Long Island Life Science Acceleration, RFA

Agency:	State Government of New York.
State:	New York
Type of Government:	State & Local
NAICS Category:	541990 - All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
Posted Date:	Dec 29, 2022
Due Date:	Mar 31, 2023
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LONG ISLAND LIFE SCIENCE

ACCELERATION

REQUEST FOR APPLICATIONS

Issued: December 28, 2022

Designated Contacts for this Procurement:

Primary Contact: Heidi Knoblauch

Secondary Contact: Matt Watson

All contacts/inquiries shall be made by email to the following address:

lifesciencesrfa@esd.ny.gov

This Request for Applications (“RFA”) is posted on the Empire State Development website:

https://esd.ny.gov/doing-business-ny/requests-proposals

Applications must be sent to the designated Dropbox:

https://www.dropbox.com/request/wB9IW1nX5vtsbo8gnr1d

APPLICATIONS DUE DATE AND TIME:

On or before Friday, March 31, 2023 by 5:00 PM EST.

Late applications will not be accepted

Introduction

The mission of Empire State Development (“ESD”) is to promote a vigorous and growing state economy,

encourage business investment and job creation, and support diverse, prosperous local economies across

New York State through the efficient use of loans, grants, tax credits, real estate development, marketing

and other forms of assistance.

A. Project Summary

To support the continued growth of the life sciences ecosystem on Long Island, ESD offers a Long Island

Life Science Acceleration Request for Applications (“RFA”). Currently, ESD funds eight accelerators

(“Programs”) (Genius NY, 43North, HUSTLE, 76 West (Coming Soon), Luminate, New York State Business

Plan Competition, Commercialization Competition, and Grow NY) to help entrepreneurs gain the skills

they need to access capital, accelerate innovation, make critical industry connections, and grow their

companies in New York State. These Programs offer comprehensive support to early-stage companies

that are contributing technological innovation economic growth and ultimately jobs in specific regions of

New York and in some cases the entire state.

The overall goal of this RFA is to bring together resources on Long Island to support and foster the growth

of commercialization in the growing life science ecosystem. This will, in turn, accelerate the

commercialization of novel discoveries as well as promising early-stage companies who will attract talent,

innovators, and/or other life science companies to Long Island. Applicants should provide a cohesive and

comprehensive program thesis, which includes programming that will act as a catalyst for expanding the

ecosystem cluster and will support appropriate early-stage companies. Components of this Program

should include a competition with prize monies, support for companies during the Program, support for

companies after the Program, access to resources, and physical space.

B. Request for Application Schedule

Item

Release of Request for Applications

Deadline for Submission of Questions

Deadline for ESD to Respond to Questions

Submission of Applications

Anticipated Announcement of Selections

Anticipated Contract Start Date

Date

December 28, 2022

February 24, 2023 by 3:00 PM EST

March 3, 2023

March 31, 2023 by 5:00 PM EST

TBD

II. Project

A. Program Goals and Objectives

Under this RFA, ESD will select a group of partners – one Applicant – to create an accelerator Program to

support Scalable Companies developing life science companies with long term growth potential on Long

Island, leveraging synergies with current and future assets in the region (See Appendix B: Overview of

Long Island Life Science Assets). This Program will include a competitive application process to an

accelerator, culminating with a venture competition where Beneficiary Companies present their product,

service, or technology to a panel of expert judges, to secure prize money (investments) or in-kind services.

Applicants must address the following tasks:

Task I: Partners, Services, and Resources

Applicants are asked to provide details about the services and resources that will be available to early-

stage companies and detail if they will be provided by the Applicant directly or through Partners

outside of their group. Each Applicant must detail a process and summary of the support that will be

provided to each company.

The Proposal must explain:

• The plan to reach a broad pool of life sciences entrepreneurs both already located on Long

Island but needing support to grow and be sustained, and those located elsewhere who have

a high likelihood of relocation to and growth on Long Island;

• The plan to attract life science companies addressing areas of importance to New York State

and leveraging Long Island’s strengths, particularly companies with a focus on cell and gene

therapy; clinical genomics; innovative technologies as CRISPR, nanotechnologies, organoids,

and bioelectronics; or other areas with high growth potential that build on the strengths of

Long Island resources (focus areas may be adjusted or changed in the life science field based

on the demonstrated regional strengths; the quality and quantity of applicant companies; and

economic impact protentional of the focus area);

• The track record for providing support in all necessary aspects of this Program;

• The industry and non-industry partners, services, and resources (demonstrating access to

mentors, investor networks, specialized equipment, FDA expertise, etc.) who will perform

various objectives or tasks; and

• The plan to support the accelerator beyond the grant period and ability to raise capital from

industry partners.

