Event Type : Pathways Newsletter

The National Cancer Institute (NCI)  is accepting applications for the Commercialization Readiness Pilot, which helps small businesses with NIH-funded SBIR or STTR projects bridge the gap between late-stage research and a commercially viable product. Funding supports first-in-human clinical testing, clinical validation studies, regulatory work, and specialized technical assistance. NCI will fund up to $4,191,495 in total costs, plus up to $500,000 in non-R&D technical assistance. Unlike typical NIH research grants, applicants may subcontract a significant portion of the work to outside experts as long as the small business retains oversight.

Applicants must be U.S. small businesses that held an active NIH SBIR or STTR Phase II or Phase IIB award from a participating NIH Institute within the last 36 months, with one CRP award allowed per Phase II project. NCI prioritizes applications that can hit significant commercial milestones and that demonstrate an ability to attract third-party funding. Applications are due September 8, 2026 by 5:00 p.m. local time of the applicant organization. To review the full announcement and apply, click on the link here.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is hosting a town hall on recent updates to ISO 10993-1 (2025), the standard governing biological evaluation of medical devices. FDA staff will walk through risk assessment approaches for evaluating biocompatibility endpoints, with specific examples covering material-mediated pyrogenicity and systemic endpoints, and will take questions from attendees.

The session is aimed at medical device manufacturers, regulatory affairs staff, and anyone evaluating device biocompatibility. It takes place September 9, 2026 from 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. ET on Microsoft Town Hall. No registration is required , to join the event, click on the link here.

The Farm Robotics Challenge invites student teams, faculty advisors, and industry innovators to build AI, automation, and robotics solutions for real-world agricultural problems. The 2026 grand prize was a $50,000 SAFE investment from The Reservoir, an early-stage agtech venture capital firm, alongside additional prizes and awards added over the course of the cycle.

The challenge is built for university students and the professors and growers who work alongside them. Registration for the 2027 program opens August 3, 2026, and an informational webinar covering rules, timeline, and judging is expected in September, following last year’s schedule. To join the mailing list for registration and webinar announcements, click on the link here.

The Florida High Tech Corridor provides a comprehensive resource hub designed to support small businesses and entrepreneurs in accessing Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) funding. The FHTC is offering SBIR/STTR Open Office Hours every 3rd Thursday starting on April 23, 2026 from 11am – 12pm EST.

To register for the next session on September 17th at 11am, click here.
To learn more, access training resources, or join upcoming sessions, visit the Florida High Tech Corridor website.

Ask a VC Webinar 2025, hosted Osage University Partners (OUP) provides an opportunity to ask OUP’s Life Science Managing Partner, Bill Harrington, and Technology Managing Partner, Marc Singer, questions about venture capital operations, decision-making, and the current investing environment.

The event is for academic founders and TTO partners seeking guidance on fundraising, standing out to investors, current areas of VC interest, securing introductions to VCs, and advice for first-time founders. This opportunity is virtual and free for all of OUP’s academic institution partners. The event will take place on Thursday, September, 2025
12:00 pm EST. Register for the event here.

The National Institutes of Health, through its IMPROVE initiative, is opening a multi-phase prize competition that helps community-based organizations build the research capacity to lead or partner in maternal health research, with particular focus on maternity care deserts and, new this cycle, the role of fathers in maternal health outcomes. The $3.1 million prize pool is awarded in stages. Participants also receive training, custom-matched mentors, workshops, and IRB services where needed.

The challenge is open to U.S.-based non-academic 501(c)(3) organizations, advocacy groups, and state or federally recognized Tribes; academic partnerships are welcome but not required. The recruitment phase closes September 23, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. EDT. To review the full rules and enter, click on the link.

The Kenneth Rainin Foundation is opening its Innovator Awards, which fund high-impact basic and translational research into Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Individual projects receive up to $150,000 and collaborative projects involving multiple investigators up to $300,000, with grantees who show significant progress eligible for up to two additional years of support. The Foundation is particularly interested in work applying AI, machine learning, big data analytics, and model systems to IBD mechanisms and therapeutic discovery.

Letters of inquiry are accepted August 3 through September 30, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. PDT, with LOI decisions in late December, invited full proposals due February 2027, and awards announced May 2027. To review eligibility and submit an LOI, visit the webpage here.

