Singapore Therapeutics Development Review

STDR Pre-Pilot (Q1/Q3 cycles)

Funds early-stage therapeutic proof-of-concept research in Singapore across multiple modalities.

The Singapore Therapeutics Development Review (STDR) Pre-Pilot track is an A*STAR grant funding earlier-stage, exploratory proof-of-concept therapeutic research with awards of up to S$325,000. The programme supports two research streams: target validation and platform development. Eligible modalities include small molecules, large molecules, cell and gene therapies, and platform technologies. Calls are issued twice a year, typically in Q1 and Q3; the most recent recorded cycle (STDR 2025, Jul) opened 15 July 2025 and closed 28 August 2025, with the next Q3 2026 cycle not yet posted as of May 2026.

Eligibility is limited to lead investigators holding at least a 0.7 FTE primary appointment at a Singapore publicly funded research or tertiary institution. Private companies cannot apply directly or co-apply as lead institutions. The Pre-Pilot track is explicitly positioned for exploratory, earlier-stage work — projects that already possess validation data and a commercialisation plan belong in the Pilot track (up to S$1,000,000) rather than here. This distinction is enforced at review: reviewers assess whether the scientific ambition and evidence base match the Pre-Pilot's proof-of-concept framing.

Applicants should monitor A*STAR's funding opportunities index page for the Q3 2026 call notice, as dates are not published in advance of the formal call opening. Proposals for this track should clearly articulate why the project is at an exploratory stage, describe the specific hypothesis being tested under target validation or the technology being validated under platform development, and map a plausible path to the data endpoints that would justify a subsequent Pilot application. Given the twice-yearly cadence, teams should prepare dossiers between cycles rather than beginning after the call opens.