Minneapolis, MNThe SBIR Road Tour is coming to Minneapolis on Monday, July 17, giving small businesses the coveted opportunity to learn more about America’s largest seed fund for research and development. This stop is part of the the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 11-state, 15-city road tour and will allow entrepreneurs and small technology firms to connect directly with federal program managers. The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs together are responsible for $2.5 billion annually in non-dilutive funding, primarily in the STEM fields. This will be the third year of the SBA-led National Road Tour.

“The last two years of the SBA Road Tour have been a huge success and we’ve engaged thousands of small innovative firms across the nation, so we are excited to bring back the tour for a third year,” said John Williams, SBA Director of Innovation and Technology.

The SBA is dedicated to supporting America’s entrepreneurs and this tour reflects the agency’s commitment to ensuring innovators are aware of the resources that can help them turn a big idea into another great American success story. This year’s SBIR Road Tour, “Seeding America’s Future Innovations,” is a national outreach effort targeting advanced technology communities.

The Minneapolis stop will be hosted by a MN-SBIR, which is involved in supporting technology-based entrepreneurship, and will give attendees a face-to-face opportunity to talk directly to federal agency program managers and decision makers. Federal agencies including the National Science Foundation, Department of Energy, Department of Defense, and the National Institutes of Health are participating in the tour.

“We’re looking forward to hosting the SBIR Road Tour in Minneapolis,” said Pat Dillon, MN-SBIR Director. “This is an outstanding chance for entrepreneurs to learn more about the funding opportunities available to them through the SBIR/STTR programs.”

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.

Small technology firms, innovators, scientists or researchers seeking more information on the SBIR Road Tour or to register, should visit:  http://mntech.org/event/sbir-road-tour/

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

About MN-SBIR

From innovation, entrepreneurship and commercialization, MN-SBIR is the State’s focal point to assist seed, early stage, emerging and existing firms (1-500 employees) to successfully access non-dilutive federal funding through the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Programs. MN-SBIR is funded in part through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration, the Department of Employment and Economic Development, the University of Minnesota, Office of Technology Commercialization and the Minnesota High Tech Association. Learn more at http://mntech.org/mnsbir/