Proof of Concept Commercialization Pilot Program Innovation Corps @ Department of Defense (I-Corps @ DoD) Fiscal Year 2018 | W911NF 18 S 0004

Opportunity Information: Apply for W911NF 18 S 0004

The Proof of Concept Commercialization Pilot Program Innovation Corps at the Department of Defense (I-Corps @ DoD) Fiscal Year 2018 grant opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number W911NF 18 S 0004) is a DoD program aimed at helping researchers move promising basic research results closer to real-world use. Rather than funding brand-new exploratory research, it targets teams that already have current or recent DoD-funded basic research and want structured support to assess whether their innovation can transition into a product, service, or capability with practical defense relevance and broader market potential. The program is run under the Department of Defense, specifically the Department of the Army, Materiel Command, and falls under the Science and Technology and other Research and Development activity category (CFDA 12.630). The core idea is to bridge the common gap between laboratory research and adoption by users, whether those users are in defense, industry, or adjacent markets.

A central feature of I-Corps @ DoD is that it combines modest financial support with hands-on commercialization mentoring and training. The program is designed to teach Principal Investigators and participating students how to conduct customer discovery, test assumptions about who the customer is, identify what problem is truly being solved, and learn how decision-makers evaluate new technologies. In practical terms, the training pushes teams to get out of the building and engage with potential stakeholders and customer segments, with the goal of replacing speculation with evidence. This approach is meant to speed up transition by helping teams focus on real adoption pathways, reduce wasted effort on solutions nobody is ready to use, and strengthen the connection between university research, private-sector commercialization, and defense needs.

The stated goals of the program are threefold. First, it aims to spur the transition of fundamental research innovations that could matter to defense into the marketplace or into forms that partners can adopt. Second, it encourages stronger collaboration between academia and industry by pushing research teams to engage with external partners and to understand commercialization expectations early. Third, it explicitly focuses on workforce and culture: training students, faculty, and other researchers to think in terms of innovation, entrepreneurship, and practical value creation, not only technical achievement. In other words, the program is as much about building commercialization skills and decision-making discipline as it is about supporting any single technology.

The opportunity emphasizes three expected outcomes for participating teams. The first outcome is a clear go/no-go decision on whether the proposed product or service concept is viable, based on what the team learns through structured discovery and validation. The second outcome, if the decision is to move forward, is a transition plan that lays out how the innovation would progress toward adoption, which may include partnerships, follow-on funding strategies, pilot opportunities, regulatory or acquisition considerations, and a roadmap for maturation. The third outcome is a well-grounded understanding of what a minimum viable product (MVP) demonstration would need to look like to satisfy key partners and customer segments, meaning the team should be able to describe what level of performance, proof, integration, or demonstration is required for others to take the next step.

From an administrative standpoint, this was a discretionary grant opportunity with an original closing date of July 6, 2018 (created April 10, 2018). The maximum award amount listed was $70,000, and the DoD anticipated making about 14 awards. Eligibility was broad and included public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, individuals, for-profit organizations (including those other than small businesses), and small businesses. Overall, the program can be understood as an early commercialization and transition accelerator: a relatively small, time-bounded investment paired with intensive guidance, intended to help DoD-funded researchers quickly determine commercial and transition viability, define an executable path forward, and clarify what proof points customers and partners will require before they commit.

• The Department of Defense, Dept of the Army -- Materiel Command in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Proof of Concept Commercialization Pilot Program Innovation Corps @ Department of Defense (I-Corps @ DoD) Fiscal Year 2018" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.630.
• This funding opportunity was created on Apr 10, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 06, 2018. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $70,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 14 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, Individuals, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses.

Apply for W911NF 18 S 0004

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