Commercialization Services
Recognizing that commercialization is hard, Congress has made a portion of the SBIR/STTR funds specific to commercialization activities. Designated as TABA (technical and business assistance) funds you can access up to $6.5K in Phase I and up to $50K in Phase II to secure commercialization services from a third-party. DOE provides these funds outside of the award amount. However, there are some stipulations on how it can be used. See the current Funding Opportunity Announcement for more information.
Below, please find a list of resources that provide commercialization services. Note that this is not an exhaustive list but a place to start.
If you are a service provider that has not been included and would like to be added to the list, reach out to Carol Rabke directly.
Disclaimer: DOE is not endorsing, sponsoring, or otherwise evaluating the qualifications of the individuals and organizations that appear as partnering resources.
| Organization | Location | Contact | Description of Services |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aon – Intellectual Property Solutions |
Chicago IL |
Fiona McMahon
Anastasia Vorobiova |
Intellectual property (IP) is one of the most valuable corporate assets, yet one of the least understood, valued or protected. As a trusted global leader in IP as an asset class, Aon work with organizations of all sizes to maximize the value of their IP – helping with valuation, and to assess and mitigate risk, align with business strategy and capitalize on investments. |
| August Brown |
Wauwatosa, WI |
Gordon Nameni (414) 704-6755 |
August Brown has spent the past decade doing exactly that, maximizing innovation. Should you need help identifying areas ripe for innovation, we can help. Should you need assistance developing a go to market strategy, we can help. Regardless of your need, August Brown has an experienced team ready to help you take full advantage of your innovations. We have helped companies identify innovation potential in their existing technologies, identified new, unforeseen markets for new technologies, and assisted with every step of the technology commercialization process. |
| Avicenne Energy |
Landenberg, PA |
Michael Sanders (302) 540-9457 |
We are a consulting firm specializing in high growth technology markets. We provide start-ups with business development, market and opportunity assessments. Since 1992, we have rapidly established a solid reputation in Energy and Batteries, where we work with the largest players in the industry and organize a world-class conference, "Batteries". |
| Braid Theory | Los Angeles, CA | Jim Cooper [email protected] |
Braid Theory is a Vertically Integrated Venture and Accelerator, operating in the Blue Economy including cleantech, biotech, agtech, logistics, maritime, & ESGs. Our team has over 60 years of proven domain experience in establishing and growing companies from concept and early stage, to strategic technology alignment with corporate partners, from demonstrations, trials and pilots, to integration with the needs and objectives of the industry partners. |
| Clarivate Analytics, LLC |
Philadelphia, PA |
Karrye Berglund 603-361-8388 |
Clarivate is a global leader in supplying trusted insights and analytics to accelerate the pace of innovation. Clarivate has long-standing expertise in open-source intelligence, data, insight and supplying quantitative and qualitative evidence for SBIR/STTR grants in discretional technical and business assistance (TABA). Using our own proprietary data sources (Web of Science, Derwent, Innography, Pivot RP, PQDT and Cortellis), our team of experts and consultants can assist you in your journey to commercialization in areas like: landscape analysis, freedom to operate, validity, and due diligence. |
| Dawnbreaker, Inc. |
Rochester, NY |
John K. Servo 585-617-9420 |
Market research, competitor intelligence, scale up and production, marketing and sales, intellectual property protection and financing are just a few of the business functions that must be expertly navigated by the entrepreneur that wishes to be successful. Dawnbreaker has a long history of helping companies be successful by providing a full range of services for advanced technology firms. |
| EKase Consulting, LLC | Boulder, CO | Ed Kase 303-641-3645 [email protected] |
As the principal at EKase Consulting, LLC, I would be providing TABA Services in the areas of market strategy, market research, and customer / partner discovery. I have worked in business development for 25+ years, with a focus in SBIR / STTR technology commercialization since 2005. I have provided services to more than fifty (50) companies, including TABA services for awards from DOE, NASA, DoD (US Navy, US Army, Missile Defense Agency), and USDA. |
| Foresight Science & Technology, Inc. |
Hopkinton, MA |
(401) 273-4844 ext. 4004 |
Founded in 1980, Foresight is one of the world’s leading providers of commercialization assistance, technology transfer and business development services. Utilizing a team of more than 65 Senior Consultants, our services include market research/ validation, commercialization plan development, partner identification, licensing advisory, training/mentoring, and more. |
| Fuentek, LLC | Cary, NC | Michelle Ormond 919-267-1200 [email protected] |
