This solicitation is now closed ~ please see current solicitation

Pilot Phase (March-August 2006)

Was the Pilot Phase a success?
Yes! The pilot phase began with an open solicitation in March 2006 to all SURA universities. At close of solicitation in late April, over 40 mini-plans were submitted, representing 25 different SURA institutions in 15 states. SURA worked exclusively with venture capital firm DFJ Mercury in Houston, Texas, on the pilot phase of this program. Jointly, SURA and DFJ Mercury reviewed the plans, conducted due diligence, and considered investments in several of the startups.

Pilot Phase Original Soliciation (sent to SURA Tech Transfer associates 22 March 2006):

This investment opportunity from SURA (www.sura.org) and VC firm DFJ Mercury (www.dfjmercury.com) is currently available only for private companies affiliated with or licensing from our member universities. An ideal startup/pre-startup company for this investment is one with a "good idea" that needs money for a prototype, may still need to form the management team, but owns rights to a technology that ultimately represents a very large market opportunity.

All submissions must be sent via email to Matt Thomas (mthomas@sura.org) and received by 11:59 p.m. EST, Friday, April 21, 2006.

• No geographic restrictions, but preference given to companies in SURA region
• Incomplete management teams acceptable
• No prior angel or VC investment rounds (friends and family, founders, and small university investments allowable)
• Some market data and technical details compiled, but full business plan not required
• Working in any high-tech field, including IT, software, nanotech and materials, medical devices and diagnostics, or any other engineering/science field except drug development

Submissions should include:

• Half-page NON-CONFIDENTIAL executive summary
• Size of target markets and how the company will capture market share, including any commercial interest received thus far
• Core technology: description, unique attributes, stage of development, intellectual property status
• Team bios/resumes, including inventor
• Financial projections and funding requirements, if available
• Explanation of connection with SURA university (licensee, inventor/professor, etc.)
• Contact information of company leader

All of this may be provided in the form of a rough draft business plan or as individual items in a single document. No submissions may be greater than five (5) pages, including bios, and the executive summary must be clearly identified and less than one page. More info may subsequently be requested by the evaluators.

SURA will review all submissions and select, at our own discretion, submissions to move to the next round of due diligence. DFJ Mercury will also perform its own due diligence, and third-party reviewers may also participate. It is anticipated that the investment(s) will be between $100-500k per company, but there are no guarantees that any investments will be made. All decisions will be made by SURA and DFJ Mercury individually, each at its own discretion. It is anticipated that submissions will be shared among reviewers and potential investors only; however, no confidential materials should be submitted at this point.

We are working with private equity investment firm DFJ Mercury, along with other VC firms, to ultimately create a seed stage fund that will focus exclusively on early-stage startups built on technologies created at universities and national labs. This solicitation is the initial stage of this process and we are excited to build this into a long-term gap funding solution for early-stage technology companies.

For more information about partnering with SURA or licensing technologies, please contact Marc Oettinger at or 202-253-7697.