Nucleate is accepting applications for the Activator, an open-access, equity-free accelerator for early-stage biotech founders. The program runs from team formation through venture-building workshops, mentor office hours, legal and clinical consulting, and a final pitch showcase before life sciences investors and industry veterans. Participants gain access to a network of 3,000+ leaders across biotech, pharma, and VC; alumni have launched over 300 companies and raised $650M to date.

The Activator is built for scientists, business trainees, and early professionals looking to build a venture, and takes no equity in return. Core teams form in October 2026, with workshops running February–May 2027 and pitches in May–June 2027.

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis from mid-September to late October 2026, so earlier submissions get earlier consideration. To apply, click on the link here.

The FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health is accepting submissions for the READI-Home Innovation Challenge, which aims to accelerate patient access to medical devices that reduce hospital readmissions. Part of the agency’s Home as a Health Care Hub initiative, the challenge invites innovators to propose device technologies for the home setting that support patients and caregivers after an acute hospital stay.

The challenge is open to medical device innovators developing home-use technologies. Submissions are accepted through September 30, 2026. To review submission requirements and apply, click on the link here.

The Kenneth Rainin Foundation is opening its Innovator Awards, which fund high-impact basic and translational research into Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Individual projects receive up to $150,000 and collaborative projects involving multiple investigators up to $300,000, with grantees who show significant progress eligible for up to two additional years of support. The Foundation is particularly interested in work applying AI, machine learning, big data analytics, and model systems to IBD mechanisms and therapeutic discovery.

Letters of inquiry are accepted August 3 through September 30, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. PDT, with LOI decisions in late December, invited full proposals due February 2027, and awards announced May 2027. To review eligibility and submit an LOI, visit the webpage here.

Nucleate is accepting applications for the Activator, an open-access, equity-free accelerator for early-stage biotech founders. The program runs from team formation through venture-building workshops, mentor office hours, legal and clinical consulting, and a final pitch showcase before life sciences investors and industry veterans. Participants gain access to a network of 3,000+ leaders across biotech, pharma, and VC; alumni have launched over 300 companies and raised $650M to date.

The Activator is built for scientists, business trainees, and early professionals looking to build a venture, and takes no equity in return. Core teams form in October 2026, with workshops running February–May 2027 and pitches in May–June 2027.

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis from mid-September to late October 2026, so earlier submissions get earlier consideration. To apply, click on the link here.

The FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health is accepting submissions for the READI-Home Innovation Challenge, which aims to accelerate patient access to medical devices that reduce hospital readmissions. Part of the agency’s Home as a Health Care Hub initiative, the challenge invites innovators to propose device technologies for the home setting that support patients and caregivers after an acute hospital stay.

The challenge is open to medical device innovators developing home-use technologies. Submissions are accepted through September 30, 2026. To review submission requirements and apply, click on the link here.

The Department of Energy’s American-Made Program is running the Storage Design Strategies to Ease Production (STEP) Prize, a $500,000 two-phase competition for novel energy storage technologies that build manufacturability and supply chain resilience into the design from the start.

Phase 1 asks competitors to identify and conceptualize solutions to anticipated production challenges in their storage design; Phase 1 winners advance to Phase 2, where they further develop and validate those solutions.

The prize is open to individuals, academic institutions, nonfederal government entities, small businesses, start-ups, and entrepreneurs working on nascent or emerging energy storage innovations. Submissions are due October 8, 2026. To review the rules and enter, click on the link here.

The editors of Science, in partnership with the BioInnovation Institute (BII) in Copenhagen, are accepting entries for a prize recognizing researchers working at the intersection of life sciences and entrepreneurship. The award goes to scientists who combine strong basic research with a clear eye toward commercial application such as work protected as intellectual property and licensed to a commercial entity, including drugs and biologics, diagnostics, therapeutics, health IT, or biobased production of fuels, chemicals, and foods. Applications that took real risks are welcome even where the outcome was a negative result.

The grand prize winner receives $25,000 and publication in Science, in print and online; up to two runners-up receive $10,000 and online publication. The prize is judged on a 1,000-word essay describing the applicant’s research, and winning essays are published in Science. Submissions are due November 1, 2026. To review the full rules and apply, click on the link here.