Since 2001, Fuentek has provided a range of high-quality, high-value technology transfer services to help universities, government labs, corporations, and research institutions worldwide manage their intellectual property and tech transfer operations proactively, efficiently, and effectively. As a qualified TABA vendor, we leverage our experience to provide comprehensive SBIR TABA services to small businesses. Fuentek’s Phase I TABA services give companies valuable commercialization insights with relevant and actionable information to strengthen their applications for future funding, as well as business plan development. During Phase II, companies receive an effective, customized strategy for moving their R&D into commercialization in both federal and non-federal markets. |
| Gaia Energy Research Institute | Alexandria, VA |
Whitney Colella (650) 283-2701 |
What is the future cost of your current innovation? What are more viable niche markets to enter? What are potential paths to manufacture? What are some of the best ways to design your product for your customers? Your business team and partners need to know! To answer these kinds of questions, Gaia has built ground-up, techno-economic analyses (TEA) and other solutions for our clients for the past ~25 years. Gaia’s President, Dr. Whitney G. Colella, holds both a doctorate in Engineering Sciences & an MBA (from the University of Oxford, graduating with highest honors, on a British Marshall Fellowship), and therefore can understand the details of your innovation and also identify viable commercialization paths. When you partner with us, you’re in the driver’s seat! Gaia’s team will flex to your team’s needs, as they change in real time, over the course of your project. |
| Hawkeye360 Consulting | Lakeville, MA | Wayne Sula 774-384-3448 [email protected] |
HawkEye360 is a full-service provider of commercialization and technology transfer services to companies engaged in the SBIR/STTR program. We offer a suite of services that guide our clients in finding new markets for existing or newly developed products; technology scouting to identify companies who desire to license low to mid-TRL technologies; and partnership development in support of these activities. Wayne Sula is a degreed engineer and business development specialist that leads small business commercialization strategies on SBIR and STTR initiatives via licensing and strategic partnerships. He holds a BS in Ocean Engineering from Florida Institute of Technology, an MBA from Northeastern University, and is also a certified Six Sigma Black Belt. He brings a deep knowledge of high-volume, low-cost manufacturing and recently has worked in sales, business development, and marketing for several environmental sensor/instrumentation manufacturers focused on water quality sensors and instrumentation as well as data telemetry. |
| IntrinSim, LLC |
Canton, GA |
Joe Walsh (404) 374-7247 |
At intrinSIM we collaborate with our clients in the Engineering Software Market to design, create, improve, validate and/or implement key aspects of their business , technology, and go-to-market initiatives. |
| Inventr |
Brooklyn, NY |
Vishnu Thyagarajan |
Inventr is a SaaS platform to help deep tech R&D teams get to revenue faster by managing their technologies from concept to commercialization. We specialize in using AI to automate patent landscape research, providing detailed insights into your IP defensibility, competition, and market growth. The result is more accurate data on your IP landscape in less time and at a fraction of the cost of other tools or patent counsel. We help companies ranging from Series A climate tech to mid-size organizations like AccuWeather, and are an exclusive partner of the USPTO. |
| Keon Research | Seattle, WA and Bay Area, CA |
Michael Manion (425) 628-3563 |
Keon Research is an innovation consultancy providing development and commercialization support across technology, markets and stages of development from startup to F500 companies. Our team of creative, commercially minded scientists and analysts provide a range of services from consulting, feasibility analysis, through to prototyping and product development including invention analysis, competitor & market landscaping, IP landscaping, commercialization strategy, licensing scouting and deal support. We also incubate startups in-house all the way through to product launch and have the full suite of support for startups and a broad network that we tap to achieve commercialization success. In addition to primary and secondary research, analysis and report writing, we have a full prototyping lab and can even support small run manufacturing of many different types of technologies. We are a family-owned small business with much lower overheads than most, which means our project costs are very competitive. |
| Larta Institute |
Los Angeles, CA |
Tobias Varntoft 213-538-1441 [email protected] |
Larta is a mission-based organization fostering innovation for a sustainable planet, across energy, food, marine, and healthcare impact areas. Larta’s portfolio of 30+ products for startups and expert network of over 50 subject matter experts have proven to accelerate the transition of R&D ideas into sustainable enterprises over the 25 years of the organization’s history. Additionally, Larta directly invests resources and funding (pre-seed to series-A) under its Larta Ventures initiative and supports post-SBIR Phase III scaling via its active investor ecosystem. |
| Leading Business Ventures | Cambridge, MA |
Luis Barros (617) 901-3317 |
