EDA releases $50 million Build to Scale Funding Opportunity

Earlier today, the Economic Development Administration (EDA) announced the 2023 notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) for the Build to Scale program. State and local governments, nonprofits, higher education institutions, National Labs, and others can compete for $50 million to support new and expanded initiatives supporting regional commercialization, entrepreneurship, and capital formation efforts.

Two competitions comprise the FY 2023 Build to Scale program:

• The Venture Challenge, which supports programs that enable high-growth technology entrepreneurship and fosters inclusive access to proven entrepreneurship support models. This challenge includes a “Build” tier for demonstration projects up to $750,000 and a “Scale” tier for proven initiatives at up to $2 million. This year, EDA added the “Ignite” tier to the Venture Challenge for up to $300,000. This challenge is designed to support the development of nascent technology-based ecosystems to build organizational capacity to design and implement TBED projects through feasibility studies, impact analyses, and planning to address regional innovation needs, including access to capital, and to build formal partnerships to lay the foundation for this type of work. 
• The Capital Challenge, which increases access to capital in communities where risk capital is in short supply by providing operational support for early-stage investment funds, networks, and training programs that focus on both traditional and hybrid equity-based financing. This challenge includes a “Form” tier of up to $400,000 and a “Deploy” tier of up to $750,000.

EDA has posted the formal NOFO and explanatory materials on its website. Applications are due July 28, 2023.