Task II: Advancing Pace of Discovery

Applicants are expected to offer assistance to life sciences entrepreneurs that will help them get to

market faster than they would without the program and commercialization support. Specifically,

Applicants should detail how they will provide support and connections to entrepreneurs and the

companies in their program. Types of support that advances the pace of discovery can include high

performance computing technologies, consulting on regulatory needs, technology transfer expertise,

introductions to relevant industry partners, mentoring or building mentoring pathways, digital

infrastructure, networking opportunities, access to laboratory and technical facilities and other

resources, etc. Successful Applicants will showcase how the Program plans to support the growth of

these businesses after competing in the venture competition.

B. Eligibility Requirements

The Applicant should demonstrate a strong track record of providing accelerator services;

making investments in companies; hosting venture competitions; and fostering collaboration

between Partners. The proposal must demonstrate an established record of success in attracting,

vetting, and supporting Scalable Companies commercializing innovative life science

technologies/products that have a unique business model/market approach. Successful

Applicants will show:

• Resources

▪ Deep commitment to collaborating with Partners to grow the life sciences start-

up ecosystem on Long Island.

• Vetting Teams and Technologies

▪ Methods to identify and implement best practices for vetting technologies and

teams considered for investment.

• Outreach

▪ Plan to identify and recruit early-stage life sciences companies focused on

discoveries and innovations described in Task 1.

• Beneficiary Company Support

▪ Details of the support Beneficiary Companies will receive to accelerate

technology development and Beneficiary Company growth.

▪ Success stories or examples demonstrating a track record of success working with

Scalable Companies in the life sciences.

▪ Seamless support across all partners to accelerate growth and encourage

retention.

• Showcasing

▪ Plan to showcase Beneficiary Companies to secure follow-on funding and/or

further accelerate growth.

• Reinvestment

▪ Plan to reinvest successful investments into the Program.

• Leadership and Staffing

▪ Background and experiences of individuals that would be involved in this effort if

selected.

• Company Pipeline

▪ Sustainable infrastructure to attract and maintain a pipeline of Scalable

Companies focused on the life sciences who will have long term impact on

economic growth on Long Island and in the State.

• Ability to Validate Technology and Team

▪ Process for validating technologies, products and business models and vetting

teams to de-risk potential investment and share this process with ESD.

• Investment History

▪ Experience investing in Scalable Companies and support given to help those

companies raise follow-on funding.

• Collaboration

▪ Plan to identify and recruit additional partners as necessary for additional

outreach or support to the Beneficiary Companies.

• Recordkeeping, reporting, and control systems

▪ Plans for tracking, measuring, and reporting outcomes associated with the

Program and controls to ensure appropriate use of funds.

C. Grant Funding and Project Timeline

Grant awards are as follows:

$8 million annually for five (5) years with a minimum of 75% going towards prize money. There is no cost-

match requirement associated with this grant. If the applicant demonstrates a critical need or anticipated

need, money is potentially available for equipment, lab upgrades, and renovations.

ESD reserves the right to award grants in amounts greater or less than the above listed figures and/or at

a varying schedule depending on the number and quality of applications received and other

considerations set forth in this RFA.

There is no cost-match requirement associated with this grant.

i. Eligible and Ineligible Expenses

Eligible activities include but are not limited to:

• Personnel;

• Travel;

• Office/lab space for companies participating in the program;

• Marketing and outreach to increase awareness of the competition; and

• Support that will accelerate the pace of innovation and increase the speed to

commercialization.

The following limitations apply to this RFA:

• Indirect costs are PROHIBITED;

• Basic Research PROHIBITED; and

• Expenses must be relevant and justifiable to the project(s) outcome.

A budget template is included in this RFA. ESD has the right to review all expenses and deny the

reimbursement of any expenses that are deemed ineligible.

D. Data Collection

Applicants awarded grant funding will be required to track and record information relevant to the success

of this grant. Data will be made available to ESD as requested. Data points to be captured and tracked are

at the discretion of ESD. Failure to report in a timely manner will jeopardize funding. Items to be captured

and tracked include:

• Applications received with company summary, location, size, revenue, tech readiness level, and

demographics of leadership;

• Beneficiary Companies selected for accelerator and the assistance/training they received;

• Jobs created/retained;

• Investments received;

• Funds acquired (grants);

• Increased sales;

• Cost savings; and

• Other impacts identified by ESD.

III. Application Information

Please provide a narrative that includes the following information in the following order using the

headings listed below. Submitted applications are expected to be clearly written. If applications exceed

the page limits and/or include materials not requested by the RFA, ESD will remove the extra pages and/or

materials prior to the review. During the review process, applicant institutions may be requested to

submit additional written documents to answer questions or provide clarification of issues raised during

the review process. Assemble the application in the following order:

1. Cover page

2. Table of Contents

3. Glossary of Terms Used

4. Executive Summary (max 1 page)

5. Proposal (15-page limit)

a. Each organization’s experience and qualification

Long Island Life Science Acceleration, RFA

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