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Project Accelerator Transition Innovation Office

PATIO

The Project Accelerator Transition Innovation Office (PATIO) provides a wide variety of transition and commercialization services to Program Managers (PMs) and ARPA-H performers, who are ARPA-H’s contract awardees. These services increase the probability that ARPA-H-funded solutions “survive in the wild.” PATIO will first identify and second de-risk barriers to commercial (or other) success.

Our process—to enhance commercial potential—occurs early and often, from pre-concept development to project graduation. Our goal is to reduce market friction at common failure points. Since ARPA-H will not fund performers in perpetuity, PATIO’s services increase the odds that solutions attract private investment and customers.

Success for ARPA-H means delivering for the American public, which in turn requires providing solutions that matter in a timely manner.

A family with a young child

How PATIO’s services map to the Program lifecycle

PATIO supports Program Managers and their teams through a variety of services tailored to specific needs.

PATIO lifecycle map

  • Design Programs
    • Find opportunities and gaps
    • Answer Heilmeier questions
    • Understand current practices
  • Develop BAA
    • Identify performers
    • Protect IP
    • VC style due-diligence
    • Bring in outside mentors
    • Validate transition potential
  • Early Performance
    • De-risk for investors
    • Design MVPs to drive adoption
    • Navigate regulations
  • Mature Project
    • Help company formation
    • Provide business strategy, legal and marketing services
  • Survive in the Wild
    • SBIR/STTR, other government/non-profit funding
    • Ongoing mentorship
    • Access to key collaborators, customers, and investors

PATIO Services

PATIO offers a variety of services to support ARPA-H’s Program Managers and Performers. These services span the lifecycle of a program and ensure that the breakthroughs created by ARPA-H translate into solutions and products that revolutionize the health of the American Public. Program Managers only have a brief window to achieve their vision; PATIO’s services are designed to accelerate their progress and maximize the impact that both PMs and their Performers can achieve.

For Program Managers:

  • Customer discovery

    PATIO engages with users to understand how they are affected by the problems Program Managers are solving. We help Program Managers validate their vision and understand what a solution must entail to be adopted.

  • Market Assessment

    PATIO conducts rigorous assessments to measure the potential impact of the technologies being developed, to determine their transition potential, and to identify potential performers.

  • Ecosystem Engagement

    PATIO is building a nationwide network to connect Program Managers to top investors, entrepreneurs, stakeholders, and technical experts.

  • Mentors and coaches

    Program Managers are visionaries from a variety of backgrounds, and most (if not all) won’t have an MBA. PATIO provides experienced mentors and coaches to offer guidance and support throughout the program lifecycle.

  • Connection to outside capital

    We will leverage our public-private partnerships to connect Program Managers to outside capital, further accelerating commercial success and rapid transition.

  • BAA Formation

    PATIO assists Program Managers in their development of contract opportunities (i.e.: BAAs) by identifying and notifying potential performers about relevant opportunities and performing VC-style due diligence.

For Performers:

  • Non-dilutive capital

    PATIO provides resources to performers to bridge the gap from “prototype” to “product” by helping to secure non-dilutive funding (i.e., that doesn’t require them to give up equity or ownership of their solutions).

  • Minimum Viable Products (MVP)

    PATIO helps performers develop and test MVPs that de-risk critical features of their solution and ensure successful adoption.

  • Accelerate Growth

    PATIO provides resources and coaching to help performers develop their business models and technologies to attract venture investments.

  • Regulatory support

    Navigating the maze of necessary regulatory approvals often spells death for novel products. PATIO has dedicated liaisons from key regulatory partners whose sole job is to help performers obtain the approvals they need to test their products and bring them to market.

  • Entrepreneurship education

    PATIO is invested in the long-term success of Performers and provides entrepreneurship education services specifically designed to help young and newly formed companies succeed. These services include mentoring, business entity structure identification (LLC, S-Corp, etc.), and licensing and intellectual property (IP) guidance.

Our Team

PATIO has three divisions, each strengthening programs in different ways:

Technology Transfer and Transition (T3) Services Division Illustration

Technology Transfer and Transition (T3) Services Division

To turn “Prototypes” into “Products.”

  • We provide a tailored, full-suite of technology transfer and transition services to support ARPA-H programs and performers for their ARPA-H-funded solution to survive in the wild.
  • These include resources for entrepreneurial, technology transition, and commercialization services, including business formation, licensing, and intellectual property guidance, commercialization planning and support, regulatory guidance, and considerations for coverage and reimbursement.
  • We manage ARPA-H’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs.

Want to help?

We are looking for like-minded individuals and organizations to help us (1) manage our Partnership Intermediary Agreement (PIA) and (2) to serve as Experts in Residence (XIRs) and Advisors! Reach us at engagement@arpa-h.gov.

Health Ecosystem Division Illustration

Health Ecosystem Division

To connect and engage.

  • We build and maintain an ecosystem of investors, customers, and other relevant entities to validate program development, management, and transition.
  • We provide access to C-suite level talent to advise programs and performers on various topics, including clinical, business, user adoption, manufacturing, or regulatory support.
  • We provide a pipeline of program managers through targeted university engagement.
  • We liaise with government regulators such as CMS and FDA to ensure government regulation compliance and achieve long-term sustainability of medical technologies.

Believe in our mission and want to join our Ecosystem? We want to hear from you; send your pitch to engagement@arpa-h.gov.

Human-Centered Design Division Illustration

Human-Centered Design Division

To understand what is possible.

  • We ensure capabilities are primarily designed for user experience—for PMs internally and patients externally.
  • We provide Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and market-testing experimentation to uncover customer desirability, access, and trust insights.
  • We conduct landscape analyses to identify macro trends, to enhance knowledge, to accelerate program development and launch, to avoid duplication and overlap, and to source potential performers for programs.
  • We lead efforts to immerse PMs in the human-centered ARPA-H culture, approach, and empathy for end users.
  • We expose PMs to what life is like for the people they are trying to help, building an understanding of their needs rooted in firsthand experience, not theory.

PATIO starts with the unmet healthcare needs of people, rather than starting with basic scientific research. Human-centered design involves observation, conversation, research, and collaboration. Our problem-centric, and solution-agnostic approach favors open-ended exploration over a straight path headed toward a given patient-centric healthcare outcome.

Current Opportunities

Click below to learn more about opportunities to work with PATIO

PIA Solicitation