MassVentures Announces $3 Million Available in START Funding
Program Supports Companies Ready to Commercialize Technology
Boston- MassVentures today announced a Request for Proposals for START (SBIR TARgeted Technologies) Program Stage I Grants. MassVentures will award $1 million in Stage I funding to assist Massachusetts companies that have received at least the equivalent of a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (“SBIR”) or Small Business Technology Transfer (“STTR”) grant to commercialize their technologies. Five new Stage II grants of $200,000 each will be awarded to the most promising Stage I winners from last year and up to $500,000 of seed capital will be awarded to two Stage III winners selected from the most successful Stage II companies from last year. The START program was created to assist high growth companies that will expand employment opportunities, promote manufacturing and commercialization, and stimulate innovation across the Commonwealth.
“The MassVentures START program ensures growing Massachusetts-based companies are able to commercialize technologies developed under SBIR and STTR contracts. $250 million of research and development funds are funneled into Massachusetts through the SBIR / STTR programs each year. We recognize that innovation, invention, and disruption take time, so the START program provides up to three additional years of funding,” said Jerry Bird, President, MassVentures. “START arms these companies with the funding, experience, mentoring and networks they need to potentially transition to high-growth companies.”
Jay Ash, Secretary of Housing and Economic Development for the Commonwealth and Chairman of the Board for MassVentures commented, “The START program provides a diverse group of high-tech companies with the resources and guidance they need to reach their potential and enjoy sustained growth. START is a catalyst for our innovation economy and sends a resounding message to high-tech businesses around the world that we are creating a supportive and productive environment in which these companies can thrive.”
Previous START winners include: AddiLat, Inc. (Woburn); Agiltron (Woburn); Artaic (Boston); Barrett Technology (Newton); BioMimetic Systems (Cambridge); Boston Engineering (Waltham); Cambrian Innovation (Boston); Cambridge Electronics (Cambridge); CapeSym (Natick); CeraNova (Marlborough); ClearMotion (Woburn); Dynamo Micropower (Somerville); Energid (Cambridge); Eutropics (Cambridge); FloDesign (Wilbraham); Fluidity Software (Somerville); Ginkgo Bioworks (Boston); GVD (Cambridge); Hstar Technologies (Somerville); Incom (Charlton); Intrinsix (Marlborough); Locately (Boston); MetaMagnetics (Canton); Modular Genetics, Inc. (Woburn); MTPV Power Corporation (Medford); Muzzy Lane (Newburyport); mZeal (Littleton); NetBio (Waltham); NewGrid, Inc. (Somerville); Pendar Technologies (Cambridge); Persimmon Technologies (Wakefield); Pharyx (Woburn); Physical Sciences, Inc. (Andover); Primaira (Woburn); Radial Analytics (Cambridge); Reactive Innovation (Westford); Remote Sensing Solutions (Barnstable); RMD (Watertown); SimulConsult, Inc. (Chestnut Hill); Triton (Chelmsford); Visible Good (Newburyport); Xtalic (Marlborough)
More information on the START program and the MassVentures 5 Year START Report can be found at www.mass-ventures.com/start-program/.
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MassVentures is a quasi-public venture capital firm focused on fueling the Commonwealth’s innovation economy by funding early-stage, high-growth Massachusetts startups as they move from concept to commercialization. Since the program’s founding in 2012, START has provided $12 million in grant funding to 50 deserving SBIR projects and helped winning companies raise additional capital of $278 million. The MassVentures’ START program received the prestigious 2015 Tibbetts Award from the U.S. Small Business Administration.