Competition Guidelines
Proposals to the Ignition review committee should be directed toward the development of specific technologies or business concepts. Ignition awards are not intended for basic research; rather the funds should be used to apply your discoveries to a specific application in order to show proof of concept.
Proposals will be accepted across all disciplines and market domains, however the proposals should be aimed at specific applications.
- Healthcare proposals should be directed toward the development of new drug therapies, diagnostics and/or medical devices.
- Clean Energy proposals should be directed toward producing prototypes for renewable energy, conservation, or reduction of carbon dioxide.
- Communications proposals should be directed toward demonstration systems that show improvements over current web, internet, social media, cloud computing, and mobile technologies.
- Proposals related to Social Entrepreneurship or Global Health should describe a sustainable business model and demonstrate how the Ignition funds will lead to the appropriate follow-on funding.
The projected milestones of the proposal should be directed toward gathering evidence that would support proposals for follow-on funding from a commercial source (e.g., collection of initial animal data or prototyping of a device).
Scope of Award
The Ignition Award gives up to $50,000 over one year, contingent on satisfactory progress towards proposed milestones. Successful Ignition Awardees are thereafter eligible for additional funding through the Coulter Foundation and the OTD Launch Award. There is no overhead charge associated with Ignition Awards. See examples of previous recipients.
Selection Criteria
Proposals are judged by several criteria:
- Potential Impact: How novel is the product? Does is address real market needs?
- Potential for Commercialization: What is estimated length of time to bring to market? What is the market size? Will Ignition Funding measurably help the product to market?
- Team: How engaged is the inventor/team in the commercialization process?
- Feasibility: What is the likelihood of success?
- Intellectual Property: Can new IP be created through this project? Can the position be defended?
Proposals with technologies that have the potential to create significant commercial value will be favored over proposals that provide incremental improvements in existing technologies. Competitive applications will show demonstrable milestones which can be met using the award funding. These should be milestones which significantly increase the likelihood that the technology will receive follow-on funding from a commercial source, be licensed, or be developed through a start-up company.
Application Information
Applications should be thorough but concise. Applications will be reviewed by people with a technical, and/or legal or business background. However, they may not necessarily be familiar with your area of expertise. The applications should therefore be written with this consideration in mind and should enable them to judge the potential feasibility and commercial value of your technology.
Reply e-mail will confirm receipt of your completed application. View the application.
When proposing to the Ignition Review Committee please be sure to address how your approach fulfills an unmet need in the marketplace, how it compares to the “gold standard” or current solution, the anticipated regulatory path or standards that will be required, and how the product will be traded in commerce (e.g., reimbursed by healthcare providers).