Pitt SPARK

• Pitt SPARK is a competitive innovation funding program for Pitt technologies in life sciences-related fields that address unmet needs or challenges in human health and disease.  It is anticipated that a maximum of four (4) new Pitt SPARK awards will be granted per year.  
• Awards are granted in amounts of up to $125,000 for one year for critical technical and/or market derisking and validation studies. Full project funding is not guaranteed and is contingent upon awardees’ adherence to a milestone-based plan developed in collaboration with the Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (OIE) and external partners. Each project will have 1-3 quantifiable milestones per year, each of which should address one or more issues critical to making the project attractive to external funders or partners. Applicants will be required to include a detailed Statement of Work and budget for each milestone in their application.
• Upon successful completion of year one project milestones, awardees may apply for a second year of funding.
• Pitt SPARK funding can be used for:
  • Late-stage translational studies, including pre-clinical and clinical activities. Studies may be conducted in-house or through external contract research organizations supported through Pitt purchasing processes,
  • Development and manufacturing of customer prototypes,
  • Contract manufacturing of customer samples,
  • External reliability and performance validation,
  • Regulatory and/or reimbursement consulting,
  • Business plan and/or market development,
  • Salaries and fringe for students and postdocs (Direct project need must be demonstrated. It is preferred that these costs are limited),
  • Other direct expenses upon formal written approval.
• Prior to applying for the Pitt.SPARK program, applicants must have completed the NSF Regional I-Corps program, or a similarly structured customer discovery course or ethnography program with a focus on the project for which they intend to apply. Customer discovery should have been completed within the last two years.
• Awardees are required to participate in and present at OIE’s weekly in-person Community of Innovators sessions to receive direct project progress feedback from and network with other Pitt innovators as well as internal and external commercialization experts. While participation from all team members is strongly encouraged, at least one team member is required to attend each session throughout the award period.
• Awardees are required to communicate and engage with OIE regularly to track project progress and complete project milestones. Communications include a project kickoff meeting, quarterly progress reports, bi-weekly update meetings with assigned OIE project manager, working sessions, and a final report. Awardees, including the PI, are expected to attend regular update meetings and be present and engaged.
• Awardees are encouraged to engage in asynchronous microprogramming made available to them through OIE. Microprograms cover topics related to the entire innovation commercialization process. Awardees will have the opportunity to work with OIE to determine which microprograms best fit their needs.
• Projects are expected to start within one month of the award date (pending any necessary regulatory approvals or purchasing contracts) and should be completed within 12 months of the project start date. Applicants should ensure that timelines are appropriate for the proposed milestones and that the resources are available to meet the Pitt SPARK requirements and timeline.
• The objective of Pitt SPARK is to support the development of Pitt intellectual property to be ready for external funding and/or tech transfer events upon project completion.
• Desired outcomes of funded projects include incorporation of a Pitt Licensed Start-up Company (LSC) focused on the relevant intellectual property (IP) or option or license of the relevant IP to an existing company. 

• Pitt SPARK Awards are designed to support translational development of Pitt technologies to the point where external funding may be secured and/or a technology transfer event achieved. The program does not support basic science, hypothesis testing or proof-of-principle studies.
• The program supports “last mile” validation studies of Pitt technologies with high commercial potential and compelling proof-of-concept data. An eligible project will have significant, existing data demonstrating the technology can be implemented in a “real world” setting but still requires validation of key assumptions before transitioning out of the academic environment.
• An invention disclosure must be on file with the Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (OIE) and an intellectual property management plan established with a licensing manager.
• Pitt SPARK is intended to provide financial support that cannot typically be obtained from traditional sources of funding, including government funding agencies, foundations, or an investigator’s department or school.
• Applicants are required to complete structured customer discovery prior to applying to Pitt SPARK to collect customer feedback, better define the commercial activity, and inform project milestones. This customer discovery should be related to the technology described in the application and have been completed within the last two years. Applicants who have not yet met this requirement are strongly encouraged to do so by participating in a Regional NSF Innovation Corps (I-Corps) course or similarly structured customer discovery course or ethnography activity.
  • The NSF I-Corps Regional session targeted for Pitt SPARK will take place from October 19-November 18.
• Applications with demonstrated support from external industry and/or investor partners, e.g., cash and/or in-kind support, may receive priority review.
• If you are seeking funding for a project earlier in the commercialization pathway, OIE staff will help you find other OIE programs which may be a better fit for your project’s stage.

