The New Jersey Commission on Science, Innovation and Technology has awarded a total of $2.425 million in matching grants to more than 80 startups since 2020 through its Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer Direct Financial Assistance Program, according to a Thursday announcement.
The program supports startups that are receiving funding from highly competitive federal research & development grant programs as they work toward commercialization. The $2.425 million in funding includes $525,000 awarded to 17 startups through the program’s recent fourth funding round.
Thirteen of the 17 awardees announced last week are currently in Phase I of, or have received a Fast-Track or Phase II designation from, the federal SBIR/STTR programs. Each of these awardees will receive up to $25,000 through the New Jersey SBIR/STTR Direct Financial Assistance Program. The grants are intended to help awardees increase intensity of research, strengthen commercialization plans, cover operational expenses and become more competitive for Phase II funding. These awardees include:
- Atux Iskay Group LLC (Princeton, Mercer County);
- AuresTech Inc. (Bridgewater, Somerset County);
- Dina Pharma Inc (Peapack-Gladstone, Somerset County);
- Enalare Therapeutics (Princeton, Mercer County);
- Farm to Flame Energy Inc. (West Orange, Essex County);
- Innovative AI Technologies LLC (Newark, Essex County);
- Mallika Ashwin Maya Corp. (Bridgewater, Somerset County);
- Misram LLC (Holmdel, Monmouth County);
- Neutroelectric LLC (Camden, Camden County);
- Paragon Flavor Inc. (Princeton, Mercer County);
- Regenosine Inc. (Princeton, Mercer County);
- ShockTech (Mahwah, Bergen County);
- SingletO2 Therapeutics LLC (New Providence Borough, Union County).
The other four awardees have each completed Phase I or more of the federal SBIR/STTR programs and have applied for Phase II federal funding. Each of these awardees will receive bridge grants of up to $50,000 through CSIT’s Bridge Funding program:
- Bezwada Biomedical LLC (Hillsborough, Somerset County);
- Impact Business Information Solutions Inc. (Princeton, Mercer County);
- Optimeos Life Sciences Inc. (Princeton, Mercer County);
- Venarum Medical LLC (Eatontown, Monmouth County).
“New Jersey startups are creating cutting-edge technologies that will have both far-reaching and long-lasting effects on the worldwide stage, and we are proud to connect them with access to the capital they need to succeed,” CSIT Executive Director Judith Sheft said. “Our state’s blend of highly talented workforce and proximity to both a high concentration of scientists and research universities make us an attractive location for startups looking to scale their operations. The N.J. SBIR/STTR Direct Financial Assistance Program is a perfect complement to those assets.”
Awardees in the latest round of N.J. SBIR/STTR Direct Financial Assistance Program funding range from clean technology startups to companies focused in such areas as aerospace, gene therapy, drug discovery, sustainability and nutrient content of packaged foods. Sixteen of the 17 awardees had fewer than 10 employees at the time of application. Twelve out of the 17 awardees had fewer than five employees.
