CHIPS Research & Development Office (CRDO) Broad Agency Announcement

Executive Summary:

The CHIPS Research and Development Office (CRDO) at NIST is awarding at least $10 Million per award—via Other Transaction (OT) agreements—for research, prototyping, and commercialization projects that advance U.S. microelectronics, including work tied to AI, quantum, biotechnology/biomanufacturing, commercialization of innovation, and standards. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis which means companies should submit white papers ASAP. Receive a complimentary assessment to see if your company and project is a fit for this funding.

How much funding would I receive?

Budgets should be at least $10 million and reflect actual project needs. CRDO may fund only a portion of total costs and can fund multi-phase projects incrementally based on satisfactory progress, mission fit, and availability of funds. Awards are negotiated as OT agreements. Cost sharing is not required for all awards, though CRDO may choose to fund only part of a project.

What could I use the funding for?

Eligible activities include research, prototyping, and commercialization efforts that strengthen U.S. leadership and the domestic semiconductor ecosystem. Priority topic areas include:

• Semiconductors (e.g., advanced testing/assembly/packaging, next-gen devices and memory, design co-optimization, automation/AI in fabs, secure supply chains)

• Application of AI for advanced microelectronics R&D (e.g., compute efficiency, edge AI, cryogenic ops, fab acceleration)

• Application of quantum technology (e.g., scalable quantum computing, quantum networks/sensing, domestic production of quantum hardware)

• Application of biotechnology/biomanufacturing for microelectronics (e.g., bioelectronics, implantable devices, scaling domestic bio-electronics manufacturing)

• Commercialization of innovations (e.g., adopting and commercializing federally funded discoveries, including through consortia)

• Standards development (e.g., quantum manufacturing, data/design/provenance/security standards).

Are there any additional benefits I would receive?

Beyond the formal funding award, there are significant indirect benefits to receiving a CHIPS R&D Office (CRDO) award:

• Government Validation and Credibility:
  Being selected by NIST’s CRDO signals strong technical credibility and alignment with national semiconductor priorities. That stamp of approval often accelerates partnerships with OEMs, primes, and investors who trust government-vetted innovation.

• Enhanced Market Visibility and Notoriety:
  Award recipients frequently receive public recognition in federal announcements, CHIPS R&D Office communications, and industry press. This visibility helps position your company as a trusted, strategic player in the microelectronics ecosystem.

• Ecosystem Access and Collaboration Opportunities:
  CRDO-funded projects are part of a national innovation network—creating opportunities to collaborate with leading researchers, manufacturers, and other awardees. Such access can unlock supply chain partnerships and future contracting opportunities.

• Stronger Exit and Acquisition Potential:
  By maturing technology under nondilutive support and demonstrating government-backed validation, recipients often achieve greater value at exit—especially when positioning for acquisition by larger defense, semiconductor, or AI hardware firms.

What is the timeline to apply and when would I receive funding?

Applications (beginning with a required White Paper) are accepted on a rolling basis through September 30, 2029 via Grants.gov. If a White Paper shows sufficient merit and relevance, CRDO may invite a Pre-negotiation Package (detailed technical and cost proposal). Awards are made on a rolling basis as packages are evaluated and terms are finalized. A specific funding disbursement date is not specified. Maximum project period is up to 5 years.

Where does this funding come from?

U.S. Department of Commerce, NIST—through the CHIPS Research and Development Office (CRDO)—under authority including 15 U.S.C. § 4656 and related CHIPS R&D statutes/policies. Assistance Listing: 11.042 CHIPS R&D.

Who is eligible to apply?

Domestic entities only: for-profit organizations, non-profits, accredited higher-education institutions, FFRDCs, and Federal entities (with conditions). Individuals and unincorporated sole proprietors are not eligible. Subawardees may include the above and foreign partners not otherwise prohibited, subject to security and other requirements.

What companies and projects are likely to win?

Projects that:

• Advance national and economic security and U.S. technology leadership by strengthening domestic semiconductor supply chains and workforce

• Demonstrate strong scientific/technical merit with clear deliverables

• Show feasibility (experienced team, realistic costs, risk mitigation)

• Have credible commercial viability (market demand, transition plan)

• Show financial viability (sound capex, financial health, credible capital plan).

