NSERC Idea to Innovation (I2I) Grants - June 2025 Intake

Eligibility

University Faculty

1. You must hold or have a firm offer of an academic appointment at an eligible post-secondary institution. The appointment can be:

a tenured, tenure-track or professor emeritus position, or
a term or contract position of no less than three continuous years

2. Your position at the eligible post-secondary institution must:

require you to engage in natural sciences and engineering researchFootnote5 that is not under the direction of another individual, and
permit you to supervise or co-supervise the research* of postdoctoral fellows or students registered in an undergraduate or graduate degree program

3. Your faculty appointment must not be conditional on obtaining NSERC grants or other non-NSERC sources of support, including salary support.

4. Your salary must not be paid by NSERC, SSHRC, or CIHR grant funds. Exceptions include: scientific directors of Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE) and those under the agencies’ salary support programs.

Note on adjunct professors
As an adjunct professor, you must meet the above NSERC’s eligibility requirements. Your primary place of employment will determine your level of access to apply for or hold funds. If your primary place of employment is:

- at an eligible Canadian university, you may apply as applicant or co-applicant to NSERC grants funding opportunities.
- outside the Canadian university sector (e.g., government, industry or colleges), you may apply for a Discovery Grant as principal applicant and to other NSERC grants as co-applicants. In this case, NSERC grants funds only for the direct support of students (salaries or stipends and student travel costs); all other costs must be covered through other sources of funding.
 

If you are employed by the federal government, eligibility and funding of your proposed research are subject to the Tri-agency policy on the use of funds for federal government employees applying to granting agency programs.

Summary

*Update: NSERC is pausing the intake of applications for Market Assessment projects and phase Ib supplements as of February 14, 2025, and until further notice, to review and refine the objectives of these funding opportunities and optimize processes. NSERC will communicate when these funding opportunities re-open.

Objective

The objective of Idea to Innovation (I2I) grants is to accelerate the pre-competitive development of promising technology originating from the university and college sector, and to promote its transfer to a new or established Canadian company. I2I grants provide funding to college and university faculty members to support research and development projects with recognized technology transfer potential. This is achieved through defined phases by providing crucial assistance in the early stages of technology validation and market connection.

Description

There are four distinct funding options, characterized by the maturity of the technology or the involvement of an early-stage investment entity or industrial partner (see Partner eligibility for definitions). In the market assessment, NSERC will share costs of an independent and professional market study with the institutions (including the industry liaison office [ILO] or its equivalent). In phase I, the direct costs of research will be entirely supported by NSERC; in phase II, they will be shared with a private-sector partner (company). The technology development may begin with a phase I project (reduction-to-practice stage), followed by a phase II project (technology enhancement); or, if the development is at a later stage, it can start directly with a phase II project. In any case, the combination of phase I and phase II will be limited to a maximum of three years of funding for any given project, and to one grant per phase for the same technology or intellectual property (IP).

Eligible research and development activities

• refining and implementing designs
• verifying application
• conducting field studies
• preparing demonstrations
• building prototypes
• performing beta trials

Certain expenditures related to project management are eligible as a direct cost of research in phase IIb projects, up to a maximum of 10% of the total direct costs (see the Guidelines for research partnerships programs project management expenses for more details).

Phase I: reduction-to-practice stage

Phase I reduction-to-practice projects are designed to advance promising technologies in order to attract early-stage investment and/or to build valuable intellectual property (e.g., strengthening the commercial value of the technology, broadening patent claims or strengthening licensing opportunities) in anticipation of transferring the technology to a new or established company.

One of the main reasons why phase I proposals are rejected is that the technology is at too early a stage to be eligible for the I2I grants. Phase I proposals must be based on strong scientific evidence and present the following elements:

• The technology must be sufficiently mature. The basic parameters of the concept must have already been explored, and sufficient testing should have been done to assess the potential of the innovation to work in a “product” environment or for its intended purpose. This represents at least technology readiness level (TRL) 4.
• There must be a clearly identified and well-described potential market. Meaningful letters of support from potential receptors, end users/clients and industrial value-chain players may be very useful.
• The content of the technology transfer section should address the essential questions asked through the market assessment portion.
• Involvement of experienced business mentors is recommended when the team is planning to spin off a new company.

A company may be involved as a testbed for the technology (i.e., potential client). However, when a collaborating company is the intended receptor for the technology (i.e., the company that will market the end product), the cost of the project should be shared with this partner and the application submitted as a phase IIb proposal.

Funding is available for up to 12 months, to a maximum of $125,000, and is non-renewable. NSERC will assume 100% of the direct costs of research for phase I projects.

Each project is expected to have “go/no-go” decision points, representing the achievement of predefined scientific or engineering milestones throughout the project and at the end of phase I, when either seed funding will be provided by an early-stage investment entity or the technology will be further developed with an established or start-up company.

All phase I proposals require a plan describing how a partnership will be established with a Canadian company that has the capacity to commercialize the research results. Although a business partner is not required for phase I applications, a demonstration of interest may strengthen the proposal. Technologies implicitly or explicitly committed to a specific receptor organization or industrial partner have to be submitted as phase II applications. This may not apply if the intention is to create a spin-off company.

