Plain-English guides to America’s largest non-dilutive funding programs — SBIR/STTR across DoD, NSF, NASA, DOE, NIH and beyond. Written for people at the idea, stealth, and early-startup stage. Everything links to the official source so you can verify it yourself. Updated July 28, 2026.
New to SBIR/STTR? These guides explain the program, the three phases, who qualifies, and the pre-incorporation path — in plain English.
The ~$4B/year federal program that funds startups without taking equity, explained from zero.
Read the guide →What each phase funds, current dollar caps, how long each really takes, and the shortcuts (D2P2, Fast-Track, TABA).
Read the guide →The ownership, size and PI rules — and exactly what you can do before you've formed a company.
Read the guide →If a professor is central to your company, STTR's PI rule may be the whole ballgame. The differences that matter.
Read the guide →Each of the 11 SBIR agencies runs the program differently. These guides decode the big ones so you can target the right doors.
DSIP, monthly releases, AFWERX open topics, Navy base+option, Army xTech — how the $2B+ program actually works.
Read the guide →Project Pitch vs rolling appendices vs letters of intent — pick the civilian agency that matches your tech.
Read the guide →Grant culture, waiver-boosted budgets, three annual deadlines, and why FDA's simulation guidance changes the game.
Read the guide →How proposals are actually scored, grants vs contracts, and the registrations you must finish weeks before any deadline.
The three review pillars, honest win rates, and the commercialization-plan mistake that sinks more proposals than bad science.
Read the guide →NSF/NIH/DOE let you propose your own idea; DoD/NASA tell you what they want. Pick the culture that fits.
Read the guide →EIN → SAM.gov → SBIR.gov → agency portal, with real lead times. Start 8 weeks before any deadline.
Read the guide →Where engineering simulation fits in the SBIR journey — feasibility evidence, de-risking, and Phase II credibility.
Most winning SBIR proposals in hardware, aerospace, defense, and energy lean on engineering simulation for feasibility evidence. If that’s your world, paths exist to access Ansys® tools at no cost while you’re still pre-funding — evaluation licenses and the Ansys Startup Program. Ask us how access works; no cost, no obligation.
Ask about Ansys evals + engineering support How access works →