$2.5 Billion ARPANET-H is launched with new hub announcements

The closely watched regional competition to identify the final two hubs of the ARPANET-H, a $2.5 Billion health innovation initiative of the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, has come to a close with the selection of two firms to operate the Customer Experience and Investor Catalyst elements of the national network.

ARPA-H has selected VentureWell to manage the Investor Catalyst hub and Advanced Technology International to manage the Customer Experience hub. ARPA-H will operate the Stakeholder and Operations hub directly.

Each awardee, labeled Consortium Management Firms (CMF) by ARPA-H, will provide all necessary expertise to run its respective hub and significantly speed up research and development timelines. Hubs will include CMF teaming partners and spokes from a number of health science communities to ensure ARPA-H advancements are transitioned to those that stand to benefit the most. Each hub's performance period is five years, consisting of a one-year base and four one-year options.

The Investor Catalyst hub will focus on quickly transforming innovative ideas into practical, accessible solutions by engaging with researchers, entrepreneurs, and investors.

The Customer Experience hub will focus on developing health solutions that will be accessible, needed, and readily adopted. It will take a proactive approach to diversify clinical trials, reach representative patient populations, and more.

The Stakeholder and Operations hub will be adjacent to many intergovernmental partners and stakeholders. Following a competitive review, ARPA-H will select the final physical site for its hub in the National Capital Region, using federal leasing and acquisition procedures. The announcement is anticipated later in 2023.

At launch, the concept for the initial spokes will reflect a broad range of expertise, community voices, and areas of the country. The spoke network will represent all 50 states, many territories, and tribal nations and will continue to evolve to meet the needs of ARPANET-H. Each spoke will provide a unique capability complementary to its associated hub, and each hub will recruit and work collaboratively with its spokes to maximize their effectiveness.

Interested organizations across the private, public, and nonprofit sectors with relevant capabilities can apply to serve as a spoke in ARPANET-H. More information about the Investor Catalyst Hub can be found at investorcatalysthub.org, including how to apply to be a spoke. Additional spokes will be announced on an ongoing basis.