Multiple Companies Receive Homeland Security SBIR Contracts for Technology Research

The Department of Homeland Security has awarded 20 companies a total of $3.15 million in Phase I Small Business Innovation Research contracts to address key technology needs.

The companies will receive up to $150,000 to conduct proof-of-concept research over five months. The key topic areas are accurate and real-time hardware-assisted detection of cyberattacks, air cargo manifest analysis, first responder credentialing, machine learning-based integration of alarm resolution sensors, server-to-server communications, critical infrastructure modeling and methodologies classification for threat detection.

Companies from Virginia, Massachusetts, Texas, Maryland, Pennsylvania, California, Texas, Alabama, New York, Indiana and Vermont were selected through the DHS SBIR 23.1 Solicitation issued in December, DHS said Thursday.

At the end of Phase I, awardees can submit proposals for a Phase II award, allowing them to develop and demonstrate a working prototype.

U.S. government agencies have been ramping up their use of SBIR vehicles over recent months.

In mid-June, NASA awarded two SBIR contracts to PickNik Robotics to advance autonomous robotic systems. The first contract allows the company to develop software that can detect issues in autonomous robotic systems used in spaceflight hardware maintenance while the second contract focuses on improving the autonomy capabilities of in-orbit robotic systems.