VEDDER Prototype Accelerator, operated by D!NG

Turning discovery into protection for those in harm's way.

A federally sponsored accelerator 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: opens 12 October 2026, closes 30 October 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern.

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VEDDER is operated by the Defense Innovation Networking Group under a federal Other Transaction agreement. Sponsor announcement pending.

Prototype AcceleratorVEDDER
The program

What VEDDER is.

VEDDER is a prototype accelerator for U.S. biotechnology companies whose technologies can serve both commercial markets and the national-security mission. Operated by the Defense Innovation Networking Group (D!NG), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, VEDDER 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 operated by the Defense Innovation Networking Group under a federal Other Transaction agreement. Sponsor announcement pending.

Cohort 1 challenges

Two challenges. One application for each.

VTCS-01

Rapid Small-Molecule Design for CBRN Medical Countermeasures

Accelerate the discovery and characterization of small-molecule medical countermeasures for chemical and biological threats. VEDDER is seeking platforms and teams that can move from target identification through de novo molecular design and multi-attribute optimization to in-silico characterization of safety, pharmacokinetics, and manufacturability, and can demonstrate results in cells against a known target.

In scope

  • Target identification and validation
  • De novo small-molecule design
  • Multi-attribute optimization balancing sensitivity and specificity to the target binding site, ADMET, PK/PD, safety, and scalability
  • In-silico characterization workflows that shorten the path to preclinical candidates
  • Cell-based demonstration against a defined target

Out of scope

  • Diagnostics and detection assays
  • Radiopharmaceuticals
  • Repurposing of approved drugs
  • Biologics-only platforms
  • Late-stage clinical programs

What a strong applicant looks like

A U.S. company with a working discovery platform, evidence of predictive performance, a credible plan for wet-lab demonstration (owned or through access), and a commercial thesis that does not depend on government funding to survive.

Indicative funding: milestone-based prototype agreements sized to the work proposed. The indicative range for Cohort 1 will be published at intake open.

Full challenge statement available at intake open.

VTCS-02

Low-SWaP Distributed Sensing with On-Device Edge AI

Advance low size, weight, and power (SWaP) distributed microsensors that detect and characterize chemical, biological, and environmental signals with on-device edge AI, operating with minimal infrastructure and reporting actionable information rather than raw data.

In scope

  • Miniaturized sensing modalities for chemical, biological, and environmental targets
  • On-device inference, classification, and anomaly detection
  • Low-power networking and distributed operation
  • Ruggedization and manufacturability
  • Commercial applications in environmental monitoring, public health, agriculture, industrial safety, and critical infrastructure

Out of scope

  • Cloud-dependent architectures with no on-device processing
  • Laboratory bench instruments
  • Sensing without a path to distributed field deployment

What a strong applicant looks like

A U.S. company with a functioning sensor or edge-AI stack, a defined dual-use market, and the ability to demonstrate detection performance (sensitivity and specificity) under realistic conditions.

Indicative funding: same structure as Challenge 1. Cohort 1 awards under Challenge 2 may follow Challenge 1 awards by roughly 30 days.

Full challenge statement available at intake open.

Applicants may respond to one or both challenges. Each challenge has its own application question set and its own expert review panel.

Who should apply

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:

  1. Confirm:

    Your company is organized in the United States and majority U.S.-owned and controlled.

  2. Confirm:

    You can disclose all sources of foreign investment or funding. Foreign ownership, control, or influence is evaluated during review and may be disqualifying.

  3. 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.

  4. Confirm:

    You have a demonstrable technology, not only a concept. Applicants self-rate technology readiness (a TRL reference is provided in the form).

  5. Confirm:

    You are willing to team or partner where the challenge calls for it.

  6. 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 you get

What selected companies receive.

  1. 01

    A prototype agreement

    A milestone-based prototype agreement funded through VEDDER, sized to the work proposed, with payments tied to demonstrated progress.

  2. 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.

  3. 03

    Structured diligence and commercialization pathing

    Independent review of your technology and business, a transition plan toward customers, and introductions to capital.

  4. 04

    Government proximity

    Education on requirements, validation and demonstration pathways, and how the sponsor evaluates and buys, delivered by people who have done it.

  5. 05

    A pathway to production

    Prototypes that succeed under VEDDER may be eligible for follow-on production opportunities.

  6. 06

    A national network

    Fellow cohort companies, mentors, investors, primes, research institutions, and economic-development partners across the D!NG ecosystem.

Process

From intake to agreement.

  1. 0112 October 2026

    Intake opens

    Eligibility screen, then a challenge-specific application (8 to 10 questions with character limits), plus a 1 to 2 page capability statement in any format. Progress saves automatically.

  2. 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.

  3. 03First half of November 2026

    Initial review

    D!NG and subject-matter experts screen all applications against the challenge criteria.

  4. 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.

  5. 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.

  6. 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

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 conversation

States 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.

FAQ

Questions, answered.

All questions
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.

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