Technology area

Neural interface

230 funded awards, $140.5M total, FY2023-FY2025.

Data current as of 2026-05-11

Pattern read

Neural interface is a focused tag at 230 records / $140M. NINDS leads with 43 (motor and sensory restoration work), NIMH at 40 (closed-loop psychiatric devices, deep-brain stimulation), and NIA at 29 (cognitive interfaces, dementia-relevant). Median award is $499K, near the dataset median. Concentration is higher than most tags at 9.6%; a smaller pool of specialized firms appears repeatedly. STTR (R41 at 36) participation is notable. R44/R43 ratio is roughly 2:1.

Fit indicators

Three-IC anchor (NINDS, NIMH, NIA). Indication-specific framing is mandatory; 'neural interface platform' framing has historically been weak.
Strong STTR presence; academic-engineering structures have been viable.

Watchouts

Concentration is higher than average (~10% top three). The field is specialized; new entrants need a clear differentiator.
Reviewers in this space have specific device-experience expectations. Generic ML or engineering teams without neuroscience grounding have not fared well.

Where the money sat, by Institute / Center

IC funding decisions are set by portfolio priorities, NOFO scope, and program-officer judgment. These are funded records, not predictions of future funding.

IC	Name	Records	Median award
NS (NINDS)	National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke	43	$485,026
MH (NIMH)	National Institute of Mental Health	40	$834,470
AG (NIA)	National Institute on Aging	29	$499,961
DC (NIDCD)	National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders	26	$307,417
GM (NIGMS)	National Institute of General Medical Sciences	16	$915,555
HL (NHLBI)	National Heart Lung and Blood Institute	15	$488,080
HD (NICHD)	Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development	11	$876,333
DA (NIDA)	National Institute on Drug Abuse	10	$359,869
AI (NIAID)	National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases	9	$298,938
EY (NEI)	National Eye Institute	8	$344,089
CA (NCI)	National Cancer Institute	5	$709,898
DK (NIDDK)	National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases	5	$854,130
HG (NHGRI)	National Human Genome Research Institute	3	$1,107,445
AA (NIAAA)	National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism	2	$402,766
ES (NIEHS)	National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences	2	$422,812
OD	NIH Office of the Director	1	$416,925
MD (NIMHD)	National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities	1	$5,080
NR (NINR)	National Institute of Nursing Research	1	$284,317
AT (NCCIH)	National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health	1	$241,102
EB (NIBIB)	National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering	1	$305,000
AR (NIAMS)	National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases	1	$745,511

FOA / NOFO routes

Opportunity number prefixes: PA = Parent Announcement (broad, omnibus, multiple ICs), PAR = Parent with Special Review, PAS = Parent with set-aside funds, RFA = Request for Applications (targeted, single-IC, fixed budget). Status unknown means the pipeline has not verified whether the FOA is currently posting awards; the SBIR omnibus has been in reauthorization gap during this window. See the glossary for full definitions.

Opportunity	Status	Records
PA-22-176	unknown	29
PA-23-230	unknown	26
PA-21-259	unknown	16
PA-22-178	unknown	12
PA-24-245	unknown	10
PA-21-260	unknown	8
PA-24-247	unknown	8
PA-21-262	unknown	8
PA-22-177	unknown	7
PAS-22-196	unknown	7
PA-20-272	unknown	7
PAR-21-266	unknown	7
PA-20-260	unknown	6
PA-21-345	unknown	6
PA-23-233	unknown	5
PA-20-262	unknown	4
PA-23-232	unknown	4
PA-24-246	unknown	4
PAR-22-073	unknown	4
PAS-19-316	unknown	4
PA-23-231	unknown	3
PA-18-871	unknown	3
PAR-18-801	unknown	2
RFA-NS-20-010	unknown	2
RFA-MD-22-004	unknown	2
PAR-23-311	expired	2
PAS-22-197	unknown	2
PA-22-179	unknown	2
RFA-DA-22-001	unknown	2
RFA-AG-22-014	unknown	2
PAR-21-114	unknown	2
PA-19-272	unknown	2
PA-18-573	unknown	2
PAR-24-044	expired	1
RFA-AA-24-001	unknown	1
RFA-CA-24-023	unknown	1
PA-25-212	unknown	1
PA-24-248	unknown	1
RFA-MD-23-003	unknown	1
PAR-23-213	unknown	1
RFA-NS-23-006	unknown	1
PA-18-591	unknown	1
RFA-DA-19-020	unknown	1
PA-18-566	unknown	1
PAS-19-317	unknown	1
PA-18-870	unknown	1
PAR-19-333	unknown	1
PA-20-265	unknown	1
PA-18-574	unknown	1
RFA-ES-21-005	unknown	1
RFA-NS-20-011	unknown	1
RFA-DA-23-020	unknown	1
RFA-DA-23-021	unknown	1

