In the last few years, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has devoted $10 million to $15 million annually to small businesses in the form of SBIR grants. Photo via Getty Images

Inside the Department of Commerce is a relatively small federal agency, compared to the others, call the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. They too have a small business innovation research (or SBIR) program in which technology startups can have access to funds to de-risk their innovation.

Here’s what you need to know about this non-dilutive funding opportunity:

Overview of NOAA’s SBIR Program

Although the SBIR program has been around for over forty years, NOAA entered the scene in 2010 when their research and development budget reached over $100 million. Per the federal statue, they joined a host of federal agencies that were to devote 3.2 percent of that budget to small businesses.

In the last few years, NOAA has devoted $10 to $15 million annually to small businesses in the form of SBIR grants. These Phase I awards have reached $175,000 in funding for a six-month feasibility study. Follow-on Phase II awards can reach up to $650,000 for 24 months of R&D. Each year’s solicitation is generally announced near the end of the calendar year with deadlines ranging from December to March. While not exactly cyclical, anticipating these deadlines allows a company to set aside enough to prepare a proper application.

What is NOAA Looking For?

According to the NOAA’s website, “NOAA is an agency that enriches life through science. Our reach goes from the surface of the sun to the depths of the ocean floor as we work to keep the public informed of the changing environment around them.“ Their SBIR research topics have stayed consistent since 2011 with minor general topic changes. These six topics have been the same for the last two funding cycles:

  • 9.1 Extreme Events and Cascading Hazards
  • 9.2 Coastal Resilience
  • 9.3 The Changing Ocean
  • 9.4 Water Availability, Quality, and Risk
  • 9.5 Effects of Space Weather
  • 9.6 Monitoring and Modeling for Climate Change Mitigation

When analyzing past winners, which you can find online, a clear emphasis is placed on developing advanced tools for data collection, analysis, and prediction, particularly in the areas of weather forecasting, oceanic observation, and ecosystem health. Many projects involve AI and machine learning for processing large datasets to improve decision-making in disaster response, fishery management, and habitat conservation.

The recurring theme of scalability, real-time data applications, and cost-effective, sustainable solutions shows NOAA's interest in technologies that not only address immediate environmental challenges but also have broader implications for global climate and ecosystem management. Additionally, NOAA seems to value partnerships that leverage cross-disciplinary expertise, integrating cutting-edge science with practical applications.

Their grading criteria also give you some early insight into what they are interested in receiving:

  1. The scientific merit and technical approach of the proposed research (40 points)
  2. The level of innovation the proposed effort offers to the research topic area (20 points)
  3. Consideration of an application’s commercial and societal impacts and potential applications (20 points)
  4. Qualifications of the proposed principal/key investigators, supporting staff, and consultants and availability of instrumentation and physical facilities necessary to complete the proposed work (20 points)

How to Apply

Because of the previous trends, we anticipate NOAA will publish a similar list of research topics along the same lines as the last few years within the next several months. With a deadline being between December and March, it’s in your best interest to begin preparing your application now. Here are the first three early steps I’d recommend for you to get a headstart:

  • Check your eligibility
    • You must be a for-profit organization.
    • You must have fewer than 500 employees
    • You must be primarily owned by a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
    • You must not be majority owned by venture capital or private equity
  • Complete your registrations
    • System for Award Management (SAM) — registration can take over a month and must be renewed on an annual basis.
    • Small Business Association SBA — registration can take up to 90 days.
    • Grants.gov — registration typically takes between three to 10 business days.
  • Start writing your first sections
    • Develop your abstract and specific aims. If possible, schedule a meeting with a program manager from NOAA to review and provide early feedback on these early sections.

Don’t Forget About Asking for Help

Practice regular and open communication with NOAA and their SBIR program managers. Ask questions early and often to make sure you have the best chance of receiving positive feedback when you finally submit your application. I’d encourage you to find previous NOAA SBIR reviewers to do a preliminary review before your submission. Since these solicitations only come around once a year, it’s worth the time and effort to polish your application to the highest degree. If you’re worried about the time commitment of writing a 15 page application for funding, find a local grant writer (or grant writing firm) to help with application and submission process.

Finally, good luck to all you NOAA applications as you innovate in such a way to make the world a better place.

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Robert Wegner is the director of business development for Baginski Wegner and Company (BW&CO).

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Texas universities develop innovative open-source platform for cell analysis

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What do labs do when faced with large amounts of imaging data? Powerful cloud computing systems have long been the answer to that question, but a new riposte comes from SPACe.

That’s the name of a new open-source image analysis platform designed by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine, Texas A&M University and the University of Houston.

SPACe, or Swift Phenotypic Analysis of Cells, was created to be used on standard computers that even small labs can access, meaning cellular analysis using images produced through cell painting has a lower barrier to entry than ever before.

“The pharmaceutical industry has been accustomed to simplifying complex data into single metrics. This platform allows us to shift away from that approach and instead capture the full diversity of cellular responses, providing richer, more informative data that can reveal new avenues for drug development,” Michael Mancini, professor of molecular and cellular biology and director of the Gulf Coast Consortium Center for Advanced Microscopy and Image Informatics co-located at Baylor College of Medicine and TAMU Institute for Bioscience and Technology.

