SCRA Startup Grant

SCRA Startup Grant

Funds early-stage South Carolina technology startups through SCRA grant support for commercialization growth.

Eligibility · United States · US-SC

The South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA) Startup Grant is a non-dilutive grant of up to $25,000 for early-stage South Carolina technology companies that have reached critical commercialization milestones. SCRA is a public non-profit corporation chartered by the State of South Carolina in 1983, with a statutory mission to fuel the state's innovation economy across academia, industry, and startups. The Startup Grant is part of SCRA's broader suite of non-dilutive funding tools — alongside the Academic Startup, Acceleration, and Federal Matching Grants — designed to move technology companies along the commercialization pathway before they are ready for SC Launch Inc. equity investment. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis with no fixed annual deadline.

Eligibility is restricted to for-profit, South Carolina-based companies that are past the idea stage and have achieved early commercialization progress; idea-stage companies are referred to incubators or the SC Small Business Development Center rather than funded directly. A critical prerequisite is acceptance into SCRA's member company programme, which is invitation-only and accepts fewer than 40 percent of applicants. SCRA member companies are also required to submit an Annual Economic Impact Assessment. Full eligibility criteria, page limits, and the scoring rubric are published in a separate PDF document (March 2025 edition) available at scra.org and should be consulted before applying, as the HTML summary does not capture all requirements.

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis by SCRA's investment and programme staff. Approved grants fund specific commercialization milestones defined by the applicant and agreed with SCRA; the non-dilutive structure means no equity is taken. Companies that successfully complete the Startup Grant cycle may be considered for the larger Acceleration Grant (up to $50,000) or, if qualified, referred to SC Launch Inc. for equity investment. To initiate the process, prospective applicants should contact SCRA through its website at scra.org to begin the member company application process.