Comparable funded projects

ApplID	FY	IC	Title	Organization	Amount
10933016	2025	CA	Validation of a lab-free low-cost screening test for prevention of cervical cancer: automated visual evaluation	DL ANALYTICS, LLC	$709,898
11004965	2025	DC	Open Source Hearing Assessment System for Open Science	CREARE, LLC	$1,174,451
11017717	2025	MH	Scaling Volumetric Imaging, Analysis and Science Communication Using Immersive Virtual Reality	ISTOVISR	$1,196,536
11042227	2025	MH	XCSITE 300: Cloud-Enabled Closed-Loop Transcranial Current Stimulation Device for At-Home Studies	PULVINAR NEURO LLC	$1,018,838
11052557	2025	DC	Device to Deliver Intra-Operative Therapeutic Hypothermia for Hearing Preservation in Cochlear Implantation	RESTOREAR DEVICES, LLC	$329,169
11053642	2025	NS	Development and Evaluation of Computerized Chemosensory-Based Orbitofrontal Networks Training for Treatment of Pain (CBOT-P)	EVON MEDICS, LLC	$1,280,870
11067358	2025	AA	Study of Transcutaneous Auricular Neurostimulation as a Treatment for Alcohol Use Disorder	SPARK BIOMEDICAL INC	$305,545
11067689	2025	MH	Validation of next-generation TMS system optimizing for widely scalable, personalized treatment of depression	AMPA INC.	$1,199,261

Review panels that have appeared on these records

Panel names use NIH's Center for Scientific Review (CSR) format: a 2-4 letter study-section code plus a meeting-cycle number in parentheses (e.g. ISB (12) = Instrumentation and Systems Development, cycle 12). SBIR/STTR review groups are temporary, meeting-specific bodies. The names below describe panels that have appeared on the cited funded-project records, not where future applications get assigned. NIH assigns panels at the time of submission based on the application content.

NV (10) 26 records
ETTN (10) 18 records
NV (12) 17 records
NV (13) 14 records
ETTN (13) 12 records
ETTN (12) 9 records
CCHI (10) 8 records CSR page →
MCST (10) 6 records
SRB (15) 6 records
ETTN (14) 5 records
IVBH (10) 5 records CSR page →
BP (10) 5 records
MCST (12) 4 records CSR page →
ISB (11) 4 records CSR page →
MCST (15) 4 records
AIDC (10) 4 records
DCAI (12) 3 records CSR page →
JT (A1) 3 records
HSS (10) 3 records CSR page →
DKUS (10) 3 records
SCIL (10) 3 records CSR page →
SBIB (10) 2 records
RCCS (11) 2 records CSR page →
AN (11) 2 records CSR page →
ERB (05) 2 records
DCAI (10) 2 records CSR page →
MOSS (11) 2 records
OTC (12) 2 records
TXT (14) 2 records
MCST (14) 2 records
ZIJ (M3) 2 records
ISB (12) 2 records CSR page →
ETTN (11) 2 records
RPHB (12) 2 records
CDPT (14) 1 records
GG (44) 1 records
TCRB (J2) 1 records
BP (11) 1 records
SRB (27) 1 records
MCST (56) 1 records
MBBC (10) 1 records CSR page →
EMS (10) 1 records CSR page →
IVBH (11) 1 records CSR page →
GXM (15) 1 records
BST (10) 1 records
IMST (10) 1 records
RPHB (11) 1 records
BBBP (12) 1 records
VH (10) 1 records
ETTN (16) 1 records
QL (R4) 1 records
ISB (10) 1 records CSR page →
CVRS (11) 1 records
RPHB (16) 1 records
GXM (M2) 1 records
BBBT (10) 1 records CSR page →
SAI (A1) 1 records

Limitations

RePORTER includes funded projects only, not unfunded applications.
Panel sidebar reflects panels that have appeared on funded records, not future assignment.
FOA-route status reflects verification at the timestamp shown.
Tag 'neural_interface' is a Cada controlled-vocabulary tag; see methodology for definitions.