Five New Mexico deep-tech companies holding a combined $5.4 million in federal Phase II awards have completed the SBIR/STTR Phase III Commercialization Bridge Pilot, a five-week program followed by ongoing support designed to help companies advance toward Phase III and commercialization. 

The Santa Fe Business Incubator delivered the pilot with support from NM FAST and the New Mexico Economic Development Department's Technology and Innovation Office from August through September 2026. Participating companies received advising and structured guidance on Phase III strategy, federal procurement pathways, funding gap analysis, and commercialization planning. 

The cohort included companies working across energy and clean technology, health and biotech, defense technology, and artificial intelligence applications for geosciences. Participants collectively hold $5.4 million in their most recent Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer Phase II awards from the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy. 

The five participating companies included Sentiré Medical of Santa Fe, a developer of intraoperative monitoring systems for minimally invasive surgery; Molten Salt Solutions of Santa Fe, focused on commercial enriched lithium isotope production; Palladias LLC of Los Alamos, advancing sorbent technology for nuclear processing; Tibbar Plasma Technologies of Los Alamos, pursuing fusion energy solutions; and EnviTrace LLC of Santa Fe, delivering AI-powered seismic prediction and risk assessment for energy applications. 

Through the pilot, companies developed strategies for the transition beyond Phase II. Programming covered federal procurement and commercialization pathways, including sole-source contracting, other transaction authority, broad agency announcements, and direct commercial opportunities. The goal was to help founders identify viable pathways for moving federally funded technologies toward market adoption and continued growth. 

"The Phase III program provided helpful perspective, insights, and practical guidance as we continue to advance Sentiré toward commercialization. Dana and the team did a terrific job educating us on both public- and private-sector opportunities for commercial contracting and additional funding," said David Krasne, founder and CEO of Sentiré Medical. 

"New Mexico has a deep base of research and a growing pipeline of founders ready to translate that work into companies that can compete for federal R&D dollars," said Carlos Murguia, director of the Technology and Innovation Gateway at Arrowhead Center. "This pilot gave five companies with Phase II momentum a structured path toward Phase III and commercialization. Providing founders with expert, practical support during this transition helps strengthen New Mexico's innovation economy while allowing companies to focus on building and bringing their technologies to market." 

SFBI will continue supporting cohort alumni through one-on-one advising, microgrants, and additional programming as companies pursue Phase III opportunities, federal procurement positioning, and capital strategy refinement. Information on upcoming NM FAST workshops and cohorts is available at nmsbirsupport.com. 

NM FAST is administered by Arrowhead Center at New Mexico State University and operates statewide, serving founders across New Mexico. Over more than a decade of programming, NM FAST has supported more than 470 New Mexico startups and helped companies secure nearly $28 million in federal SBIR awards. Targeted outreach is directed to rural, women, veteran and minority entrepreneurs. 

The New Mexico Economic Development Department's Technology and Innovation Office sponsors the program through the New Mexico Entrepreneurship Programmatic Support Grant, which supports continued statewide programming for SBIR/STTR-eligible companies in four priority sectors: advanced computing, bioscience, advanced energy, and aerospace.

The full article can be seen at https://newsroom.nmsu.edu/news/nm-fast-pilot-helps-new-mexico-deep-tech-companies-advance-toward-sbir-sttr-phase-iii/s/d9a207ed-911d-4009-9313-dec348349844