Pharmaceutical Technologies (PT) SBIR/STTR Program

IHI European HealthCare Incubator Network is sponsored by European Commission — Horizon Europe. Expected Impact: The action under this topic is expected to achieve the following impacts and contribute to the following EU policies/initiatives: deliver innovative, early technology solutions that contribute to addressing strategic unmet public health needs across multiple therapy areas to improve prevention, early diagnosis, and treatment; leverage the unique network and scale of IHI JU members to create a pipeline to support innovative startups in the health industry, fully integrated into European initiatives in support of start-ups and entrepreneurship; drive early cross-sector health R&D and innovation to strengthen the European healthcare industry’s global competitiveness, contributing to the EU Industrial Strategy and Pharmaceutical Strategy objectives; create a sustainable network of European healthcare incubators to guide and support highly talented and innovative early-stage companies; harness digital health and data-sharing technologies (e.g., AI and big data) to enable interoperable health solutions, contributing to the European Health Data Space (EHDS) and improved evidence based care;- the action should generate a portfolio of early‑stage companies that have undergone rigorous multi‑industry validation, significantly increasing their credibility with investors, regulators, and healthcare systems. This ‘industry quality seal’ should enhance the selected startups’ ability to secure follow‑on financing; by integrating corporate expertise into a pan‑European incubator network, the action should reduce fragmentation, support faster clinical and eventually commercial decision‑making, and enable more innovators to navigate regulatory and reimbursement pathways successfully. This should contribute to the objectives of the EU to accelerate the translation of research into deployable health technologies. The Network should serve as a feeder mechanism into wider EU support structures, ensuring that promising companies can transition smoothly into later‑stage funding and scale‑up opportunities. This complementarity should maximise the added value of EU public funding while avoiding duplication and reinforcing Europe’s position as a globally competitive hub for health innovation. The action under this topic should synergise with relevant EU programmes and contribute to several key EU strategies and policies: Life Science strategy, the proposed Biotech Act (especially the biotechnology development accelerators as referred to in article 5 of the Commission proposal), Industrial strategy, Pharmaceutical strategy, EU4Health Programme, Digital Europe Programme, Testing and Experimental Facility for Health AI and Robotic (TEF-Health), European Innovation Council (EIC) programmes, EU Competitive Compass, Choose Europe initiative, Startup and Scale-up strategy by the European Commission. Additionally, the action under this topic should synergise with the forthcoming European Startup and Scaleup Hubs and, in particular, encourage connection into the Network from the Call ‘European Startup and Scaleup Hub Pilot Call – HORIZON-EIE-2026-02-CONNECT-01’. Furthermore, the action has the potential to support Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan, EU Mission on Cancer, Healthier Together – EU Non-Communicable diseases initiative, Joint Action for Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes in Europe, or the Cardiovascular Health Plan. Applicants should demonstrate in the proposal how these synergies will avoid duplication, ensure complementarity with existing EU efforts, and provide early-stage companies with continuity and scale up pathways. Expected Outcome: This call topic responds to the pressing need for a collaborative approach to accelerating the research-to-market pathway and fostering innovation and competitiveness in the European healthcare sector. Accordingly, the action under this topic must contribute to all of the following outcomes: 1. A sustainable European HealthCare Incubator Network (hereafter, the ‘Network’) linking incubators from t Programme areas: Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness, Health, Innovative Health Initiative, Horizon Europe (HORIZON) Keywords: Competitiveness, innovation, research and development, Decrease technological and industrial risks, Health care, Incubator companies, Investment readiness, Related to SME and start-up support, SME support, Start-up companies, European HealthCare Incubator Network, IHI, IHI JU, Innovative Health Initiative, Innovative Health Initiative Joint Undertaking, Joint Undertaking Deadline stages: 2026-10-08, 2027-04-21

Summary: The fiscal year 2026 (FY26) Joint Warfighter Medical Research Program (JWMRP) Military Medical Research and Development Award (MMRDA) mechanism is intended to fund the logical continuation of previous Department of War (DOW)-funded research and development efforts relevant to the FY26 JWMRP that augment and accelerate high-priority medical requirements to meet the needs of Service Members and other Military Health System beneficiaries. The MMRDA supports a wide range of research projects spanning late-stage preclinical studies, late-state technology development efforts, technology demonstration, translational, and clinical research. Projects must be relevant to at least one of the FY26 JWMRP focus areas.Distinctive Features:To be eligible for JWMRP funding, applicants/offerors must have already received DOD/DOW core or DOD/DOW Congressional Special Interest funding.An MMRDA Clinical Research or Clinical Trial Option (MMRDA-CRCTO) is available to specifically support clinical research/observational studies, all phases of clinical trials/interventional studies, and/or correlative studies in support of the development of promising pharmaceutical or biologic candidates, medical devices and technologies. Applicants/offerors should select MMRDA-CRCTO when the application/proposal involves research that includes any human subjects, human biological samples (prospective or retrospective) or human data sets. Note: If selecting this option, applicants must submit additional relevant application/proposal materials. Funding Opportunity Number: HT942526JWMRPMMRDA. Assistance Listing: 12.420. Funding Instrument: CA,G,O,PC. Category: ST. Award Amount: $8.8M total program funding.

Summary: The fiscal year 2026 (FY26) Joint Warfighter Medical Research Program (JWMRP) Military Medical Research and Development Award (MMRDA) mechanism is intended to fund the logical continuation of previous Department of War (DOW)-funded research and development efforts relevant to the FY26 JWMRP that augment and accelerate high-priority medical requirements to meet the needs of Service Members and other Military Health System beneficiaries. The MMRDA supports a wide range of research projects spanning late-stage preclinical studies, late-state technology development efforts, technology demonstration, translational, and clinical research. Projects must be relevant to at least one of the FY26 JWMRP focus areas.Distinctive Features:To be eligible for JWMRP funding, applicants/offerors must have already received DOD/DOW core or DOD/DOW Congressional Special Interest funding.An MMRDA Clinical Research or Clinical Trial Option (MMRDA-CRCTO) is available to specifically support clinical research/observational studies, all phases of clinical trials/interventional studies, and/or correlative studies in support of the development of promising pharmaceutical or biologic candidates, medical devices and technologies. Applicants/offerors should select MMRDA-CRCTO when the application/proposal involves research that includes any human subjects, human biological samples (prospective or retrospective) or human data sets. Note: If selecting this option, applicants must submit additional relevant application/proposal materials. Funding Opportunity Number: HT942526JWMRPMMRDA. Assistance Listing: 12.420. Funding Instrument: CA,G,O,PC. Category: ST. Award Amount: $8.8M total program funding.