NIST Awards $1.2M to Small Businesses

The Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards (NIST) has awarded more than $1.2 million to 12 small businesses in eight states under the "Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program.

The SBIR awards fund new R&D products related to cybersecurity, quantum computing, healthcare, semiconductor manufacturing, and other critical areas. The 2024 Phase I SBIR Awardees include five awards involving Health and Medical Issues.

The five SBIR awards related to health and medical issues were awarded to:

1). Applied Imaging Solutions. (Quincy, Massachusetts) --($99,759) to advance AI/deep learning sensing systems for the control of bioreactor environments which is an important need in the fast-growing biopharmaceutical industry.

2).Calimetrix LLC. (Madison, Wisconsin) --(105,284) to develop an imaging test object for the human liver to promote accurate and comparable measurements of liver fat concentrations using MRI, CT scans, and other methods to improve clinical outcomes for patients.

3. HighRI Optics Inc. (Oakland, California) -- ($99,995) to demonstrate the feasibility of a product to enhance the performance of high-end imaging systems through the use of accurate calibration and advanced image processing techniques.

4). My Exposome Inc. (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) --($98,800) to conduct fundamental research to enable silicone wristbands that monitor personal exposure to perfluorinated compounds which have been associated with increased risk of cancer and other health risks.

5). ObjectSecurity LLC. (San Diego, California) --($106,403) to develop a new tool to streamline and automate cybersecurity analysis and then be able to map vulnerabilities directly to NIST standards

These 5 Phase I SBIR awards related to health and medical issues are meant to establish feasibility and commercial potential for proposed R&D development projects. After completing Phase 1 projects, awardees are eligible to apply for Phase 2 funding for up to $400,000 to continue their efforts.

Go to https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2024/05/nist-awards-over-12-million-small-businesses-advance-cybersecurity for more details on the "2024 Phase 1 SBIR Awardees.