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2023 Stage One Winners Announced
Since its launch in 2014, the Growth Accelerator Fund Competition has awarded 387 prizes totaling over $19 million to 284 unique winners across 52 states and U.S. territories. The 2023 competition introduced a multi-stage approach with Stage One focused on catalyzing an ecosystem around a particular theme. Stage One applicants represented 45 U.S. states and territories, with 70 percent as first-time applicants to the 2023 Competition.
Forty Stage One prize winners come from 30 states, including D.C. and Puerto Rico. Sixty-five percent of winners are first time applicants and 50 percent of the winning organizations specifically support rural entrepreneurs. The 2023 Competition focused on four theme areas with 25 percent of Stage One winners focused on National Security & Global Competitiveness, 27.5 percent on Domestic Manufacturing & Production, 10 percent on Climate & Renewable Energy, and 37.5 percent on Underserved Communities. Geographically, 17.5 percent of winners aim serve at the local/sub-state region, 42.5 percent statewide, 20 percent regionally (multiple states), and 20 percent nationwide.
National Security & Global Competitiveness
Delaware - Delaware Technology Park
Kentucky - XLerateHealth (DBA XLerator Network)
Mississippi - Mississippi State University
New Hampshire - Hannah Grimes Center
New Mexico - University of New Mexico (dba New Mexico Bioscience Authority)
North Dakota - University of North Dakota UND Center for Innovation Foundation
Oklahoma - Development Capital Networks LLC (dba UAS Cluster Initiative)
Texas - BioMedSA
Virginia - Virginia Small Business Development Center at George Mason University
Washington - Greater Seattle Partners
Domestic Manufacturing and Production
California - AgTech Innovation Alliance (AgStart)
Hawaii - Hawaii Island Business Plan Competition
Illinois - mHUB
Indiana - Indiana Economic Development Corporation
Kansas - Wichita State University
Massachusetts - Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives (MBI)
Michigan - Centrepolis Accelerator at Lawrence Technological University
Ohio - Youngstown Edison Incubator Corp. (DBA Youngstown Business Incubator or YBI)
Pennsylvania - The Business Center for Entrepreneurship & Social Enterprise
South Dakota - South Dakota Biotechnology Council (DBA BioRise)
Wisconsin - StartingBlock Madison, Inc
Climate and Renewable Energy
California - The Orange County Center for Innovation & Social Enterprise SPC (DBA RevHubOC)
District of Columbia - American Council on Renewable Energy
Florida - Seaworthy Foundation, Inc. (dba Seaworthy Collective)
Virginia - Hanover County Clean Technology Innovation Center (dba Dominion Energy Innovation Center)
Underserved Communities
Arkansas - University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
District of Columbia - 2Gether International Inc
Florida - The University of Central Florida Board of Trustees (dba Florida High Tech Corridor)
Georgia - Black Innovation Alliance (BIA)
Idaho - Actuate Boise, Inc. (dba Trailhead)
Iowa - The New Bohemian Innovation Collaborative, Inc (dba NewBoCo)
Maine - Central Maine Growth Council Dirigo Labs Business Accelerator
Maryland - UpSurge Baltimore Community Inc
Massachusetts - National Collegiate Inventors & Innovators Alliance, Inc. (DBA VentureWell)
Michigan - BBC Entrepreneurial Training & Consulting LLC
North Carolina - NC Hispanic American Chamber of Commerce
Ohio - State Science & Technology Institute (SSTI)
Puerto Rico - Puerto Rico Science, Technology and Research Trust
Tennessee - FoundersForge
Texas - VILCAP Inc (dba Village Capital)
SBA is hosting an online 2023 Growth Accelerator Fund Competition (GAFC) Contact Directory for potential partners to learn about and connect with Stage One Winners. The Directory will be searchable by keyword, population, and geography served. Details may be found at https://bit.ly/GAFC23Directory.
Competition Details
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) offers $50,000 to $200,000 in prize awards for impactful and inclusive approaches to foster a thriving, collaborative national innovation support ecosystem to advance research and development (R&D) from ideas to impact.
By fostering connections between entrepreneurs, advisors, mentors, partners, philanthropies, corporations, investors, and other shared resources, the 2023 Growth Accelerator Fund Competition (GAFC) will catalyze strategic ecosystem partnerships to build community and organizational capacity for the successful launch, growth, and scale of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)-based entrepreneurs and startups.
Competition Goals:- Increase the pipeline and success of STEM/R&D-focused entrepreneurs and small businesses;
- Increase the success of STEM/R&D-focused entrepreneurs in accessing capital and resources to advance their businesses;
- Incentivize innovation ecosystem stakeholders to provide equitable access to resources for underserved communities and industries;
- Catalyze partnerships and relationships between stakeholder groups to strengthen the national innovation ecosystem; and
- Connect both new and established participants in the national innovation ecosystem
Prizes awarded in Two Stages:
Stage One: $50,000 cash prizes awarded to organizations (Catalysts) to catalyze relationships between aligned stakeholders (Ecosystem Partners) that lead to the development of Growth Accelerator Partnerships. Catalysts work collaboratively with Ecosystem Partners to bring additional resources, deepen network connections, and develop strategies that amplify the impact and success of the Growth Accelerator Partnership and the STEM/R&D-focused entrepreneurs and small businesses it serves.
SBA encourages creative models for ecosystem building. SBA welcomes Stage One submissions from a broad range of organizations with a collaborative vision to nurture a national ecosystem for equitable access to entrepreneurship.
Stage Two: $50,000 to $150,000 cash prizes awarded to “Growth Accelerator Partnerships” to provide assistance to entrepreneurs that transition R&D into the marketplace. The Growth Accelerator Partnership provides startups and small businesses with additional support and resources.SBA accepts Stage Two submissions from Growth Accelerator Partnerships; submissions are prepared jointly by Stage One Catalysts and Ecosystem Partners and organizations present their proposal to successfully accelerate the launch, growth, and scale of diverse STEM/R&D-focused small businesses.
View the recording of the GAFC informational webinar and download the webinar slides for a better understanding of competition rules and guidelines.
Resources:
Download full competition guidelines
Note: The Competition is not intended to provide capital directly to companies for R&D projects.
Small Business Administration © 2023
SBA’s participation in this activity is not an endorsement of the views, opinions, products or services of any other person or entity. All SBA programs and services are extended to the public on a nondiscriminatory basis.