Deadline: 31 July 2017
The governments of the United States of America (through the Department of State) and India (through the Department of Science & Technology) have established the United States–India Science & Technology Endowment Fund (USISTEF) for the promotion of joint activities that would lead to innovation and entrepreneurship through the application of science and technology.
The aim of the Fund is to support and foster joint applied R&D to generate public good through the commercialization of technology developed through sustained partnerships between U.S. and Indian researchers and entrepreneurs. The U.S.-India Science and Technology Endowment Fund activities are implemented and administered through the bi-national Indo-U.S. Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF).
Through a competitive grants program, the Fund selects and supports financially promising joint U.S.-India entrepreneurial initiatives that address the theme of “commercializing technologies for societal impact.” These initiatives can originate from government, academic, non-governmental or commercial entities, and any combination thereof provided they focus on applied R&D, incorporate a business plan and proof of commercial concept, and have significant sustainable commercial potential.
Funding Information
- Grants of up to Rs. 2.50 crores or approximately $400,000 (subject to prevailing exchange rate). Proposals outside this range may be considered under exceptional circumstances at the discretion of the U.S.-India Science & Technology Endowment Board (hereafter referred to as the ‘Board’).
- The applicants should put together their Budget requirement based on realistic assessment, corresponding to direct cost involved and properly justified by the nature and quantum of work involved. An attempt to do over budgeting simply to fill the bandwidth of maximum grant size is out rightly discouraged.
- It may be noted that Endowment Fund is an Indian Rupee Fund and all the grants are denominated in Indian rupees (INR) only. Awards are made in tranches according to project milestones and installment amounts are fixed in Rupees. For U.S. Awardees, the grant is transferred after converting it into USD at the prevailing exchange rate as on the date of disbursement with no adjustment made for foreign exchange rate fluctuations. However, the applicants are encouraged to consider requesting a provision under the contingency line item of up to ten percent (10%) of the total budget in the event of a devaluation of the rupee against the dollar.
- The Board will give stronger preference to proposals that include a reasonable balance in the distribution of work and the grant between Indian and U.S. partners.
- Grants will be released in a phased manner based on successful completion of milestones (which may include requirements to raise/ invest additional outside funding to support the project).
- All milestones for the grants will be specified at the time of the award.
- The Board reserves the right to limit its award to selected project activities and milestones and in doing so approve partial funding.
Eligibility Criteria
- Proposals must include a minimum of one partner from each country. Bi-national teams applying to the Endowment Fund will work together to commercialize technologies for societal impact.
- The bi-national teams can include:
- Incorporated companies including start-up companies; or
- Non-incorporated entities; or
- Individuals or consortia from academia, government laboratories, non-government R&D institutions
- As a general policy, participation of large companies is not encouraged as a competitor for USISTEF grants. However, their participation would be encouraged if they can bring distinct value to the partnering start-up and demonstrate their long term interest. Notional cost(s) can be provided to such large companies to take care of their direct expenses.
- Each bi-national team must include at the time of application an entrepreneurial (small-scale as opposed to large-scale) entity that will receive a portion of the grant and take the technology to the market. If partners are planning to form a new venture to commercialize the technology, the proposal should include planned incorporation date and the amount of grants requested for the new entity.
- The teams should be able to accept the terms and conditions of the award in case the proposal is approved.
- The relationship between the U.S. and Indian partners must be clearly defined, including ownership of intellectual property rights for the technology proposed to be developed and commercialized.
- The applicants must make a credible case that the proposed technology can enter the market within 2-3 years.
How to Apply
Interested applicants must submit applications online via given website.
Eligible Countries: United States & India
For more information, please visit USISTEF.