Are there any restrictions I should know about?

• Domestic production and control of IP: Foreign entities can apply but should develop and own the IP in the US.

• Security restrictions: no funds to foreign entities of concern; compliance with research security disclosures; prohibition on malign foreign talent recruitment programs

• CRDO may require return-on-investment instruments (e.g., equity, warrants, IP licenses, royalties/revenue sharing)

• Scope: general AI projects not directly tied to advanced microelectronics R&D are out of scope

• Reporting: financial, performance, and/or technical reports are required.

How long will it take me to prepare an application?

For a first-time applicant, preparing a competitive submission under this BAA will likely take 120–180 hours in total.

How can BW&CO help?

Our team specializes in complex federal R&D proposals and can:

• Triple your likelihood of success through proven strategy and insider-aligned proposal development

• Reduce your time spent on the proposal by 50–80%, letting your team focus on technology and operations

• Ensure you are targeting the best opportunity for your project and positioning your company for long-term growth under CHIPS R&D initiatives.

How much would BW&CO Charge?

Our support is available at $300 per hour, with most CRDO proposal projects requiring 80–100 hours of expert support from strategy through submission.

For non-VC backed startups, we offer a discounted rate of $250 per hour to make top-tier grant consulting more accessible while maintaining the same level of strategic guidance and proposal quality.

Additional Resources

• Webinar - How to Win $10M for R&D from the New CHIPS CRDO BAA

• View Solicitation on Grants.Gov

DARPA Biological Technologies Office (BTO) Broad Agency Announcement

Executive Summary:

DARPA’s Biological Technologies Office (BTO) is accepting rolling proposals to fund transformative biology-enabled capabilities for national security. An abstract is required before a full proposal, and both abstracts and proposals are accepted until September 30, 2026. For selected proposals ≤$2,000,000 that opt into the accelerated path, awards can be made within 30 days of selection. Companies targeting this BAA should submit an abstract as soon as possible as they are reviewed on a rolling basis.

How much funding would I receive?

Funding levels are not pre-set; BTO anticipates multiple awards across topics. An optional accelerated award path is available for selected proposals not exceeding $2,000,000 total, using model agreements tailored for small and large businesses.

What could I use the funding for?

Research & Development proposals that leverage biological properties and processes to revolutionize our ability to protect the nation’s warfighters. Specifically excluded is research that primarily results in evolutionary improvements to the existing state of practice.

• General Topics

  • Biological and/or chemical technology topic areas that fit the national security scope of BTO’s mission.

  • Research into market opportunities, constraints, and communities affecting financing and commercialization of bioindustrial and biomedical technologies.

• Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI)

  • Developing and advancing our understanding of the impact and principles underlying biological data generation, assessment and incorporation into the biological foundation models, or mixed-mode foundation models. This includes taking theoretical approaches as well as understanding the scaling laws of these data for various types of models.

  • Advancing the capabilities of broad or narrow biological and/or chemical or mixed-mode foundation models far beyond the state of the art.

  • Developing and proving non-experimental models or hybrid experimental/non-experimental assessment strategies for biological foundation model assessment.

  • Exponentially accelerating the time scale of biological system simulation from the subcellular through multicellular, organismal and environmental systems, including for threat prediction, impact assessment, and attribution modeling.

  • Developing ML and AI-enabled technologies to improve the accuracy, precision, and efficiency of warfighter decision-making in complex and dynamic environments (e.g., on and off the battlefield), including for real-time threat assessment and response planning.

  • The development of virtual testbeds, digital twins, and/or synthetic data to accelerate or improve the predictive modeling of human performance.

• Combat Casualty Care

  • Developing novel diagnostic, prophylactic, and therapeutic approaches for warfighter injury that can be provided even in austere settings and extreme conditions.

  • Developing capabilities and technologies that enhance the ability of non-skilled service members to perform essential medical tasks closer to the point of injury, reducing dependence on highly trained personnel through assistive devices.

  • Developing decision support tools that algorithmically optimize the alignment of medical requirements and resources in complex, data-constrained mass casualty scenarios to enhance near-real-time situational awareness and command and control (C2) planning and execution.

