Thursday, June 27, 2024 | 2 minutes, 46 seconds, or ~166 heartbeats    

ARPA-H Opens Another Funding Opportunity for Small Businesses 

More than $40 million awarded to small businesses. To date, ARPA-H has awarded $40.2 million to small businesses working on a range of health breakthroughs—from using AI to improve health care to transdermal drug delivery.

Another funding opportunity. Through its Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR)/Small Technology Transfer (STTR) program, ARPA-H is once again calling on small businesses to submit proposals for funding of innovative research and development to contribute to the agency’s mission. The solicitation can be found on SAM.gov. 

From the molecular to the societal. The agency encourages proposals from small businesses that aim to rapidly achieve better health outcomes across patient populations, communities, diseases, and health conditions. 

Open topics on the SBIR/STTR solicitation include:

📈 Ambulatory Edema Monitor
🔡 Predictive Language Models for Cognitive Disability Adaptive Communication Tools  

🧬 Cell and Gene Therapy Process Analytical Technology and Quality Control Testing  

⌚ Wearable Cell sorting and Gene Delivery Systems  

🧠 Precision Brain Targeting: non-invasive delivery at the right place and time 

🥗 NutriTech: Revolutionizing Personalized Food as Medicine 

👂 Clinic-ready Imaging Devices and Protocols for Visualizing the Inner Ear with High Accuracy  

🩸 Advanced Continuously Wearable Blood Pressure Monitoring Technologies 

Why small businesses? “Countless small businesses are hyper-focused on breakthroughs that can revolutionize how we care for patients,” said ARPA-H Director Dr. Renee Wegrzyn. “When small businesses are included, high-tech innovation is stimulated.” 

❓ Get your questions answered! Don’t miss the opportunity to join the information session on July 2, 2024, where you will learn about the ARPA-H Small Business Program, including how to apply, eligibility considerations, and details of current open topics. Register today!  

ARPA-H @ ASPEN: How the agency is shredding risks through the research “valley of death” 

ARPA-H was front and center at the Aspen Ideas Health Conference, gaining new supporters as Dr. Wegrzyn joined former HHS Secretary Alex Azar and industry leaders to discuss advancing medicine through cutting-edge investments.

“I got to hear her [Renee] talk … I grabbed her and said can we keep talking because the way you’re talking about this is much more interesting,” said former HHS Secretary Alex Azar when introducing Dr. Wegrzyn and noting his original skepticism of ARPA-H.

The panel featured unique perspectives on the current investment landscape for biotech, including how ARPA-H is de-risking investments for future health breakthroughs and leading innovation through the research "valley of death."

“The further you [ARPA-H] can take it [innovation], the better it is for us,” said Paragon Biosciences CEO Jeff Aronin in reacting to Wegrzyn’s description of the ARPA-H model.

Watch the full panel discussion on the Aspen Ideas Health website.

You can also hear more about the agency’s work in accelerating health care and leveraging AI by watching Dr. Wegrzyn’s recent conversation with Washington Post Live and Deputy Director Dr. Susan Monarez’s appearance on a POLITICO panel about transforming health care.

Elsewhere in the ARPAsphere:

• HEROES SOLUTION SUMMARIES DUE! Solution summaries for the HEROES program, which aims to trial and validate a radically different approach to preventative care incentives, are due Friday, June 28. Submit your solution summary today!

• BREATHE AND PRINT SOLICITATIONS LIVE! Solicitations for both the BREATHE program, which aims to ensure indoor air is always healthy and safe, and the PRINT program, which aims to 3D print personalized, on-demand organs, are live. Find the solicitation on the BREATHE and PRINT program pages and submit your proposal before they’re due in August.
• FUNDING OPPORTUNITY! To enhance our ability to support initiatives that align with our mission and Strategic Plan, ARPA-H is now accepting submissions to its Mission Office-specific Innovative Solutions Openings (ISOs), which align with our four Mission Offices: Health Science Futures, Proactive Health, Resilient Systems, and Scalable Solutions. Submit an ISO today!

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