• Pitt SPARK is open to Pitt faculty, postdocs, students, and staff. Postdocs, students, and staff must identify a Pitt faculty member to serve as the PI.
• Applications may not be submitted by project team members who will be unavailable to participate in award activities. Postdoc, student, or staff member applicants are expected to actively collaborate with their PI and participate in the project for the duration of the award.
• Projects must support the further development or validation of intellectual property assigned to Pitt.
• An invention disclosure must be on file with Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (OIE) and discussed with a licensing manager prior to submitting an application.
• Investigators with joint intellectual property are required to speak with OIE Innovation Funding team prior to submitting their application to ensure eligibility.
• The technology must be unencumbered from obligations that would prevent the University from moving forward with commercialization. The technology should be available for licensing to a Pitt licensed start-up company or external third party and not subject to any pre-existing options, licenses, or corporate sponsored research agreements.
• Projects with funding from another source to complete the same work are not eligible for a Pitt SPARK award.
• Applicants should be prepared to identify any materials, patient data or biospecimens, connected with the projedct background, data generated to date and/or the proposed work.

• Written applications for Pitt SPARK funding will be accepted through Pitt InfoReady.
• Applications will be reviewed by OIE.
• Applicants with the highest-scoring written applications will be invited to present a project pitch to OIE and OIE’s Scientific Advisory Board. The pitch must be presented by a Pitt team member who will actively participate in the project for the entire award period.
• Applicants will receive a funding decision following deliberation of OIE and the OIE Scientific Advisory Board.
• For projects not selected for Pitt SPARK funding, applicants will be provided with feedback from the reviews of their application upon request and encouraged to meet with OIE to discuss potential next steps for their project.
• For projects selected for Pitt SPARK funding, final project milestones, scope of work, and budget will be developed in collaboration with OIE and the Scientific Advisory Board.

The objective of Pitt SPARK is to support the development of Pitt intellectual property to be ready for external funding and/or tech transfer events upon project completion.  Projects are selected for near-term commercialization potential and societal impact using the following criteria: 

• Eligibility and fit for Pitt SPARK.
• Scientific merit and novelty.
• Status and strength of the intellectual property.
• Technology stage of development. Technology has the potential to scale to achieve significant societal and/or economic impact.
• Clearly identified market need with stated interest from potential customers and/or industry partners.
• Feasibility of the proposed project within the given timeframe and amount of funding available.
• Commercialization plan and anticipated outcomes.
• Team qualifications.
• Applicant and PI’s engagement in the proposed Pitt SPARK project.

Pitt SPARK funds may only be used for the direct costs of the activities outlined in the approved project plan and budget. Faculty personnel costs are not permitted. Non-faculty personnel costs are generally discouraged but will be considered on a case by case basis, must be limited and justified strongly in the proposal. 

Eligible expenses include: 

• Lab supplies, research animals, prototyping supplies, fabrication or manufacturing expenses, and trial costs
• Consultants, contract research organizations (CRO), contract manufacturers, and service providers. Note that all providers are required to assign IP rights to the University prior to beginning work and the team must use the University purchasing processes.
• Postdoc, student, and technician salaries and fringe (on a case by case basis and strongly justified)
• With prior approval from OIE, travel costs related directly to meeting an approved milestone.

Ineligible expenses include: 

• Overhead/indirect costs
• Faculty salaries
• Tuition
• Travel
• Computer equipment over $20,000 (total cost). Equipment purchased with a Pitt SPARK award must be directly related to project milestones.
• Capital equipment over $20,000 (total cost). Equipment purchased with a Pitt SPARK award must be directly related to project milestones.
• Publication costs
• External legal support
• Patent Expenses

Awardee:
Jordyn Ting

Principal Investigator:
Elvira Pirondini, assistant professor, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

Team members:
Jorge Gonzalez-Martinez

Pitt researchers have developed a motor thalamic deep brain stimulation (mThal-DBS) methodology that restores swallowing and speech in patients with chronic dysphagia and dysarthria stemming from lesions to the corticobulbar tract (Grigsby et al., 2024). Specifically, electrical stimulation is applied to the motor thalamus, which has excitatory projections to the motor cortex. The stimulation increases excitability of the motor cortex, leading to increased activation of the facial and oropharyngeal muscles used during swallowing and speech. The initial focus is on treating post-stroke dysphagia (difficulty swallowing), with the potential to expand to dysarthria (slurred or mumbled speech) in the future.

Principal Investigator:
Francesco Egro, associate professor, Department of Plastic Surgery

Team members:

Chris Fedor.

Surgeons performing anastomosis (connecting two tubular structures, such as blood vessels) often require expensive microscopes. But these procedures can still result in an inaccurate suture placement, called a backwall, which can result in a dangerous blood clot. University of Pittsburgh researchers have developed a novel device that enables accurate suture placement via a guide cylinder and a rod holding a microsurgical clip that provides stability and precision.