  • Development of capabilities and technologies that enhance the ability of non-skilled service members to perform essential medical tasks closer to the point of injury, reducing dependence on highly trained personnel through assistive devices.

• Human Performance

  • Understanding and improving treatment of and resilience in neurological health, transformative neural processing, fatigue, cognition, and optimized human performance and teaming, including in extreme stress conditions.

  • Discovering interventions that utilize biotechnology, biochemistry, molecular biology, microbiology, neuroscience, psychology, cognitive science, social and behavioral science, and related disciplines to assess and optimize human performance and teaming.

  • Developing and leveraging technologies to advance continuous or near-continuous monitoring of physiology to elucidate mechanisms of human readiness, cognitive status, and resilience.

  • Understanding and improving interfaces between the biological and physical world to enable seamless biohybrid systems and devices.

  • Developing approaches to enhance physiological resilience, performance, and survivability in extreme conditions (e.g., cold weather, extreme heat, high altitude).

  • Identifying technologies and tactics to increase or accelerate the impact of training regimens while reducing the risk of injury.

• Materials, Sensors, Processing

  • Designing novel materials, sensors, or processes that mimic or are inspired by biological systems.

  • Creating tools such as foundation models or prediction engines to understand the underlying rules defining biomolecular and biomaterial or hybrid biotic/abiotic material structure/function properties (individual properties or groups of properties) in order to predict desired outcomes for novel material development. Importantly, these predictions should hold from the molecular scale to the macro scale.

  • Developing new computational and experimental tools and predictive capabilities for engineering of biological systems, such as cells, tissues, organs, organisms, and complex communities, to both develop new products and functional systems, as well as to gain new insights into underlying mechanisms.

  • Developing technologies to leverage biological systems and enhance the acquisition and maintenance of critical and strategic organic and inorganic materials.

  • Understanding and leveraging complex biological systems into underlying functional rules and processes to provide models that govern interactions of biological systems from biofilms to organs or ecosystems.

  • Developing new platform technologies that integrate, automate, and miniaturize the collection, processing, and analysis via direct or indirect interrogation of biological and chemical samples.

  • Developing hybrid biological/engineered systems that integrate biological organisms, components, biologically-encoded circuitry, biogenic materials, or exploit biological phenomena to surpass capabilities of abiotic equivalents.

  • Developing novel biological sensor platforms with reduced size, weight, and power requirements of equivalent electro-optical or electro-mechanical systems with orders of magnitude increase in equivalent performance.

• Security, Safety, and Surveillance

  • Developing new technologies and approaches to ensure the biosafety and biosecurity of biological hardware and data. Ensuring the safety and security of AI technologies that accelerate biological research and development processes.

  • Developing innovative technologies to detect, characterize, treat, prevent, and forecast the effects of novel, engineered, or natural emerging pathogens that have the potential to cause significant health, economic, and social burdens, to prevent their spread and enable understanding of their origin.

  • Developing ML, AI approaches, and advanced data analytics for the rapid analysis, interpretation, identification, attribution, and origin tracing of large-scale, disparate biological and environmental surveillance data streams, enabling anomaly detection, pattern recognition, scalable detection, and predictive analytics to identify emerging threats or anomalous events and provide early warning and anticipatory action against natural or manmade biological threats.

  • Advancing technologies for determination and attribution along with data provenance analysis at chemical, isotopic, genetic, and community structure levels.

  • Developing novel sensing, surveillance, and processing technologies (including in-situ and remote modalities) to detect, identify, monitor, and analyze weak biological signals of emerging pathogens (novel, engineered, or natural) at all scales, including their secondary effects on the environment.

  • Developing new technologies and data analytics to support next-generation surveillance, detection, identification, and attribution of human and agricultural pathogens at scale and in near real-time.

  • Developing novel in-situ or remote sensing and surveillance technologies at the global, regional, and local scale that detect and identify novel, engineered, and/or natural emerging pathogens to prevent their spread or understand their origin.

• Biomedical & Biodefense

  • Developing new technologies for rapid, automated, and resilient manufacturing, delivery, and distribution of critical molecules for applications in therapeutics, chemical, and biological defense.

  • Developing new technologies to support next-generation cellular therapeutic applications.

