SBIR Innovation Lab Podcast

Listen to the SBIR Innovation Lab Podcast

• Episode 22 | Fireside Chat with Dr. Kim Rathmell | Empowering Innovation in Women's Health

  This National Cancer Institute (NCI), SBIR podcast episode features the fireside chat between W. Kimryn Rathmell, Director of NCI, and Christina Annunziata, Senior Vice President of Extramural Discovery Science in American Cancer Society (ACS) from the NCI SBIR-hosted event Empowering Innovation in Women’s Health. In this hour-long discussion, Moderator and NCI SBIR Director of Investor Relations Brittany Connors, Dr. Rathmell, and Dr. Annunziata discuss the NCI’s and ACS’ vision, priorities, and overall goals, with a particular emphasis on women’s healthcare.

• Episode 21 | How to Write a Strong Commercialization Plan – Part 3

  This episode concludes the three-part series on writing a strong commercialization plan. NCI SBIR Program Director William Bozza hosts a panel discussion gathering the five CEOs of the NCI SBIR-funded companies from the previous episodes to address questions regarding their experiences preparing to write their commercialization plan.

• Episode 20 | How to Write a Strong Commercialization Plan – Part 2

  In part two of the three-part series on writing a strong commercialization plan, NCI SBIR Program Director William Bozza is joined by NCI SBIR-funded, Beatrice Langton-Webster, director and CEO of Cancer Targeted Technology, Madelyn Trupkin Herzfeld, co-Founder and vice chairman of Carevive Systems, and Carlos Castro-Gonzalez, co-founder and CEO of Leuko Labs, who share insights on this key Phase II SBIR/STTR application component.

• Episode 19 | How to Write a Strong Commercialization Plan – Part 1.

  In part one of the three-part series on writing a strong commercialization plan, NCI SBIR Program Director William Bozza invites NCI SBIR-funded biotech innovators, Sid Selvaraj, co-founder and CEO of Arima Genomics, and Manijeh Goldberg, president, founder, and CEO of Privo Technologies, to share advice for aspiring phase II SBIR/STTR applicants.

• Episode 18 | NCI SBIR Investor Initiatives

  In this episode, NCI SBIR Program Director William Bozza invites Director of Investor Relations Brittany Connors to dive into the NCI SBIR Investor Initiatives. Learn how this program supports SBIR/STTR companies in connecting with third-party investors and strategic partners through pitch opportunities at national showcases and more!

• Episode 17 | FY25 NCI SBIR Contract Solicitation Topics Pt. 2

  In this episode, NCI SBIR Team Leader Monique Pond and Program Director Melissa Li continue their discussion on the FY25 NCI SBIR Contract Solicitation and describe the remaining topic areas.

• Episode 16 | FY25 NCI SBIR Contract Solicitation Topics Pt. 1

  In this episode, NCI SBIR Team Leader Monique Pond invites NCI SBIR Program Director Melissa Li to provide an overview of the topics featured in the FY25 NCI SBIR Contract Solicitation. Cancer technology innovators can submit funding proposals through this mechanism for a variety of focus areas.

• Episode 15 | Entrepreneur Spotlight - Kiyatec

  In this episode, NCI SBIR Director Michael Weingarten invites Matthew Gevaert, PhD, cofounder of Kiyatec, to discuss the company's journey. Kiyatec is an NCI SBIR-funded cancer therapeutics company that developed an innovative 3D cell culture platform that uses patients’ live tissue to assess and predict how tumor cells respond to therapies and inform more personalized treatment paths.

• Episode 14 | Which Funding Opportunity Should You Pursue? Grants vs. Contracts

  In this episode, NCI SBIR Team Leader Monique Pond and Program Director William Bozza compare and discuss the two main funding mechanisms for biotech innovators, Grants and Contracts.

• Episode 13 | Small Business Transition Grant

  In this episode, NCI SBIR Program Directors William Bozza and Saroj Regmi talk through the benefits of the Small Business Transition Grant for early-career academic scientists interested in transitioning their biotechnology from academic labs into a small business.

• Episode 12 | NCI SBIR Innovative Concept Award

  In this episode, NCI SBIR Team Leader Monique Pond invites Program Director William Bozza to dive into the Innovative Concept Award, a funding opportunity that supports biotech innovations with the potential to develop new scientific paradigms focused on pediatric and rare cancers.

• Episode 11 | BIO 2024 Preview

  Program Director Billy Bozza and Director of Investor Relations Brittany Connors provide an overview of what to expect from NCI SBIR at the 2024 BIO International Convention.

• Episode 10 | How to Write a Strong Specific Aims Page – Part 2.

  In the second episode on writing a good specific aims page, Enzyme by Design Co-Founder and COO Amanda Schalk and JBS Science Co-Founder Ying-Hsiu Su provide insights into their experiences with reviewers’ first impression on an SBIR/STTR application, the specific aims page.

• Episode 9 | How to Write a Strong Specific Aims Page – Part 1.

  In this episode, you will get advice from two NCI SBIR-funded startups on how to write a good specific aims page on your application. Senior Vice President of Radiant Digital Jeffery McLaughlin and Co-Founder and CEO of DoseOptics William Ware will share how they successfully put together this key application component.

• Episode 8 | Timeline to Funding – Registering a Small Business

  NCI SBIR Team Leaders Monique Pond and Jonathan Franca-Koh cover the basics of registering a small business for an SBIR/STTR application and the anticipated timeline to expect from submitting and application to receiving and award.

• Episode 7 | Talk to a Program Director

  NCI SBIR Team Leaders Monique Pond and Jonathan Franca-Koh break down the importance of speaking with a program director before applying and share advice on how to go about doing so.

• Episode 6 | Entrepreneur Spotlight – Claradele

  NCI SBIR Director Michael Weingarten and Rukiyah Van Dross-Anderson, Founder and CEO of SBIR-funded Claradele Pharmaceuticals discuss the journey from postdoc to biotech startup and how women and underrepresented entrepreneurs with innovative cancer solutions can also leverage SBIR support to move their ideas forward.

• Episode 5 | How to start your own biotech company – Part 3. Discussion with Experts

  To conclude the three-part series on starting a small business, NCI SBIR Program Director William Bozza convenes the four panelists from the previous episodes to answer questions about their biotech entrepreneurship journeys.

• Episode 4 | How to start your own biotech company – Part 2. Devices and Therapeutics

  NCI SBIR-funded biotech innovators Joseph Peterson, CTO and Co-Founder of Nanocan Therapeutics, and Craig Ramirez, CEO and Co-Founder of Tezcat Biosciences, share advice on the priority steps aspiring entrepreneurs should take when starting a small business.

• Episode 3 | How to start your own biotech company – Part 1. Therapeutics

  NCI-funded biotech innovators Eric Broyles, CEO and Founder of Nanocan Therapeutics, and Margaret Jackson, CEO and Founder of BYOMass, share advice on the priority steps aspiring entrepreneurs should take when starting a small business.

• Episode 2 | Entrepreneur Spotlight – RefleXion

  RefleXion Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer Samuel Mazin, PhD, shares his journey from postdoc to startup and the NCI SBIR support that helped develop a biology-guided radiotherapy that provides treatment for metastatic cancer patients with limited options.

• Episode 1 | Welcome to The Innovation Lab

  NCI SBIR Director Michael Weingarten and Program Director Monique Pond introduce the Innovation Lab podcast series and provide insight into the benefits the SBIR and other resources the NCI SBIR development center can provide biotech innovators with no strings attached.