SpaceWERX to Debut With STTR Solicitation for Space Tech

SpaceWERX will be officially launched on Aug. 19 and with it, a Phase I Open Topic Small Business Technology Transfer solicitation for space technologies.

The upcoming solicitation will foster collaboration between small businesses and university researchers to build a space workforce and develop cutting-edge technologies.

The idea behind the open topic approach is to allow companies and researchers to freely submit technology proposals even if the government does not issue specific research topics of interest, Nextgov reported Thursday.

Officials will also host a virtual Space Force Pitch Day on the launch date. Up to $34 million in funding will be awarded to innovative startups competing for Phase II Small Business Innovation Research contracts.

A soft launch of SpaceWERX took place in December 2020. The innovation hub has been operating under the Air Force Research Laboratory’s AFWERX program at the Los Angeles Air Force Base since then.

SpaceWERX now has its sights set on an initiative called Space Prime, which is officially scheduled to begin within the month.

Space Prime falls under the Prime program, which is one of AFWERX’s three main efforts alongside AFVentures and Spark. The program is focused on priming and accelerating emerging commercial markets to rapidly drive affordable capabilities to the field.

“Like our inaugural Prime program, Agility Prime, Space Prime will use the full suite of our AFWERX tools to hone in on specific mission and technology areas to truly move the needle on delivering on-orbit capability,” Lt. Col. Tom Meagher, AFWERX Prime lead, said in a statement.