In a remote-first business world where teams can be just about anywhere, the State of Alabama is making a strong pitch that its is the place to be.
Part of that pitch includes dollar signs. Last month, Innovate Alabama announced the recipients for its fourth round, and largest, round of funding allocated through its Supplemental Grant Program. $4 million in additional grant funding was provided to 22 startups who have already secured SBIR or STTR funding. Five of those companies are from out of state and will be relocating to Alabama over the course of the next 12 months, per the Innovate Alabama funding requirements.
That means The Yellowhammer State will soon be home to new startups founded initially in Delaware, Florida, Illinois, and Wyoming.
The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs are federally funded opportunities for entrepreneurs and innovators working on new technologies that have the potential for commercialization. The funding is a key way in which startups get the non-dilutive funding they need to get research off the ground.
Innovate Alabama is a public-private partnership designed specifically to foster the entrepreneurial ecosystem across the state. The organization has allocated around $47.5 million in capital and created $24 million in tax incentives since it was officially established in 2020, according to its 2023 Annual Report.
Growing Grant Opportunities
Michael Chambers, a member of the Innovate Alabama board, said that a “healthy dose of life sciences companies” applied for grant funding this year. Many other applicants and grant recipients are in the aviation or military industries.
Alabama is a natural draw for those types of startups. Huntsville is known as “Rocket City” for its space and defense work, Birmingham has a long history of biomedical innovation, Montgomery is a hub for advanced manufacturing, and Mobile has grown as an aerospace center.
Chambers said this year was the first time Innovate Alabama made a concerted effort to recruit grant recipients from outside of the state. To spread the word, they specifically pinpointed companies across the Southeast.
“This largest class of Supplemental Grant recipients to date is a testament to the growth of what Innovate Alabama is working to accomplish by increasing access to resources for businesses across the state,” added Innovate Alabama CEO Cynthia Crutchfield in a press statement.
What Founders Are Saying
Bryan Allinson, whose companies Pentamer Biologics and Vanquish Bio both received grants in this round, is working on a vaccine to prevent bacterial staph infections. That could have a big impact on the future of healthcare, but it also has important applications for protecting livestock. The team is researching both use cases. The research comes out of Boise State University, and Allinson will be relocating from Florida
Allinson told Hypepotamus that he was drawn to Alabama because of its concentration of researchers working on HIV, HPV, and other infectious disease vaccine work in Birmingham. The city is also home to Southern Research, a research organization that does a lot of work in the vaccine space, which could prove important as Allinson and his team grow.
