Synopsis of Program: This funding program is designed to support UH inventors in moving their early-stage technologies closer to commercial readiness. Funds are available to advance technologies by allowing inventors to clarify market needs, refine a value proposition, or decrease technical risk through prototyping and thereby increase the commercial value of the technology, whether it is licensed to an existing company or used as a catalyst for a startup.

Award Information

• Type of Award: Grant
• Estimated Number of Awards: Up to 8
• Award Period: 18 Months
• Anticipated Funding Amount: $800,000

Award sizes are expected to range from $75,000 to $100,000 with a mid-range of $80,000.

Eligibility Information

Who May Submit Proposals

All University of Houston system faculty and staff are eligible to apply, as long as they have AT LEAST a completed and approved invention disclosure form related specifically to the proposed project filed with the University of Houston through the Office of Technology Transfer and Innovation (OTTI) by the time of the pre-proposal deadline.

Additionally, UH faculty and staff are eligible if they have licensed their technology into a UH startup company, even if there is no patent application connected to this technology.

Each PI must have a team member (Entrepreneurial Lead, EL) for the application. The EL may be a student or a post-doctoral fellow.

Who May Serve as PI:

The PI on the proposal must be the PI or co-PI of said intellectual property (IP) and the proposal may have as many co-PIs as appropriate.

Limit on Number of Proposals per PI or Co-PI:

One PI can submit multiple proposals/projects. Inventors who are currently being funded by the Chancellor’s Technology Bridging Fund may not apply for further funding until their current award period has been completed. Inventors who have been funded in the past may reapply, however, if the project centers around the same IP as their last funding, they must include a one-page document that includes a report regarding their last award and justification for further funding and must satisfy all the eligibility requirements for this cycle.

Proposal Preparation and Submission Instructions

1. Pre-Proposal Preparation Instructions
   • Pre-Proposal Submission:
     • Submit your pre-proposal. Please click on the form here to submit your application. Review eligibility criteria and applicants are strongly encouraged to contact OTTI staff before applying.
     • The pre-proposal will be reviewed by the CTBF Review Board and selected applicants will be invited to participate in the program.
     • Existing industry partnerships are not strictly required; however, projects that demonstrate clear commercial interest and include dedicated industry mentors will be looked upon favorably. All projects should have a clear commercial benefit.
   • Final Pitch
     • The program cohort will be asked to give an in-person 5-minute pitch of their technology and the commercial opportunity to the CTBF review board made up of technical and business experts.
     • The pitch will be on the day of the closing workshop and is part of the course curriculum
     • PowerPoint templates will be provides and files must be emailed to ctbf@central.uh.edu
2. Requirements for the program
   • All the selected teams will be eligible for the funding provided they complete the I-Corps short course and complete all the requirements in the program.
   • The following milestones must be incorporated in the proposal milestones along with technology development milestones for continued funding
     1. Formation of a company (15 months from award grant date).
     2. Apply for further SBIR/STTR funding OR apply for follow-on funding (9- months from award grant date)- Submit the proposal to OTTI for review before submission of the proposal
     3. Acceptance into the national I-corps program or any similar accelerator program (MassChallenge, TechStars, Y-combinator, TMCx accelerators) (12-months from award grant date)
     4. For copyrighted IP only- Engage with private investors/funds on fund raising (6 months from award grant date)
3. CTBF Accelerator Program
   • The program will include 4-weeks of coursework in the NSF regional program I-Corps format. There will be several workshops aimed to provide applicants with the opportunity to learn more about how best to translate their research into business terms. These workshops will introduce concepts like value proposition, customer discovery and competitor landscapes along with a customer discovery exercises that will help you update your original proposal and revise the milestones based on the customer feedback.
4. Full Proposal Submission
   • The applicants will have an opportunity to update their initial proposal. The following must be updated from the pre-proposal application
     1. Milestones
     2. Budget
     3. Executive summary (described below)
5. Executive Summary Submission
   • The Teams must submit a 1-page executive summary with the following information
     • Composition and roles (EL, PI) of the team members proposing to undertake the commercialization feasibility research
     • Relevant current/previous NSF awards
     • Brief description of the potential commercial impact
     • Brief description of the current commercialization plan
   • All projects must be designed to be completed in 18 months maximum. All projects must have measurable quarterly milestones with dates for project review. Proposals missing the required information will automatically be delayed.
6. Budgetary Information
   • Budget expenditures incurred before the award date will not be reimbursed. Awards will be up to $100,000 with most being awarded around $80,000.
   • Budget items may include: external consultants and partners, equipment, supplies, animal care costs, payment to subjects, computer services, and any other costs relevant to the project. Travel expenses are eligible only when the travel is required to conduct the project. The role and / or task of any personnel salaries (research assistant) or stipends (undergraduate and graduate student) on the project should be defined in the justification.
   • Ineligible expenses include: funding for student tuition or tuition scholarships (waivers), salary support for faculty members or post-doctoral associates on 12-month appointments or on sabbatical leave, salary for visiting faculty members, salary for office/administrative staff, travel to attend conferences or present findings, “bridging” support to maintain research operations for interim periods between grant termination and funding renewal.
   • An appropriate budget for each milestone should be designed to permit the completion of all award-related activities within the submitted timeline. If project costs exceed the amount requested on the budget, then other confirmed sources of funding must be identified and shown on the budget.
7. Due Dates
   • Pre-Proposal Submission Deadline- TBD
   • I-Corps Short Course- TBD
   • Updated proposals Deadline- TBD

