Turning discovery into protection for those in harm's way.
An accelerator sponsored by the U.S. Army, connecting American biotechnology innovators with the resources, expertise, capital, and government pathways that move dual-use technology from promising prototype to fielded capability.
Cohort 1 intake: dates to be announced.
VEDDER is sponsored by the U.S. Army and operated by the Defense Innovation Networking Group under a federal Other Transaction agreement.
What VEDDER is.
VEDDER is a biotechnology accelerator for U.S. companies whose technologies can serve both commercial markets and the national-security mission. The Defense Innovation Networking Group (D!NG), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, was selected by the U.S. Army to establish and operate VEDDER. D!NG connects selected companies with technical resources, business support, capital networks, government-acquisition expertise, and industry partners, with the aim of reducing the barriers between commercial innovation and national-security application.
VEDDER works differently from a grant program. Companies are selected against specific technical challenge statements, receive milestone-based prototype agreements, and are surrounded by the resources and relationships needed to prove their technology, strengthen their business, and reach the customers who need it. Commercial viability is a qualifying criterion, not a bonus: VEDDER exists to build companies that succeed on their own.
VEDDER is sponsored by the U.S. Army and operated by the Defense Innovation Networking Group under a federal Other Transaction agreement.
Two challenges. One application for each.
Challenge statements publish at intake open.
Cohort 1 intake: dates to be announced.
Applicants may respond to one or both challenges. Each challenge has its own application question set and its own expert review panel.
Read the key terms before you apply.
Companies selected for VEDDER sign one prototyping agreement with D!NG. This overview summarizes how it is structured, how milestone payments work, and the intellectual property, security, and termination terms, so you know what you are getting into before you apply.
Not the agreement. Sample summary of key terms, not the agreement. The full agreement is provided to each selected company for review before selections are made, and only the executed agreement is binding.
VEDDER B2B Agreement Overview for Applicants (PDF)Who should apply.
VEDDER is built for U.S. biotechnology and sensing companies with a working technology, a commercial strategy, and the ambition to serve the national-security mission. Startups, small businesses, university spin-outs, and nontraditional defense contractors are all welcome. You do not need prior government contracting experience; helping you gain it is part of the program.
Before you apply, confirm that:
- Confirm:
Your company is organized in the United States and majority U.S.-owned and controlled.
- Confirm:
You can disclose all sources of foreign investment or funding. Foreign ownership, control, or influence is evaluated during review and may be disqualifying.
- Confirm:
Personnel assigned to VEDDER work will meet program security requirements. U.S. citizenship is required for key personnel; restrictions on foreign-national participation apply.
- Confirm:
You have a demonstrable technology, not only a concept. Applicants self-rate technology readiness (a TRL reference is provided in the form).
- Confirm:
You are willing to team or partner where the challenge calls for it.
- Confirm:
You can describe how the technology succeeds commercially with or without government customers.
The eligibility questions appear first in the application as a short screening step. Applicants who do not meet them are told so immediately, before investing time in the full form.
What selected companies receive.
- 01
A prototype agreement
A milestone-based prototype agreement funded through VEDDER, sized to the work proposed, with payments tied to demonstrated progress.
- 02
Resource integration
Access, on preferred terms, to high-performance computing, wet and dry laboratory capacity, and commercial, university, and government resources assembled by D!NG for the cohort.
- 03
Structured diligence and commercialization pathing
Independent review of your technology and business, a transition plan toward customers, and introductions to capital.
- 04
Government proximity
Education on requirements, validation and demonstration pathways, and how the sponsor evaluates and buys, delivered by people who have done it.
- 05
A pathway to production
Prototypes that succeed under VEDDER may be eligible for follow-on production opportunities.
- 06
A national network
Fellow cohort companies, mentors, investors, primes, research institutions, and economic-development partners across the D!NG ecosystem.
From intake to agreement.
- 0112 October 2026
Intake opens
Eligibility screen, then a challenge-specific application (10 questions with character limits and a technology readiness self-rating), plus a 1 to 2 page capability statement in any format. Progress saves automatically.
- 0230 October 2026, 11:59 p.m. Eastern
Intake closes
Portal closes. Late submissions are not accepted; a general-interest signup remains open for future cohorts.
- 03First half of November 2026
Initial review
D!NG and subject-matter experts screen all applications against the challenge criteria.
- 04Mid-November 2026
Invitation to propose
Selected applicants are invited to submit a short proposal (5 to 10 pages on a provided template) and join a recorded Q&A session.
- 05Late November to December 2026
Expert panel review
Each proposal is evaluated by at least two reviewers drawn from science and technology, military, commercialization, and investment backgrounds.
- 06December 2026 to January 2027
Selection and agreements
D!NG recommends the cohort to the sponsor; selected companies negotiate and execute prototype agreements.
Challenge 1 awards are expected first; Challenge 2 awards may follow by approximately 30 days. Additional cohorts will open against new challenge statements as they are released.
Partner with VEDDER.
VEDDER is designed to be sustained by the ecosystem it serves. States, regions, investors, universities, and corporate partners that join early gain a structured seat alongside the program: visibility into the cohort, access to deal flow and talent, and a defined relationship with the national-security mission.
Start a conversationStates and regional economic development
Bring VEDDER companies, jobs, and investment to your region. Partnership options include cohort co-sponsorship, regional demonstration and validation sites, and company-attraction programs.
Investors
Early, structured access to diligenced companies working on validated needs. VEDDER tracks private capital raised by cohort companies as a program measure, and welcomes venture, corporate venture, and growth investors as program partners.
Universities and research institutions
Connect faculty, labs, and spin-outs to the program; host resources for cohort companies; place students and interns with VEDDER and its companies.
Corporate sponsors and resource providers
Provide laboratory capacity, computing, professional services, or sponsorship. In-kind contributions are recognized at market value in program reporting.
Who can apply?
U.S.-organized, U.S.-owned and controlled companies with a demonstrable technology responsive to one of the current challenge statements. See the eligibility list on the program page.
Can I apply to both challenges?
Yes. Each challenge has its own question set and its own review panel. Submit one application per challenge.
How much funding is available per company?
Prototype agreements are milestone-based and sized to the work proposed. The indicative range for Cohort 1 agreements will be published at intake open.
Is this a grant?
No. Selected companies enter a prototype agreement with defined milestones and deliverables, and retain ownership of their technology subject to negotiated data rights.
Do I need prior government experience?
No. Learning how the government defines needs, evaluates technology, and buys is part of what VEDDER provides.
I missed the deadline. What now?
Join the general-interest list. New challenge statements and cohorts will be announced there first.
Hear about intake, cohorts, and events.
Get VEDDER updates: new challenge statements, cohort announcements, and events. No newsletters from anyone else, and no sharing.
- Follow VEDDER on LinkedIn
- Program and application questions
- questions@dingusa.org
- Media
- comms@dingusa.org