Glossary / Programs
Small Business Innovation ResearchSBIR
The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program funds small-business R&D in three phases: Phase I (feasibility, often 6 to 12 months), Phase II (prototype development, often about two years), and Phase III (commercialization, funded by the government or private sector, which can be awarded sole-source without another competition). SBA's inflation-adjusted award-size guidelines were $314,363 for Phase I and $2,095,748 for Phase II as of October 2024, and agencies can exceed them with a waiver. Eleven federal agencies participate, with DoW the largest. SBIR awards (grants or contracts) leave ownership of inventions with the small business and protect its data. The program's authority lapsed on September 30, 2025, and Congress reauthorized it through September 30, 2031 in April 2026.
Why it matters to your pipeline
SBIR is built for small firms with new technology. It funds innovation, keeps IP with the small business, and provides, via Phase III, a path to sole-source production contracts. Matching topic-release timing and agency priorities is the core SBIR capture skill.
When this term shows up in an opening GovSmith finds for you, your vCM explains what it means for that pursuit and does whatever it calls for. You decide; we do the work.
Example
A 5-person software startup wins a $225K SBIR Phase I with DoW. Nine months later it wins a $1.8M Phase II. Two years after that, the Air Force issues a $14M Phase III sole-source production contract to field the software across a program of record.
Find out what applies to you
Some terms will matter to your business right away and some won’t for years. A vCM can tell you which are which.