Funder: National Institutes of Health
Due Dates: June 16, 2025 (New) | September 7, 2025 (AIDS) | October 16, 2025 (New) | January 7, 2026 (AIDS) | February 16, 2026 (New) | May 7, 2026 (AIDS) | June 16, 2026 (New) | September 7, 2026 (AIDS) | October 16, 2026 (New) | January 7, 2027 (AIDS) | February 16, 2027 (New) | May 7, 2027 (AIDS) | June 16, 2027 (New) | September 7, 2027 (AIDS) | October 16, 2027 (New) | January 7, 2028 (AIDS)
Funding Amounts: Up to $275,000 direct costs over 2 years; no more than $200,000 in any single year; 2-year maximum project period.
Summary: Supports high-risk, early-stage exploratory research to establish feasibility and proof of concept for new technologies broadly relevant to biomedical research within the NIGMS mission.
Key Information: Applications must not include preliminary data or proof-of-concept results; focus strictly on technology development, not biological questions.
This opportunity from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) at NIH funds exploratory research to establish feasibility and proof of concept for new technologies that could significantly advance biomedical research. The program is designed for high-risk, high-novelty projects at the conceptual stage, where feasibility has not yet been demonstrated in the literature or with preliminary data. The goal is to support the development of innovative tools, methods, or techniques that address broad needs in biomedical research, rather than incremental improvements or applications to specific biological questions.
Projects may include, but are not limited to:
Key requirements:
For more details, see the full program announcement.
All applications are due by 5:00 PM local time of the applicant organization.
The number of awards depends on NIH appropriations and the number of meritorious applications.
Eligible applicants include:
Not eligible:
Note: Foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are allowed.
Applications must be submitted electronically via ASSIST, Grants.gov Workspace, or an institutional system-to-system solution.
All required registrations (SAM, eRA Commons, Grants.gov) must be completed before submission.
Follow the NIH Research (R) Application Guide and the specific instructions in the funding announcement.
Mandatory attachment: A signed letter from the PD/PI confirming that the application:
Research Plan: Must not include preliminary or unpublished data supporting feasibility. Only literature citations to establish the state of the art are allowed.
Data Management and Sharing Plan: Required for all applications.
Appendix: Only blank questionnaires or surveys are allowed; no publications or other materials.
| Topic | Contact/Email | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific/Research | NIGMS Technology Development Team NIGMS_techdev@nigms.nih.gov | |
| Grants Management | Thomas Beard thomas.beard@nih.gov | |
| General Grants Info | GrantsInfo@nih.gov | 301-480-7075 |
| eRA Commons/ASSIST | eRA Service Desk | 301-402-7469 or 866-504-9552 |
| Grants.gov Support | support@grants.gov | 800-518-4726 |
For additional details, see Section VII. Agency Contacts in the program announcement.