NSERC offers an I2I phase Ib supplement. This funding of up to $60,000 for six months can be made available for successfully completed phase I projects with high promise to secure an investor or a licensing company. ILOs or their equivalent should contact NSERC staff for more information.

Phase IIa: early-stage investment partner

Proposals with an early-stage investment entity must be designed with a “go/no-go” decision point after 6 to 18 months, which represents the achievement of a predefined scientific or engineering milestone that justifies moving forward by further developing the technology either through a new (i.e., start-up) or established company. NSERC can support up to two-thirds of the costs of the project, with the early-stage investment entity providing the balance in cash. Funding requested from NSERC should not exceed an average of $125,000 per year.

• The partnering firm must lead the preparation of the technology transfer plan and contribute at least a third of the funds required for the project.
• The collaborator should have the financial strength to carry the project into phase IIb or directly to market. If this seed funding will support a spin-off or entrepreneurial
• The technology transfer terms must be disclosed.
• The science must be substantiated to the point that its end product is easily identifiable.
• Thorough market research is required, and potential buyers/markets must be specified. Meaningful letters of support from potential receptors, end users/clients and industrial value-chain players are very useful.
• Well-justified budgets are required, and indications of future financial requirements, as well as the plan to secure these funds, should be provided.
• Involvement of experienced business mentors is required when the team is planning to spin off a new company.

Projects that achieve critical milestones may be pursued for another 6- to 24-month period with either the newly created company or an established Canadian company, provided the cost-sharing arrangements for phase IIb projects are met.

Phase IIb: partnership with a Canadian company

Most of the requirements for phase IIa listed above also apply to phase IIb applications. As well, if the development of the technology was supported by a previous I2I phase, proof that the objectives of the earlier project were achieved must be provided, specifically

• the “prototype” must already be in existence
• a strong business plan is required
• involvement of experienced business mentors is required when the team is planning to spin off a new company
• the receptor capacity to manufacture, distribute, license, etc. must be substantiated
• adequate budgets are required to show that the product will be at the marketing/manufacturing stage at the end of the phase IIb grant
• the “in-kind” contributions should be fully justified, as they will be carefully scrutinized

Phase IIb proposals with a Canadian company are expected to be completed within two years, and funding requested should not exceed $350,000 for the duration of the project. NSERC may fund up to half the cost of the project, with the company providing the other half through a combination of cash and in-kind contributions. Each case will be evaluated on its merits; however, the cash component should equal at least 40% of the amount requested from NSERC.

The industrial partner must have, or be able to acquire by the end of the project, the technical capability to undertake any further development necessary to take the product or process to market. The company receiving the technology should be prepared to carry out a market study, product/process development, engineering, and sales and marketing planning required to establish that a technology is viable, and to enter the market successfully.

The ILO or its equivalent is expected to work with the applicant(s) and the partner in developing proposals and negotiating licensing or other such arrangements.

Overhead

Not applicable

Application deadlines

RSO detailed review deadline

RSO final internal review deadline

Program application deadline

NOTE: Consult your Faculty Associate Dean (Research) (ADR) regarding Faculty-specific deadlines and submission processes.

Principal Investigators: Complete a Research Management System (RMS) record, including a copy of your complete application, and submit this for approvals in RMS.

Postdocs, students, and trainees: For fellowships and externally-sponsored research training awards or opportunities, you must complete the Research Funding Application Approval (RFAA) Trainee PDF form, and submit it, along with a complete copy of the application, to Research Services at rsotrainee@ucalgary.ca. Trainees should not use RMS at this time.

Approvals: The University of Calgary requires that all funding applications be approved prior to submission. Approval requires signatures via either RMS or the RFAA Trainee form, in the following order:

• Principal Investigator
• Department Head
• Faculty ADR/Dean
• Research Services (on behalf of the Vice-President Research)

Read the Meaning of Grant Signatures policy to understand what your approval means. Please see the agency guidelines for details about which signatures are required on your application, as it may differ from internal requirements.

Late submissions: Late submissions will only be accepted in cases of medical or family emergencies, or other exceptional circumstances. If you submit your RMS record to Research Services after the internal deadline has passed, you must secure additional approvals. Please read: Late Applications Process.

How to Apply

Both a submission on the NSERC Online System and an RMS are required for the RSO review. 

1. See the application instructions for I2I grants for more information about application forms and guidelines.

   Applications are submitted by a college or university researcher (or research group) and, for phase II projects, in association with an eligible partner. In the latter case, the institution and early stage investment partner or company should have in place, before applying, a licensing (or similar) agreement on the right to exploit the invention or discovery. All new proposals are expected to be developed in close collaboration with the institution's ILO or its equivalent. The ILO or its equivalent involved in the application must be identified at the beginning of the technology transfer section of the proposal.

2. Complete the Pre-Award/Letter of Intent record in RMS and “Submit for academic approvals” (Under Save & Progress) in good time to allow for approvals from your Department Head and/or ADR prior to the Research Services deadline. Consult your department and faculty for more information on their approval processes and timelines.

NSERC staff is willing to review draft proposals submitted sufficiently in advance of the application deadline. Contact them at i2i@nserc-crsng.gc.ca.