NIA Small Business Programs (SBIR & STTR)

NIA STTR Phase I

Supports small businesses partnering with universities on aging innovation at feasibility stage.

The National Institute on Aging (NIA) STTR Phase I program funds feasibility R&D by U.S. small businesses in formal cooperative research partnerships with nonprofit research institutions. The critical structural difference from the SBIR program is that STTR requires a mandatory subcontract relationship between the small business applicant and a U.S. nonprofit research institution — a university, hospital, or nonprofit research laboratory — and both parties must be identified at time of application. The small business is the prime applicant and receives the award; the research institution participates as a required subcontractor. NIA provides approximately $150 million per year across its combined SBIR and STTR portfolio, funding aging biology, Alzheimer's disease, and AD/ADRD research. The program was reauthorized on April 13, 2026, with the next standard receipt date of September 5, 2026.

Phase I STTR awards support feasibility work, typically carried out jointly between the company's researchers and the academic partner. The research institution must perform a defined portion of the work under the subcontract — a requirement that distinguishes STTR from SBIR, where subcontracting is optional. Eligible small businesses must be U.S. for-profit entities. The academic or research partner must be a U.S.-based nonprofit institution. In FY2025, NIA made 172 combined SBIR and STTR awards totaling approximately $146 million, reflecting the scale and consistency of NIA's small business funding commitment.

Applications are submitted through Grants.gov with eRA Commons tracking. Prospective applicants should contact NIA program staff through the Office of Strategic Extramural Programs to discuss scientific fit before submission, as NIA's interest areas span diagnostics, therapeutics, digital health, and biomarker platforms for aging populations. No active NOFO is available as of mid-2026; applicants should monitor grants.nih.gov for the next posting. NIA also maintains a Start-Up Challenge prize competition and Company Showcase for STTR and SBIR awardees seeking additional visibility and investor connections.