The QB3 Bridging-the-Gap Awards

This year’s cycle has closed. Applications for 2014 will be accepted in October 2013.

QB3 believes there is a funding gap between NIH-based traditional research funding and start-up commercial funding. To help address this funding gap, and the research that languishes between these sources of funding, QB3 created the QB3 Bridging-the-Gap awards with generous support from the Rogers Family Foundation and other sources.

Awards are for $100,000 per year. An additional $25,000 award will be made to groups who achieve their proposed goals within the year. A second year of funding is available based on progress. Each award includes membership in the QB3 Startup in a Box program and QB3 staff will work with the team to identify potential funders and collaborators for the next steps.

Award Process

The QB3 Bridging-the-Gap committee looks for projects that are capable of yielding practical benefit to society within a reasonable time frame. The committee looks for projects that are at a stage where early proof-of-concept experiments funded by the award will assist the group in lowering the technical risk for a given technology. It is hoped that these groups could form a startup company within a 1-3 year period.

The applications that best fit the goals of this award will be selected by a QB3 committee, and finalists will give an oral presentation to the awards committee, who will make a final decision.

How to apply

Fill out and submit the 2012 Bridging the Gap Application. (The 2013 award cycle is not yet open.)

• Contact Neena Kadaba (415-514-4875, neena.kadaba@qb3.org) with any questions or for assistance in preparing your application. We are happy to look over your application and provide feedback before final submission.