Wisconsin SBIR Advance Matching Grant
Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) / Center for Technology Commercialization (CTC)
$75K–$100K
WI SBIR commercialization match
SBIR Advance is a state matching-grant program run by WEDC in partnership with the Center for Technology Commercialization (CTC) to help Wisconsin small businesses commercialize technology developed under federal SBIR/STTR awards. It fills gaps that federal SBIR/STTR dollars cannot cover — market research, customer validation, patent/IP development, business-model development, and regulatory assessment. Phase II awardees can receive up to $100,000 per year for up to two years; Phase I awardees can receive 50% matching up to $75,000. Funds are released against company-defined milestones approved by a selection committee. Begun in 2014, the program has made 203+ awards totaling over $17 million across 27 rounds.
- Funding type
- Grant
- Level
- State
- Amount range
- $75K–$100K
- Realistic amount
- Recent rounds have funded a handful of companies per cycle — for example, one 2026 round awa…
- Deadline
- Per-round — intent-to-apply and full-application deadlines are published each round (e.g., the 27th round: intent due Apr. 14, 2026; full application due Apr. 24, 2026).
- Status
- active
- States
- Wisconsin
- Payment model
- milestone
Who qualifies
- Must be a Wisconsin-based small business with a significant presence in Wisconsin
- Must hold a current or recent federal SBIR or STTR award (Phase I or Phase II)
- Phase I applicants must be eligible to apply for or conducting Phase II SBIR/STTR work
- Companies with more than three SBIR/STTR Phase II awards are not eligible
- WEDC prioritizes companies with only one previous Phase II award
What it covers
Eligible expenses
- Market research
- Customer validation / customer discovery
- Patent and IP development
- Business model development
- Regulatory assessment
- Other commercialization activities not covered by the federal SBIR/STTR award
Ineligible expenses
- Core R&D activities already funded by the federal SBIR/STTR award
- Activities the federal SBIR/STTR rules restrict
How to apply
-
1
Confirm SBIR/STTR status and Wisconsin presence
Verify you hold a qualifying federal SBIR/STTR award and have a significant Wisconsin presence, and that you have three or fewer prior Phase II awards.
~2 hrs
-
2
Submit the brief intent-to-apply
Submit the short intent-to-apply by the round's intent deadline (e.g., Apr. 14, 2026 for the 27th round). This signals participation before the full application.
~2 hrs
-
3
Prepare and submit the full application with a commercialization milestone plan
Build a commercialization plan defining the milestones (market research, customer validation, IP, business-model and regulatory work) that the grant will fund, since disbursement is milestone-based. Submit by the full-application deadline (e.g., Apr. 24, 2026).
~25 hrs
-
4
Selection committee review and milestone execution
A selection committee reviews and approves the milestone plan. Funds are released as the company completes approved milestones.
~4 hrs
SBIR Advance funds exactly the commercialization work that federal SBIR/STTR money can't touch (market research, customer validation, IP, regulatory). Write your milestone plan around those gap activities, not more lab R&D — committees fund commercialization readiness. The hard gate is holding a federal SBIR/STTR award first, so this is a follow-on tool, not an entry-level grant.
Deadline & timing
SBIR Advance runs in rounds (27 rounds since 2014). Each round publishes a brief intent-to-apply deadline followed by a full-application deadline a couple of weeks later. As of the 27th round, Phase I proposals are temporarily not accepted (Phase I funding 'expected to return in the fall'); Phase II applications are open. Check wisconsinctc.org for the current round.
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Last reviewed 2026. GrantCompass is an independent funding-discovery tool and is not affiliated with any government agency. Always confirm details on the official program page.