Companies

Industry collaboration leadsMockup — sample data
8
Companies
with a reason to talk to us
5
Awards with no partner
SBIR or STTR, nobody named
$1,025,000
In partnerless STTRs
30% of it has to go to a research institution
2
Active agreements
money or IP already moving
Why STTR is the strongest lead on this page.
An STTR requires a research institution to perform at least 30% of the work. A company holding one with no partner named is not being sold to — it needs a university, and it has a deadline.
Why they are here
8 of 8
Northgate Energy Systemsactive agreement
Energy storage and conversion · Albany, NY · 40–60 people

Builds electrochemical reactors for distributed ammonia and hydrogen production. Two DOE SBIR awards and a Phase II in progress.

STTR — needs a research partnerCites our patentsCo-assignee on a patent
DOE SBIR Phase II · $1,600,000
Modular electrochemical ammonia reactor for farm-scale nitrogen — no research partner on record
Closest to: Kwame Osei, Jordan Lee
Next step: Their STTR Phase I names no research partner. That is a 30%-of-work subaward the office could place with Osei before the Phase II window.
Key people and projects
Lattice Quantum Instrumentsin discussion
Cryogenics and quantum hardware · Troy, NY · 15–25 people

Makes dilution-refrigerator subsystems and low-noise readout electronics. Cites the institution's photonic readout patent in two of its own filings.

STTR — needs a research partnerCites our patents
DOD STTR Phase I · $175,000
Low-heat-load photonic readout for airborne quantum sensors — no research partner on record
Closest to: Elena Vasquez, Tomas Ek
Next step: They cite D2022-002 twice and the patent is unlicensed. Worth putting the tech-transfer office and Vasquez in the same room before the STTR is decided.
Key people and projects
Meridian Tissue Systemsno contact
Regenerative medicine · Worcester, MA · 10–20 people

Perfusion bioreactors for thick engineered tissue. Early stage, cites the vascularisation filing.

Cites our patentsSTTR — needs a research partner
NIH STTR Phase I · $295,000
Perfusion control for vascularised scaffolds above 5 mm — no research partner on record
Closest to: Maria Ferreira
Next step: STTR Phase I with no partner named, on the exact problem D2023-007 addresses. Worth an email this week.
Key people and projects
Verdant Ag Technologiesno contact
Agricultural technology · Ithaca, NY · 60–90 people

On-farm nitrogen and soil sensing. Cites the ammonia synthesis patent; no relationship on record.

Cites our patentsSBIR awardee
USDA SBIR Phase I · $175,000
Distributed nitrogen sensing for variable-rate application — no research partner on record
Closest to: Kwame Osei, Nadia Brandt
Next step: The strongest cold lead here: an NSF STTR on exactly our patented chemistry, with no research partner named. Introduce Osei this month.
Key people and projects
Halcyon Biosurfacesactive agreement
Medical devices and coatings · Rochester, NY · 80–120 people

Antimicrobial coatings for implantable and single-use devices. Licensed the institution's photocatalytic coating patent in 2024.

Cites our patentsCo-authored with our facultySBIR awardee
Closest to: Maria Ferreira, Kwame Osei
Next step: The healthiest relationship on this list and the one most exposed to a single person leaving. Worth a second faculty contact.
Key people and projects
Solstice Photovoltaicsin discussion
Flexible solar and space power · Binghamton, NY · 25–40 people

Thin-film photovoltaics for small spacecraft and portable power. NASA SBIR Phase I in 2026.

SBIR awardeeCites our patentsFounded or led by alumni
NASA SBIR Phase I · $150,000
Roll-to-roll absorber processing for deployable arrays — no research partner on record
Closest to: Tomas Ek, Priya Raman
Next step: Phase II is due in the spring and their process bottleneck is the anneal our patent addresses. Ek should be on that proposal.
Key people and projects
Aperture Instrumentsintroduced
Scientific instrumentation and software · Boston, MA · 200–400 people

Beamline and microscopy control software. Cites the dataset-provenance filing and publishes on instrument data quality.

Cites our patentsCo-authored with our faculty
Closest to: Wei Chen, Elena Vasquez
Next step: No federal money between us yet. They are the obvious industry letter of support for the NSF AI-datasets call closing in November.
Key people and projects
Thermalis Componentsin discussion
Aerospace seals and thermal management · Hartford, CT · 500+ people

Tier-one supplier of high-temperature seals and thermal barriers. Cites the layered ceramic composite patent.

Cites our patents
Closest to: Priya Raman, Jordan Lee
Next step: They run a university research programme with a standing budget. Ask Diallo what their FY27 call looks like before it closes.
Key people and projects
Ways in, beyond a research contract
MechanismWhy it works
STTR partnerThe programme requires a research institution to perform 30% of the work — the company has to have one.
SBIR Phase II subawardNo partner is required, but many Phase II budgets carry a university subaward for the piece the company cannot staff.
Sponsored researchDirect contract. Slowest to start, largest to grow.
Letter of support or cost shareCosts the company nothing and is worth real points on NSF PFI, DOE and instrumentation proposals.
Equipment access or donationCheaper for them than buying twice, and it puts their engineers in the building.
Licence or optionTech transfer's lever; also the cleanest reason for a first conversation.
Capstone and internshipsRecruiting for them, projects for us. The lowest-friction way to start with a company that has never funded research.
Consortium or affiliate membershipAn IUCRC-style membership fee buys them a seat and buys the centre predictable money.

Every company, person and project here is invented. The reasoning is not: SBIR and STTR awards come from sbir.gov's open award API, patent citations from USPTO or PatentsView, industry co-authorship from OpenAlex affiliations, and the alumni tie from whatever the office already knows — which is usually a person, not a database.