The Small Business Administration is getting on the road and hitting 16 cities to find innovators to connect them with the country’s largest source on early-stage funding.
Known as America’s Seed Fund, the Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs focus on next-generation research and development and is spearheaded by SBA and 11 participating federal agencies. To find entrepreneurs looking to turn their ideas into businesses, SBA is launching the yearly road tour that will run from May 20 to Nov. 15. The tour kicks off in Oklahoma and ends in Puerto Rico.
Each SBIR Road Tour stop will be hosted by a local organization that supports entrepreneurs in next generation R&D. Program managers from the participating federal agencies will meet with attendees, take part in targeted panels, discuss tech areas, and share how the agencies make funding decisions.
Every year, the SBIR/STTR programs provide $2.5 billion in funding to small tech companies to ignite technological discoveries and facilitate the commercialization of innovations.