Accelerating Research through Collaboration (ARC) Awards
The ARC Awards from Massachusetts Life Sciences Center fund collaborative, translational research between nonprofits and companies to accelerate life sciences innovation and data sharing.
Funder: Massachusetts Life Sciences Center
Due Dates: November 6, 2026: Application deadline
Funding Amounts: Up to ~$750,000 per project for capital expenses (equipment, datasets, software, research resources); project duration 2–3 years.
Summary: Supports collaborative research between Massachusetts nonprofits and life sciences companies to advance innovations toward commercialization and train postdoctoral scientists.
Key Information: Requires a company partner to fund a new postdoctoral researcher; funds may only be used for capital costs at MA nonprofit institutions.
Description
The Accelerating Research through Collaboration (ARC) Awards program, administered by the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC), funds collaborative projects between Massachusetts-based nonprofit research institutions and life sciences companies. The program aims to drive promising scientific discoveries toward commercialization while simultaneously fostering workforce development by requiring company partners to support a newly hired postdoctoral researcher. ARC integrates and builds upon previous MLSC initiatives (Bits to Bytes, Novel Therapeutics Delivery, and Women’s Health Collaboration), supporting innovative translational research across all sectors of the life sciences, including therapeutics, diagnostics, devices, digital health, and data-driven solutions.
Projects must focus on translational research that advances technologies, products, or solutions addressing key scientific, technical, or product development challenges. Eligible activities include acquisition of equipment, datasets, software, and other capital resources that enable impactful research and collaboration. All capital assets and datasets generated must be made publicly accessible to the broader research community.
