed on our Funding Opportunities page. To learn about the technology areas with available DOE SBIR/STTR funding, view either the Topics documents or webinars in the Funding Opportunity Announcements FOA table.

To learn about the latest application requirements, please view the FOA.

Please note that the DOE SBIR/STTR Programs have a mandatory Letter of Intent requirement − you must submit a Letter of Intent according to the FOA requirements to be eligible to submit a full application.