SBA Launches $9M Growth Accelerator Fund Competition To Highlight Innovative Ecosystems

Applications open January 8!

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced its 2025 Growth Accelerator Fund Competition (GAFC), offering up to $9 million in efforts to accelerate innovative entrepreneur support organizations (ESOs) in underserved communities, Small Business Trends reports.

The Growth Accelerator Fund targets organizations in hopes of addressing gaps identified in their ecosystems. It supports initiatives that bridge research and commercialization, enhance capital access, and heighten entrepreneurial resources in trending industries.

With applications opening on January 8, 2025, grants between $75,000 and $150,000 will be provided to strengthen innovation ecosystems, uplift collaboration, and expand access to entrepreneurship throughout the country. Isabel Casillas Guzman, SBA’s administrator, called the competition a way to advance “America’s global leadership.” “The 2025 Growth Accelerator Fund Competition will build on SBA’s legacy of strengthening innovation ecosystems by deepening the incredible entrepreneur support organization partnerships we have on the ground in undercapitalized communities across the country,” Guzman said.

“This year’s competition will emphasize advancing America’s global leadership in critical industries and ensuring creative ideas make it to market.”

According to Globe News Wire, applicants should align their applications with one of the two identified GAFC theme areas in stage one: lab-to-market and capital formation. Lab-to-market is labeled as correlating the gap between research and commercialization in national and economic security, domestic manufacturing and production and biotechnology.

Capital formation examines how ESOs can expand investment access for entrepreneurs and small businesses during the early stages of development. Some activities can include developing new funding methods, improving investment literacy and addressing other challenges related to funding access. “SBA is eager to engage new entrants in the innovation economy around this year’s themes to further support our nation’s leadership in emerging technologies and advance our global competitiveness,” Guzman continued.

Applications for stage one will close on Jan. 31, 2025, and the awards will be announced by April 2025. The SBA encourages participants to attend the GAFC Pre-Application Webinar, which is free and open to the public, on January 9th. Stage one winners can also compete for an additional $150,000, contingent on eligibility. Winners who advance to stage two will be announced by September 2025.
The competition has intensified in the last ten years. In 2023, the SBA awarded prizes of up to $3 million in the first stage and $5.75 million for the competition.