NSF's 26-511 pilot (posted May 22, 2026) funds startups building next-generation scientific instrumentation, offering Phase I up to $305,000 and Phase II up to $1.25M, roughly $2M combined via Fast-Track, all non-dilutive. NSF takes no equity; the next full-proposal deadline is Nov 4, 2026 and requires an invited Project Pitch first.
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NSF opens $40M SBIR/STTR instrumentation pilot, up to $2M non-dilutive
Why this matters for founders
Deep-tech and hardware founders building lab instruments or experimental platforms should submit a Project Pitch now to hit the Nov 4 proposal window for equity-free funding.
Source: NSF
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