Alabama entrepreneurs and innovators can apply for up to $250,000 in supplemental funding.
Innovate Alabama has opened applications for the second round of the Innovate Alabama Supplemental Grant Program.
Alabama-based recipients of Phase I and Phase II Federal Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer grants are eligible to apply.
The program aims to support entrepreneurs from underrepresented groups, such as women, minorities and rural founders. In addition, the disbursement of funding is a bid to advance Alabama’s economy by driving research and commercialization, developing exportable products and services and spurring high-wage job opportunities.
“Alabamians have always been innovators – from cutting-edge agricultural techniques and the creation of windshield wipers to the invention of the first portable electric hearing aids and the Saturn V rocket that took humans to the moon,” said Cynthia Crutchfield, Innovate Alabama CEO. “At Innovate Alabama, we are on a mission to continue fostering Alabama’s rich history of innovation by providing entrepreneurs the necessary capital and resources, through initiatives like our grant program, to cultivate a thriving business and life right here in Alabama.”
Crutchfield, an Alabama native, stepped into the role Dec. 1. A software engineer by trade, she is also president and CEO at Crutchfield Management Consulting LLC. She relocated to Birmingham for the role at Innovate Alabama.
In July 2022, Innovate Alabama launched the inaugural Innovate Alabama Supplemental Grant Program, awarding over $4.5 million in supplemental funding to 30 grant recipients in six Alabama cities to support the growth of their small businesses.
“Thanks to the Innovate Alabama Supplemental Grant, our team has had the opportunity to invest in resources that help grow our business and the state’s collaborative and expanding entrepreneurial ecosystem,” said Karim Budhwani, CerFlux CEO and co-founder, and first round grant recipient. “We were honored to receive this funding and grateful for Innovate Alabama’s leadership in advancing innovation within the state while placing an emphasis on supporting higher-risk but higher-reward and broader impact ventures, like CerFlux, that seek to drive innovation from new knowledge to address some of the most intractable challenges facing humanity.”
Eligible applicants must have had an active Phase I or Phase II SBIR or STTR grant on July 1 or later. Phase I recipients are eligible to apply for 50% of their award up to $100,000, and Phase II recipients are eligible to apply for 50% of their award up to $250,000. Innovate Alabama Supplemental Grant Program awards are non-dilutive, meaning businesses receive the money without giving up shares of their company.
“It was incredible to see the impact the first round of funding had on so many Alabama businesses. By investing in startups with unique technology like these, our state is able to compete on a national and global scale,” said Danny Garrett, an Innovate Alabama board member. “As Innovate Alabama continues to help innovators grow roots right here in Alabama, we hope to continue expanding the grant program’s reach to support more local entrepreneurs.”
