March 4, 2024
Utah has one of the highest acceptance rates in the country for federal R&D funding thanks to the efforts of the award-winning Utah Innovation Center—an initiative of the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity.
The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs are competitive awards-based programs that enable small businesses to explore technological innovation with the possibility of commercialization.
The Utah Innovation Center facilitates its clients to receive free SBIR and STTR counseling.
“A lot of other states don’t have a center like the Utah Innovation Center as part of their state government,” said Dylan Doty, program manager of the Utah Innovation Center. “Utah decided SBIR/STTR grants are important and a priority.”
The state of Utah understands the importance of investing in innovative technologies. However, these technologies require a lot of funding and research to produce a viable product.
“It can take millions of dollars before the returns are shown for these companies,” said Doty. “It’s an entirely different atmosphere regarding deep technology funding. Only a few ecosystems in the U.S. do a really good job regarding these kinds of investments.”
The Utah Innovation Center provides services to ensure innovative small businesses tap into federal seed funding. The following are some examples.
- Direct Proposal Assistance: One-on-one proposal editing and review for SBIR/STTR applicants.
- Agency-Specific Training: Training based on particular nuances and requirements of participating agencies, including finding topics, the application process, and best practices for awarded proposals.
- Connections to Technical and Business Assistance Resources: Small technology companies receive mentorship with connections to business counseling, lab space, prototype creation, and other resources to build and grow their business.
- Capital Connections: Small business connections to other types of funding, including angel venture and low-rate debt funding.
- Industry Associations: Industry sector associations and group collaboration that enhance the innovation ecosystem.
- University Technology Transfer: Collaborations with technology transfer offices at the public and private universities in the state.
The Center also supports Utah small businesses applying for these grants by providing the Utah Technology Innovation Funding Microgrants to offset the costs during the process.
“Utah is a favorable place for startups,” said Linda Cabrales, director of the Utah Innovation Center. “Businesses are very collaborative, and there is a notion that when we put energy into the startup space, it comes back tenfold.”
Since 1983, 457 small Utah businesses were awarded 2,311 times with an award/obligation amount of $797,504,368.11 through the SBIR/STTR grant.
| Year | Award Count | # of Firms | Awarded Amount | Obligated Amount |
| 2023 | 71 | 49 | $58,176,542.88 | |
| 2022 | 92 | 49 | $57,347,453.54 | |
| 2021 | 80 | 47 | $47,487,584.22 | |
| 2020 | 105 | 65 | $54,574,849.96 | |
| 2019 | 79 | 52 | $53,461,788.14 | |
| 2018 | 72 | 50 | $43,424,428.92 | |
| 2017 | 86 | 51 | $47,149,235.76 | |
| 2016 | 59 | 47 | $26,993,172.04 | |
| 2015 | 53 | 36 | $24,912,717.53 | |
| 2014 | 62 | 44 | $26,598,447.68 |
These innovative technologies have direct and indirect effects on Utah’s economy.
“When Silicon Slopes was established in Utah, not only did it impact the tech industry, but other clusters and organizations, such as BioUtah, the Utah Advanced Materials Manufacturing Initiative, and other targeted industries in the state,” said Doty.