Leading Business Ventures, (“LBV”), is a private market advisory firm that enables technology-based innovation, entrepreneurship know-how and effective ecosystem management. LBV has decades of experience in venture building and business development and has worked with SBIR programs in the area of Commercialization Assistance and Services since 2009. As part of the business development process, LBV deploys the 5A’s of Innovation & Entrepreneurship™ which includes: an integrated "De-Risking" Assessment and Market Research & Analytics to determine the market, technology, commercialization and investor-readiness level; Strategic Venture Advisory providing knowledge, frameworks, market insights & analytics for business model validation, risk mitigation & pathway to increase valuation as well as the preparation of materials for market and capital access, corporate development, and ecosystem effectiveness; and Venture Building and Integrated Business Development™ to provide transaction advisory for interactions and negotiations with key stakeholders. |
| Nathe Management Consulting | Austin, TX | Sara Mitran (512) 633-3276 [email protected] |
Our team has commercialized emerging and disruptive technologies in the private sector for decades. For years, we have shared our business, product, and commercialization experience with DOE SBIR grant recipients to ensure their success. Our subject matter experts have experience on many topics including batteries, renewable energy, wildlife protection, thermal energy, solar heliostats. Our goal is to ensure your organization has a solid understanding of the industry, customer and end-user, develop the right product, achieve product-market fit fast and acquire the necessary skills to market and close sales with early adopters and beyond. |
| Neutrino Donut, LLC | Los Angeles/Austin |
Earle Hager (512) 431-3940 |
The Neutrino Donut is a consultancy with a focus on technology commercialization. Our focus is on managing the development process for startups, understanding the use of grant processes, business development, and fundraising programs. We have worked with startups in all aspects of the development lifecycle. We have an extensive understanding of the ecosystems for universities, startups, grant programs, and global projects. We provide consulting services for partners as well as our own clients. As part of this consultancy, we have completed hundreds of technology assessments and business development projects in innovative technologies over the last ten years for domestic and international clients. We have been part of many SBIR commercialization projects, writing multiple commercialization plans and consulting on many more. |
| OppsSpot, LLC | Tucson, AZ | Sonia Vohnout (520) 345-0859 [email protected] |
OppsSpot, LLC, a minority woman-owned small business (WOSB), is a skilled provider of SBIR/STTR program consulting services, federal funding, and commercialization support. Our services go beyond full proposal management and writing, as we also specialize in offering comprehensive Technical and Business Assistance (TABA) services to Phase I and II SBIR-funded companies. Through tailored training, mentorship, proposal management, and consulting support, we help strengthen technical capabilities, refine business strategies, conduct market research/validation, identify partners, and increase the likelihood of successful commercialization. OppsSpot has a proven track record of assisting small businesses in securing funding and establishing partnerships with government entities and prime contractors, resulting in millions in funding support from federal agencies. With our experienced team of professionals, we are deeply committed to working closely with our customers, providing valuable support, and ensuring success in today's competitive market. |
| Peak Innovations Group LLC | Seattle, WA |
Del Mackey (206) 801-0485 |
Peak was founded on one principal, help businesses move one step further in their commercialization efforts and to reach their full potential for delivering innovative solutions to the world. Peak supports the innovation ecosystem through assistance areas such as market opportunity identification and exploration, training and consulting for funding opportunity capture, grant writing and budget development, planning of innovation “stage gating” and transition to market, customer identification and coaching on value proposition development, and other areas that lead to successful commercial offerings. Whether your business is new to the innovation ecosystem, or a studied pro, Peak can help you take your business to the top. |
| QuickStart Consulting |
Longmont, CO |
Clement W. Meas (303) 417-1716 |
quickSTART provides an effective means of segmenting and identifying who the target customers are, a process to validate the market assumptions and focused research on the open, difficult marketing issues. The primary research tool is highly focused engagement with the target customer base. quickSTART believes this small investment will not only minimize product risk, but also provide a positive, low-risk, early market entry. The results: both a better product and a product plan with reduced "time to revenue." |
| Rare Innovation, LLC | Tampa Bay, FL |
Tim Raines (512) 731-9636 |
