Organization(s)
Fast-tracking technology breakthroughs to market
Bold ideas and rapid technology innovation are critical to solving the nation's toughest challenges. The U.S. National Science Foundation Tech Accelerators make that possible by moving discoveries from lab to market faster than ever before.
Launched in 2026, the NSF Tech Accelerators transforms research outputs emanating from basic research into scalable, market-ready technologies that strengthen the U.S. economy and national security.
By uniting cross-sector partnerships to leverage expertise and resources, NSF Tech Accelerators remove commercialization barriers, address ecosystem gaps and foster collaboration—ensuring breakthrough technologies move swiftly to the marketplace and reach Americans faster.
A unique innovation initiative
NSF Tech Accelerators invest in teams and provide comprehensive guidance and support throughout the entire lab-to-market pathway. Funded teams benefit from strategic partnerships, mentorship and commercialization resources focused on customer discovery, innovation processes and other entrepreneurial skills to take their technology to the next level.
With fast-paced, clear research milestones and actionable outcomes (e.g., patents, licenses, entity formation, partnerships, pilots, demos and other scaling methods), the initiative accelerates translation at speed and scale, strengthening the nation's workforce in deep technology areas.
The initiative's framework is built on six pillars:
Lab-to-market acceleration
NSF invests in early-stage research to de-risk deep-tech, remove commercialization barriers and prepare novel technologies for market adoption and uptake.
Advancing deep technologies
Funded topics tackle technical challenges with a focus on bolstering the U.S. economy and national security in deep technology areas.
Innovation teams
Funded teams combine technical domain expertise across disciplines and sectors to bring breakthrough technologies to the market faster.
Entrepreneurial resources
Participants benefit from mentorship and entrepreneurial resources to advance technologies toward the market.
Strategic partnerships
Teams collaborate with partners in industry, government and academia who provide critical insights, infrastructure and pathways to market adoption and uptake.
Commercialization expertise
NSF Tech Accelerators provide deep domain and commercialization expertise to prepare technologies for market adoption, uptake and follow-on investment.
Funding opportunities
Request for Information
Request for Information for U.S. National Science Foundation to establish NSF Tech Accelerators
Due date: July 14, 2026
Posted: May 27, 2026