Proposal Review Process

Proposals will be evaluated by the CTBF Advisory Board made up of internal and external technical and business reviewers for the likelihood of commercial success of the technology and the impact this funding will have in moving the technology forward. Elements considered in the criteria scoring may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Technical merit: Does this technology solve customer needs better than existing methods?
• Feasibility of commercialization and/or licensing: Does it seem reasonable that this research can be translated into a useful product?
• Market potential: How large is the market for the proposed product or service and how much of that market could reasonably be served with this product or service?
• Project feasibility: How likely is it that the project milestones can be achieved within the projected budget and timeframe?

Each proposal will receive a final score used to rank the proposed work. Funding will depend upon the volume of proposals submitted in any one funding cycle and the availability of funds. The CTBF Advisory Board will make final funding recommendations to the Vice President / Vice Chancellor for Research and Technology Transfer.

Funded Cohort Requirements

1. Tranched Fund Distribution
   • Funds will be distributed in quarterly segments based on the successful completion of stated milestones developed in agreement between OTTI and the awardee.
   • Continued funding will depend on demonstrated progress of proposed milestones which shall be communicated to OTTI via a status report. This status report should be submitted via email to ctbf@central.uh.edu. The status report should address the following questions:
     • Has the stated milestone been completed? Please provide details.
     • Based on the results of this milestone, are there any aspects of this project that needs to be modified?
2. Cohort Meetings / Workshops
   • Awardees will meet on a quarterly basis as a cohort to discuss their progress and consult with experts provided by OTTI. Meetings must be attended by at least 1 member of the project team.
   • Attendees should come prepared to discuss one specific commercialization-related issue involved with the development of their technology.
3. Final Report and Meeting
   • A final meeting with each awardee team will be held to discuss results of the project.
   • A written report is required 3 days prior to the meeting date to be submitted via email to ctbf@central.uh.edu.
   • Format of the report is flexible, but there should be a focus on endpoints and their commercial significance. All unused funds will be returned at the end of the award.

Updated July 22, 2019

Proposal Review Process

Pre-proposals will be evaluated by the CTBF Review Board made up of internal and external technical and business reviewers for the likelihood of commercial success of the technology and the impact this funding will have in moving the technology forward. Elements considered in the criteria scoring may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Technical merit: Does this technology solve customer needs better than existing methods?
• Feasibility of commercialization and/or licensing: Does it seem reasonable that this research can be translated into a useful product?
• Market potential: How large is the market for the proposed product or service and how much of that market could reasonably be served with this product or service?
• Project feasibility: How likely is it that the project milestones can be achieved within the projected budget and timeframe?
• Team: Quality of the Team

The top 6-8 proposals will be selected to participate in the accelerator program and will be eligible for funding.

Proposals will be evaluated based on the team’s ability to successfully complete the program requirements and update the pre-proposal based on the curriculum in the program.

Funding will be awarded on successful completion of the program and fulfilling all requirements of the program. The CTBF Review Board will make final funding recommendations to the Vice President / Vice Chancellor for the Division of Energy and Innovation.

CTBF Advisory Board

The advisory board consists of experts from all industries including UH Faculty, Investors, Mentors and Advisors. Here is a list of the current advisory board.

Contact

If you have any questions about the CTBF please email us at ctbf@central.uh.edu.