Accelerate UConn is UConn’s National Science Foundation Innovation Corps (I-Corps) Program. Its mission is to propel entrepreneurial teams whose technology concepts are likely candidates for commercialization. Participating teams will receive an introduction to the most critical elements of the I-Corps Curriculum and Lean Launchpad methodology. With the support of Accelerate UConn, teams will learn first-hand about entrepreneurship and explore the transition of their ideas, devices, processes, new scientific discoveries or other intellectual activities into the marketplace.
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SEPTEMBER 2025 | SBIR THEME PROPELUS COHORT
SBIR Program Dates
September 10th from 12:30-2:00pm, Virtual
September 17th from 12:30-3:30pm, Virtual
September 24th from 12:30-3:30pm, Virtual
October 1st from 12:30-3:30pm, Virtual
October 15th from 12:30-3:30pm, Virtual
Benefits
One third of evaluation criteria that the NSF uses when reviewing SBIR proposals is connected to the ‘Commercialization Potential’ of the technology being proposed. Often, researchers and other technical founders struggle in this part of the application. After all, their expertise lies in the scientific potential of what is being proposed instead of the market that they were entering. This program offers technical founders with the training and the tools that they need to collect insights from the marketplace to effectively answer questions included in the Commercialization Potential sections of both the NSF’s SBIR Phase 1 and SBIR Fast Track applications. Over the course of 6 weeks, participating teams will receive coaching on topics, and specific methods of Customer Discovery that will help them answer key measures of Commercialization Potential, including:
- Is there a compelling potential business model?
- What is your initial target market and its size?
- How have you validated this market needs your technology?
- Provide a detailed plan on your pathway to generate revenue and to become a self-sustaining entity.
- Present a compelling case that the project will significantly advance the readiness of the technology and strengthen its commercial position.
- Describe the value proposition of the proposed technology.
- Describe your plans to address regulatory (including permitting) or safety standards and ethical considerations involved in developing your technology and bringing your product or service to market.
- Provide a detailed description of the competitive landscape and your sustainable competitive advantage.
Who Should Apply?
- Open to all applicants with an innovation they would like to commercialize and de-risk through the customer discovery process. However, this will be most helpful for teams planning to apply for SBIR within the next 12 months as it will provide information geared towards creating a strong application for the SBIR Phase I November 5 application deadline.
- Research teams, including community teams, who may have been ineligible for the National I-Corps Program and unaffiliated with a PI or a university/institution.
Note: NSF requires evaluation of commercial potential before applicants are provided funding, and they expect teams to participate in Nationals after their application is accepted. Hence, this SBIR Regional Cohort is not a requirement for an SBIR application, but it will help teams with preparation and customer discovery.
Funding
Participants will be eligible to receive a stipend up to $2,000 to support costs incurred during the customer discovery program. Eligibility for this stipend is contingent upon full participation in each program session, office hours with instructors, and submission of a customer discovery log reflecting a minimum of 40 interviews.
Apply
The rolling application deadline for this cohort is 11:59pm on September 3rd, 2025. In addition to the application below, teams applying to this program will need to interview with the program staff.
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For more information, contact: Alycia Chrosniak at alycia.chrosniak@uconn.edu