SPACe is not only accessible because of its less substantial computational needs. Because the platform is open-source, it’s available to anyone who needs it. And it can be used by academic and pharmaceutical researchers alike.

“The platform allows for the identification of non-toxic effects of drugs, such as alterations in cell shape or effects on specific organelles, which are often overlooked by traditional assays that focus largely on cell viability,” says Fabio Stossi, currently a senior scientist with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, the lead author who was at Baylor during the development of SPACe.

The platform is a better means than ever of analyzing thousands of individual cells through automated imaging platforms, thereby better capturing the variability of biological processes. Through that, SPACe allows scientists an enhanced understanding of the interactions between drugs and cells, and does it on standard computers, translating to scientists performing large-scale drug screenings with greater ease.

"This tool could be a game-changer in how we understand cellular biology and discover new drugs. By capturing the full complexity of cellular responses, we are opening new doors for drug discovery that go beyond toxicity,” says Stossi.

And the fact that it’s open-source allows scientists to access SPACe for free right now. Researchers interested in using the platform can access it through Github at github.com/dlabate/SPACe. This early version could already make waves in research, but the team also plans to continually improve their product with the help of collaborations with other institutions.

The Ion names new coworking partner for Houston innovation hub

Where to Work

Rice University subsidiary Rice Real Estate Co. has tapped coworking company Industrious as the new operator of the Ion’s 86,000-square-foot coworking space in Midtown. Industrious replaces WeWork-owned Common Desk in that role.

The Ion, owned by Rice Real Estate and located at 4201 Main St., is a 266,000-square-foot office building and innovation hub in the 16-acre Ion District.

Features of the coworking space include private suites and offices, dedicated desks, phone booths and conference rooms. In 2022, Common Desk said it was expanding the space by 28,000 square feet, bringing it to the current size.

“(Industrious’) unparalleled expertise in delivering quality, hospitality-driven workspaces complements our vision of creating a world-class ecosystem where entrepreneurs, corporations, and academia converge to drive innovation forward,” Ken Jett, president of Rice Real Estate, said in a statement.

Natalie Levine, senior manager of real estate at Industrious, says her company will work with Rice Real Estate “to continue to position the Ion as an invaluable contributor to the growth of Houston’s innovation community.”

Dallas-based commercial real estate services company CBRE said Jan. 14 that it had agreed to acquire Industrious in a deal valued at $400 million.

The Ion is Industrious’ second location in Houston. The company’s other local coworking space is at 1301 McKinney St.

Office tenants at the Ion include Occidental Petroleum, Fathom Fund, Activate, Nauticus Robotics, and Carbon Clean.

Texas ranks among the 5 best states to start a business in 2025

Best for Biz

As one of the largest states in the U.S., it's no surprise Texas is big on business and entrepreneurship. Now the state is earning new praise among WalletHub's 2025 list of "Best & Worst States to Start a Business."

The Lone Star State claimed the No. 4 spot in the report's rankings, proving that Texas is in a much better business shape than it was last year when it earned No. 8 in WalletHub's annual report.

The study compared all 50 states across 25 metrics to determine the best places to start, grow, and find success with a new business. Factors that were considered include the number of startups per capita, job growth rates, financing accessibility measures, labor costs and corporate tax rates.

The three states to outperform Texas in the 2025 report are Florida (No. 1), Georgia (No. 2), and Utah (No. 3). Idaho rounded out the top five.

Across the study's three main categories, Texas performed the best in the "business environment" category, earning No. 1 nationally. This section compares the states based on five-year business survival rates, average business revenues growth and more.

Texas ranked No. 12 in the nationwide comparison of "access to resources" – which covers working age population growth, venture investment amounts per capita and other means – and earned a fair No. 34 in the report's "business costs" ranking.

But Texas can still do better with its business friendliness to reclaim a top-three overall ranking, which the state last earned in 2023.

WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said in the report that it is imperative for potential new business owners to establish their enterprise in a place that can maximize their ability to succeed.

"Around half of all new businesses don’t survive five years, so the idea of becoming a business owner can be daunting, especially with the current high cost of living," Lupo said. "The best states have low corporate tax rates, strong economies, an abundance of reliable workers, easy access to financing and affordable real estate. On top of that, you’ll need to make sure you start in a place with an engaged customer base, if you’re operating locally."

Houston has also proven to be at the top of the destination list for entrepreneurs who are looking for their next venture.

The top 10 best states to start a new business in 2025 are:

  • No. 1 – Florida
  • No. 2 – Georgia
  • No. 3 – Utah
  • No. 4 – Texas
  • No. 5 – Idaho
  • No. 6 – Oklahoma
  • No. 7 – Nevada
  • No. 8 – Colorado
  • No. 9 – Arizona
  • No. 10 – Kentucky
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This story originally appeared on our sister site, CultureMap.