  • Developing new platform technologies for targeted, effective, spatiotemporally controlled delivery of large and small molecules and biologics.

  • Leveraging biotechnology to create new platform solutions that combat antimicrobial resistance, generate novel drug and cell-based therapeutics, and treat warfighter injury and illness.

Are there any additional benefits I would receive?

Beyond the formal award, there are significant indirect benefits to receiving a DARPA Biological Technologies Office (BTO) contract or agreement:

• Government Validation and Credibility:
  Being selected by DARPA—the Department of Defense’s premier innovation agency—signals extraordinary technical credibility and alignment with national security priorities. This “DARPA validation” often accelerates partnerships with primes, OEMs, and investors who trust government-vetted innovation.

• Enhanced Market Visibility and Notoriety:
  Award recipients frequently receive public recognition through DARPA announcements, defense innovation conferences, and press coverage. This visibility helps position your company as a cutting-edge player in defense biotech and deeptech, attracting further investment and talent.

• Ecosystem Access and Collaboration Opportunities:
  DARPA performers gain access to the BTO’s extensive network, including technical advisors, transition partners, and resources. These programs support contractor readiness, compliance, and downstream transition—opening doors to additional government and industry contracts.

• Nondilutive Growth and Strategic Leverage:
  Because funding is nondilutive, companies can scale and validate core technologies without giving up equity. This validation and maturity achieved under government sponsorship often lead to higher valuations and greater leverage in future fundraising or acquisition discussions.

• Faster Execution and Credible Track Record:
  With DARPA’s accelerated contracting path, companies can move from selection to award in as little as 30 days—establishing a record of execution under one of the most selective R&D programs in the world, which strengthens competitiveness for future federal or dual-use opportunities.

What is the timeline to apply and when would I receive funding?

Abstracts are accepted on a rolling basis until September 30, 2026, 4:00 PM ET (abstract and DARPA invitation are required before any full proposal).

Full proposals are accepted on a rolling basis until September 30, 2026, 4:00 PM ET.

Accelerated option (≤$2M) awards may be issued within 30 days of selection notification if you submit the required election/attestations and use the model agreement.

Where does this funding come from?

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Biological Technologies Office

Who is eligible to apply?

All responsible sources—U.S. and non-U.S.—may submit, except FFRDCs, UARCs, and Government entities (incl. National Labs), which are not eligible as prime proposers. NAICS: 541714 (biotech R&D). Submissions must comply with U.S. security, export control, and related laws.

What companies and projects are likely to win?

The scoring criteria reward proposals that:

1. Present a bold, high-impact technical approach. Proposals that merely increment the state of practice are explicitly out-of-scope;

2. Directly advance DARPA’s national-security mission; and

3. Show credible cost/schedule realism with clear deliverables and risk-mitigation. Prior experience executing similar efforts and leveraging relevant prior research strengthen competitiveness.

Are there any restrictions I should know about?

• Abstract is mandatory; DARPA must invite a proposal before it will be reviewed.

• Compliance areas include CUI handling, cyber (e.g., NIST SP 800-171 assessments), export controls, and human/animal research approvals where applicable.

• Certain entities/equipment (e.g., Kaspersky, certain telecom/DRONE restrictions, ByteDance apps) are prohibited by clause.

How long will it take me to prepare an application?

For a first-time applicant, preparing a competitive submission under this BAA will likely take 120–160 hours in total.

How can BW&CO help?

Our team specializes in complex federal R&D proposals and can:

• Triple your likelihood of success through proven strategy and insider-aligned proposal development

• Reduce your time spent on the proposal by 50–80%, letting your team focus on technology and operations

• Ensure you are targeting the best opportunity for your project and positioning your company for long-term growth under Federal & State R&D Initiatives.

How much would BW&CO Charge?

Our full service support is available for a flat fee of $15,000 Project + a 5% Success Fee.

Fractional support is $300 per hour, with most DARPA proposal projects requiring 80–100 hours of expert support from strategy through submission of full proposal.

For startups, we offer a discounted rate of $250 per hour to make top-tier grant consulting more accessible while maintaining the same level of strategic guidance and proposal quality.

Additional Resources

• Webinar - New Biotech Funding: $2M from the DARPA BTO Office

• See solicitation on Grants.Gov