As OK Catalyst looks back on 2022, we realize we have so much to celebrate. Connecting inventors, innovators, entrepreneurs, and researchers to funding opportunities has remained our top priority. Through dynamic partnerships, thanks to the U.S. Small Business Administration, we were able to go beyond our borders and provide award-winning training to underserved and underrepresented entrepreneurs. Training the Next Wave of Innovators We did something NEW! 🌱 Thanks to support from our partners we launched a new initiative known as SBIR Funding Labs. Our "ad hoc" approach to SBIR/STTR proposal writing invited 10 companies from across the U.S. to participate in the first-ever cohort. Throughout 2022, our Funding Labs program continued to evolve and we anticipate some exciting changes coming in 2023 (stay tuned). Nonetheless, this effort encouraged us to collaborate with new partners, diversify our agency knowledge and sharpen our areas of expertise. In tandem with our flagship suite of SBIR programs, we were able to help more than 50 U.S.-owned and operated startups, researchers, and entrepreneurs learn the art of writing an award-winning proposal and we shared strategies on how to leverage SBIR/STTR awards, enabling these companies to bring their ideas to market.
Moving Startups Forward
Entrepreneurship is a journey. We often see hopeful entrepreneurs lack access to resources. As we move forward, in arms with partners across the state of Oklahoma, we have prioritized offering post-award management and business assistance to OK Catalyst Alumn. 15 SBIR/STTR awarded companies secured approximately $10 million in non-dilutive seed funding. The undeniable impact that these startups will have on local communities is at the heart of why we do what we do.
These awarded companies created solutions to substantial societal issues including sustainability, healthcare, cybersecurity, and biotechnology, to name a few.
Connecting People
Access changes everything. 💻 Achieving dreams starts by helping dreamers connect to opportunities. By preparing innovators to hire, scale, and unlock the secrets to business success, we're doing our part to ensure long-lasting impact. We facilitated 200 outreach, training, and mentoring events cumulating 460+ participants from 11 states across the U.S. Our outreach programs would be nothing without partners across Oklahoma that joined in sharing industry insights, knowledge, and follow-on training with these participants.
OK Catalyst Impact
Since 2017, we've played a key role in helping startups win 70 Phase I, II, and III contracts totaling nearly $50M in federal & private funding. We won't pretend like we did this alone. This success is only possible with the help of our funding partners, the U.S. Small Business Administration, the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology, the University of Oklahoma, and ecosystem partners. Thank you to all of you for making our work meaningful and possible! We can't wait to see our combined impact in 2023! 🤩
Holiday Office hours 🎅 🎄
Our offices will be closed starting Dec. 23 for our team to spend the holidays with their families. We’ll be back the first week of Jan!