The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs are designed to move early-stage and impactful technologies closer to commercialization, but what does “commercialization” mean? 

Got federal SBIR or STTR funding? West Virginia wants to double down on your innovation through matching funds. The West Virginia Entrepreneurship and Innovation Investment Fund (EII) offers grants to businesses that have received federal SBIR/STTR awards, aiming to maximize the impact of federal research funding awards.

The Resilient Energy Technology and Infrastructure Consortium (RETI), an initiative focused on commercializing high-impact innovations in West Virginia and western Pennsylvania, was chosen as one of only 29 semifinalists in the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Regional Innovation Engines initiative, from a pool of over 300 proposals nationwide. RETI is a collaboration of dozens of innovation ecosystem partners, and is led by West Virginia University (WVU), the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt), Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), and the U.S. Research Impact Alliance (USRIA).

Excel Regional Solutions recently released the SBIR State Performance Index, which assesses state SBIR achievements using factors like economy size, research spending, high-tech firms, and research employment. Including these factors establishes a more comprehensive ranking of performance by showing how well each state's companies earn SBIR awards compared to their share of the national innovation economy. 

According to the index, West Virginia received 45 awards from 2022 to 2024, far fewer than Texas's 1,138. At first glance, this might make West Virginia’s accomplishments look insubstantial. However, the report ranks the Mountain State #18 when all factors are considered. We believe this is due to the state’s matching fund program, the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Investment Fund, and technical assistance from WV SPRINT, the SBIR FAST program administered by USRIA & WV SBDC.

Is the budget section of your Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) application causing you stress? You don’t have to go at it alone! Join Us for the Upcoming Free Webinar “Conquer Your SBIR Budget”, July 24, 2025 from 12 - 1:30 pm ET.