Rare Innovation has been providing commercialization support and business development to advanced technology innovators across the globe. We have experience with all SBIR/STTR issuing authorities and have supported numerous Phase I, II, and III wins as well as backend business development, fund raising, and go-to-market strategies. Our principal has also served as PI for a DOE Phase I exploring innovations in plasma facing components. Our experience includes over $100 million in enterprise hardware and software sales as well as millions in SBIR/STTR wins. |
| Roger London |
Roger London (410) 340-5335 |
Roger London has worked with startups and F500 companies as a principal, investor or strategic/business planning advisor in almost a one billion dollars of transactions and awards. For decades he has advised entrepreneurs in realizing their potential and now, Mr. London enjoys working with selected SBIR winners advising them how to best protect their founder interests, avoid common missteps and advise them on topics not in their wheelhouse. | |
| RTI International RTI Innovation Advisors |
Research Triangle Park, NC |
Steve McManus (919) 541-7484 |
Provider of technology and innovation consulting services to Federal (NASA, NIST MEP, Dept of Energy/ARPA-E, DoD, DHS), University, and Fortune 500 companies. We are engineers and scientists with expertise in multiple technology and market domains, and access to the expertise of RTI International, a leading not-for-profit research institute. |
| Sapienne Consulting LLC | Lafayette, CO | Tanya Ramond, MBA PhD (303) 807-5436 [email protected] |
The mission of Sapienne Consulting (SC) is to accelerate Deep Tech companies through commercialization and product strategy. SC offers first-hand understanding of university and industry R&D, market readiness levels and technology readiness levels, and R&D maturation. SC provides unparalleled integration of both technical depth and business savvy: PhD level technical comprehension integrated with seasoned entrepreneurial know-how, offering an investor mindset to ensure that your value proposition resonates strongly with fund managers and of course customers. Services offered are new market discovery, market research, go-to-market strategy, customer discovery, product-market fit, product definition, product roadmap, and innovation process to ensure growth as you scale. |
| TechOpp Consulting, Inc. |
Blacksburg, VA |
Bob Fielder (540) 552-2680 |
Our Technical and Business Assistance (TABA) support is focused on helping you win the next stage of funding, whether that is additional R&D funding, or product sales. Our unique approach is very pro-active and integrated with your project. We dramatically reduce the time that your team needs to spend on commercialization efforts. |
| Urban Venture Group |
Columbus, OH |
Burr Zimmerman (614) 425-1230 |
We provide support in the following areas: customer-focused market research and "Voice of Customer" interviews; competitor analysis, industry trend analysis, industry value creation system mapping; market sizing, addressable market, and other industry statistics; capital access (equity and non-dilutive capital strategy, pitch deck creation); business model/strategy (including commercialization plan and business plan creation); and technical sales materials (white papers, marketing materials, flyers, presentations, website creation) |
| VentureCraft, Inc. | Huntington Beach, CA |
Shaun Sanders (714) 855-2429 |
VentureCraft is a premier consulting firm dedicated to helping technology-focused organizations of all sizes navigate the complexities of securing SBIR/STTR funding through all agencies, successfully commercializing their innovations, and raising private capital. To date, our clients have raised more than $165 million. With a wealth of experience and a deep understanding of the unique challenges faced by technology companies, VentureCraft offers tailored solutions and guidance to help them achieve their full potential. Our team of industry experts specializes in guiding clients through the SBIR process, offering invaluable insights and support from Phase I through Phase III. Additionally, VentureCraft's customized training programs equip universities and accelerators with the resources and knowledge to better support technology-focused ventures in their quest for grant funding. |
| VentureWell | Hadley, MA |
Tricia Compas-Markman |
Investor readiness and investor engagement accelerator programming for climate-tech startups. |
| WBGlobalSemi, Inc. | La Honda, California |
Bo Varga 650-747-9554 |
Our Silicon Valley principals provide business development, engineering support and manufacturing services to high technology companies. Business development includes business plans, executive summaries, market research, market presentations, and product plans. We also introduce US SBCs to large corporations, where appropriate, in EU, North America, and India, both for business partnering and at times to achieve funding goals. |
| Z-Poynt Systems |
New Hope, PA |
At Z-Poynt Systems, we perform full-service Engineering/Management Consulting. We specialize in turning ideas into profitable realities. We know that engineering leadership cannot be separated from business management and foresight in today’s interconnected and fast-moving technical landscape. Focusing on the engineering challenges of communications, RF/microwave/fiber optic systems and satellite payloads, we bring to bear our business start-up mindset to the problems of design, qualification, manufacturing, and profitability. |
