Funding for innovative product validations

All University of Bonn (including University Hospital Bonn (UKB)) academic staff as well as research assistants are eligible to apply for the aforementioned grant funding.

We also invite proposals for prototyping projects that have been rejected by other third-party funds, e.g. VIP+ or EXIST fundings.

Teams that have already been funded through other start-up programs cannot be funded.

Funding can be applied for up to a maximum amount of €50,000 per project for a maximum period of one year.

1. The funds are made available annually from the MWIKE funding, the ESC individual project "U-Bo-Grow" of the university.
2. The funds are tied to the funding of science-based and innovative start-up ideas or projects from the University of Bonn (excluded are companies that have already been founded and start-up teams funded in other ways (e.g. EXIST start-up grant holders).
3. Research projects are not funded.
4. The aim of the funding is to promote innovative start-ups, develop them further towards marketability and ensure that a technology readiness level (TRL) of at least 4 is achieved in order to be able to connect to other start-up programs such as the Exist start-up grant or the Exist research transfer.
5. The funding is provided on a year-to-year basis, so that the term of each granted grant always ends on December 31st of the current year.
6. Unspent funding cannot be saved or carried over to the following financial year.
7. The funds can be used for:
   1. Material resources
      Subcontracts in compliance with the procurement guidelines of the University of Bonn resp. UKB
   2. No funding of personnel costs
   3. No funding of work equipment (e.g., Laptop, Smartphone, Tablet)
   4. No possibility of planning and disbursing other third-party funds for the duration of the requested prototyping project (exclusion of unauthorized double funding); the exclusion must be confirmed in writing
   5. Changes to the financing plan before or during the project period require the prior written consent of the Transfer Center enaCom.

8. Within the first six weeks after approval, there is an obligation to undergo a consultation with the startup advisory team at the Transfer Center enaCom. During the duration of the project, participation in mandatory startup events organized by enaCom (e.g., workshops, information sessions, founders' regulars' table) is required. This encompasses a total of 25 hours, with at least one person from the applying team required to participate. In justified cases, external events and workshops can also be credited, but this is only possible after prior discussion and recognition by enaCom. The funded teams must submit a final report six weeks after the end of the duration, which includes the originally submitted work planning, an evaluation of the achieved goals, and an outlook on the startup. The funded teams commit to serving as role models and providing testimonials for the enaCom website. Additionally, they must be available for events on a case-by-case basis.

9. The letter of approval with the notification of grant is legally binding.
    

The grants can only be approved upon application. The application process is designed in two stages. In the first stage, project outlines must be submitted to the Transfer Center in either German or English in electronic form. The project proposal template is available for download on the homepage. Based on the evaluation criteria, the ideas suitable for funding are selected. In the second stage, the authors of positively evaluated project outlines are invited to present a startup pitch in German or English in person at the Transfer Center enaCom for final review. A pitch template is available for download. 

The project proposal can only be evaluated based on official price offers.

The provided documents will be assessed by a jury and, if necessary, additionally by external expert reviewers.

Before submitting an application, the current level of innovation (Technology Readiness Level, TRL) can be assessed in cooperation with the enaCom team. Furthermore, enaCom advises on the project proposal and the startup pitch.

An assessment of the technology readiness level (TRL) of research results may be obtained before proposal filing in cooperation with the enaCom team. Please get in contact with us!

Grants are awarded on the basis of the following objectives:

1. Development of an innovative prototype (Minimum Viable Product)

2. Evaluation of the founding intention of the applicants, including their vision for the market launch of the product or service, as well as their motivation and commitment to the founding project

3. Previous steps taken to advance the founding project (e.g., initial market analysis, business planning, team formation)

4. Description of strategies to be developed during the project duration, including the development of the business model, formation of the founding team, building of startup-related competencies, IP protection

5. Necessity and appropriateness of the funds

6. Traceability of the work and financing plan

Before and during proposal writing, please get in contact with our advisor: Dr. Alexander Kuesshauer (Phone: 0228 / 73-62026, kuesshauer@verwaltung.uni-bonn.de).

Please submit your proposal through the digital application platform on the website of enaCom Transfer Center, University of Bonn.