SBA Administrator to Kick Off National SBIR Conference

WASHINGTON, April 24, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- U.S. Small Business  Administrator Linda McMahon will kick off the 2017 National SBIR Conference on May 16 at the Gaylord Hotel and Conference Center in Washington, D.C.  In her keynote address, Administrator McMahon will highlight the vital role America's small businesses play in strengthening the economy and driving innovation. 

"It's our mission at the SBA to empower small business owners and offer them the opportunity to compete and succeed," Administrator McMahon said. "The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs open opportunities in STEM fields to all entrepreneurs. These are incredible resources for enabling economic opportunity and revitalizing the spirit of entrepreneurship in America. Our small business owners drive innovation each and every day, and the SBA is committed to lifting them up and propelling them forward."

The Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs are the nation's largest source of early stage/high risk R&D funding for small businesses. The SBIR/STTR programs fuel thousands of innovative high-growth companies through non-dilutive funding totaling almost $2.5 billion a year.

The highly competitive SBIR/STTR programs together account for more than 150,000 awards totaling approximately $40 billion. These awards have helped U.S. innovators advance new technologies that help make the U.S. more globally competitive. The SBIR/STTR programs have provided seed funding to companies including Qualcomm, iRobot, Symantec and Genzyme. 

Conference attendees will learn how to compete for funding and participate in these two programs, which encourage small businesses to access Federal Research/Research and Development (R/R&D) and to commercialize technological innovations.

The National SBIR Conference is co-located with the National Innovation Summit, which draws 3,000+ attendees representing small businesses, entrepreneurs, and research institutions from across the globe. The National SBIR/STTR Conference offers a platform for small businesses and research institutions to interact with government program managers and industry leaders to learn how to be successful in the SBIR and STTR programs.    

The National SBIR Conference is just one of the SBA's SBIR outreach events. Now in its third year of the Small Business Innovation National Road Tour, it aims to encourage high growth R&D and connect innovators with money available from the 11 other SBIR participating federal agencies. 

The details for the 2017 National SBIR Conference are as follows:
May 15-17, 2017 
National Innovation Summit
Gaylord National Harbor 
201 Waterfront Street, 
Oxon Hill, MD 20745

Small technology firms, innovators, scientists or researchers seeking more information on the SBIR Road Tour, including a schedule of states for the road tour and participating agencies, should visit: www.sbirroadtour.com.

For more information about SBIR/STTR programs, please visit www.sbir.gov.

About the U.S. Small Business Administration
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) was created in 1953 and since January 13, 2012, has served as a Cabinet-level agency of the federal government to aid, counsel, assist and protect the interests of small business concerns, to preserve free competitive enterprise and to maintain and strengthen the overall economy of our nation.  The SBA helps Americans start, build and grow businesses.  Through an extensive network of field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations, the SBA delivers its services to people throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam.

To learn more, visit www.sba.gov.

Release Number: 17-26

Contact: Tiffani S. Clements  (202) 401-0035 
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news

SOURCE U.S. Small Business Administration

Related Links

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