Federal · Solicitation Roadmap · 2026
SBIR / STTR / Other-Transaction Roadmap
Named solicitations and program offices Nightbox LLC is preparing applications for. All are non-dilutive funding pathways aligned with our dual-use single-construct AAV9 gene therapy platform and our AI-augmented R&D infrastructure stack. Updated 2026-04-30. Status: SAM.gov entity registration in progress (UEI required for SBIR submission).
NIH — National Cancer Institute (NCI)
| Solicitation | Detail |
|---|---|
| PAR-25-279 | NIH SBIR Phase I Omnibus (Parent Announcement). Direct-to-Phase-II eligible. Cycle deadlines: Sept 5, Jan 5, Apr 5. Topic alignment: NCI Topic 437 (gene therapy, oncology). Award ceiling Phase I $400K / 12 months. |
| NCI Contract Topics | NCI SBIR Contract Solicitation, annual topics published April. 2026 topics include "Novel gene therapy approaches for solid tumors" and "AI-enabled cancer drug discovery." Award ceiling $400K Phase I. |
| Status | Phase I application drafting; submission target Sept 5 2026 cycle. Awaiting SAM.gov UEI to register on eRA Commons + sbir.cancer.gov. |
NIH — NIAID (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
| Solicitation | Detail |
|---|---|
| PA-25-301 | NIAID SBIR — host-directed therapeutic platforms for emerging biothreats. Dual-use angle for our NKG2D-mediated stress recognition platform. |
| Status | Concept paper drafting; targeting first cycle post-UEI issuance. |
ARPA-H (Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health)
| Track | Detail |
|---|---|
| Cancer Moonshot 2.0 | Lead asset NKG2D-LIF6 mapped to "novel solid tumor approaches" and "manufacturing-scalable cell-free alternatives to CAR-T." Open BAA channel via ARPA-H website; 2026 program manager pitches in progress. |
| Resilient Systems Office | Dual-use AAV stockpileability angle; stockpileable single-construct gene therapy as MCM platform. |
| Status | Capability brief drafting; targeting open-BAA submission Q2 2026. |
BARDA (Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority)
| Solicitation | Detail |
|---|---|
| BARDA DRIVe | EZ-BAA fast-track for early-stage MCM platforms. Solicitation BAA-26-100-SOL-00007 alignment under Solid Tumor Immune Modulation track. |
| Status | EZ-BAA portal submission preparation; targeting Q3 2026. |
DARPA — Biological Technologies Office (BTO)
| Track | Detail |
|---|---|
| Programmable Pharmaceuticals successor | Modular receptor-effector architecture as a programmable AAV chassis. Targeting BTO Open BAA + I2O cross-portfolio interest. |
| Status | Pre-proposal abstract drafting; Open BAA target Q3 2026. |
In-Q-Tel
Biosecurity dual-use submission via portfolio team — single-construct gene therapy for pandemic and biothreat preparedness. Bilateral conversation channel through standard inquiry@iqt.org pipeline; capability brief targeted Q3 2026.
DoD — DTRA · JPEO-CBRND · ASPR
Strategic National Stockpile angle for the AAV9 gene-therapy chassis: stockpileable single-construct payload as opposed to autologous cell-therapy logistics. Outreach planned Q3 2026 once capability statement and ARPA-H positioning are anchored.
Software / Operating-Model OTAs — DIU · AFWERX · NavalX
The AI-augmented R&D operating model (production Anthropic SDK + AlphaFold3 + custom prompt-router + air-gapped inference stack) is independently relevant to DoD software-modernization OTA pathways. Air-gapped capability (NightboxOS, Pluely Stack) targets SCIF-deployable inference. DIU CSO + AFWERX TACFI tracks under evaluation.
Wyoming state / regional programs
- Wyoming Business Council — small business technology grants
- Wyoming SBDC — SBIR application support (free Phase 0 review)
- Mountain West Region — cross-state biotech consortium with Utah/Idaho/Montana
Submission infrastructure prerequisites
- SAM.gov entity registration (in progress, case INC-GSAFSD21007772) → UEI + CAGE issuance
- SBIR.gov company registration (post-UEI)
- eRA Commons institutional account (post-UEI)
- NIH ASSIST registration for electronic grants submission
- DSBS (Dynamic Small Business Search) profile registration (auto-populated post-SAM)
Federal POC
Artem Shakin, Founder/CEO. federal@nightboxllc.com · ORCID 0009-0006-0003-6806 · Wikidata Q139590659