NSF Convergence Accelerator Phases 1 and 2 for the 2023 Cohort - Tracks K, L, M | 23 590

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The NSF Convergence Accelerator Phases 1 and 2 for the 2023 Cohort (Tracks K, L, and M) is a National Science Foundation grant opportunity designed to push research beyond the lab and into real-world use. The program is built around "use-inspired convergence research," meaning teams are expected to combine expertise across multiple disciplines and sectors (for example, engineering plus social science plus computing, alongside public or private end-users) to tackle large, national-scale problems. A defining feature is that NSF does not just fund research activities in the traditional sense; it also funds and requires structured innovation practices such as human-centered design, user discovery, and team science so that projects are shaped by real needs, real constraints, and a clear pathway to adoption.

This solicitation is the NSF pathway intended primarily for proposals led by non-profit and academic-style organizations such as Institutions of Higher Education, non-profits, independent museums, observatories, research laboratories, professional societies, and similar entities. In parallel, NSF also issued a corresponding Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) meant for proposals led by for-profit organizations; the solicitation notes that the BAA link would be provided separately. In other words, the opportunity is split into two complementary routes so that non-academic and academic-adjacent organizations can apply under this solicitation, while companies typically apply through the BAA.

The Convergence Accelerator uses a two-phase structure. Phase 1 is essentially a highly supported development and validation stage where teams refine the problem framing, strengthen partnerships, and produce a proof-of-concept that demonstrates the idea is feasible and positioned for real-world impact. Phase 2 is the build-and-launch stage where teams receive substantially larger support to develop deliverable prototypes, validate them with users, and create a sustainability plan so the solution can continue to have impact after NSF funding ends. Importantly, only Phase 1 awardees are eligible to submit a Phase 2 proposal, so entry into Phase 2 is gated by progress, learning, and outcomes from Phase 1.

For the 2023 cohort, the solicitation targets three specific track themes. Track K, "Equitable Water Solutions," focuses on developing viable solutions to challenges involving water quality, water quantity, and water equity. Projects are expected to build on advances in areas like environmental science, geosciences, engineering, computing, and the social and behavioral sciences, recognizing that water challenges are technical, infrastructural, regulatory, and community-centered all at once. The intent is not only improved water technologies or models, but solutions that actually work in diverse settings and address inequities in access, safety, affordability, and resilience.

Track L, "Real-World Chemical Sensing Applications," aims to accelerate the development of novel biological and chemical sensing systems that are energy-efficient and miniaturized or portable, with clear tangible applications. This track is oriented toward sensors that can operate outside ideal lab environments, where size, cost, power consumption, robustness, and usability matter. Teams are expected to connect sensing innovations to practical deployment contexts and stakeholder needs, rather than stopping at a promising sensing mechanism or prototype that is not designed for field conditions.

Track M, "Bio-Inspired Design Innovations," is organized around translating principles from nature into new concepts, approaches, and technologies that can "build and control in the same way nature does." The premise is that biological systems represent millions of years of evolution and optimization, and that learning from their structures and processes can unlock new solutions to major societal and economic challenges. This track expects tight integration across disciplines and practitioners, because success depends on bridging biological insight with materials, manufacturing, control, computing, and real deployment pathways. The solicitation also emphasizes that proposed work must be integrated and clearly aligned with the overarching track goal, rather than a set of loosely related subprojects.

Across all tracks, NSF expects proposals to show how the work contributes to a broader integrated environment for the track, producing beneficial outputs that fit together and reinforce each other. Teams need to demonstrate convergence in practice: clear roles across disciplines and sectors, a unified set of deliverables, and an impact pathway that is bigger than any one component. Proposals should make it obvious how partners, end-users, and stakeholders are engaged and how their input shapes both the problem definition and the solution design.

A Letter of Intent (LOI) is required before a Phase 1 full proposal can be submitted. The LOI is used to confirm that the team has the right mix of disciplinary and cross-sector expertise to execute a convergence effort, and it must identify one or more anticipated deliverables, explain how those outputs could drive societal impact at scale, and describe the team that will be assembled to achieve that outcome. The Phase 1 full proposal then expands this into a deliverables-focused research plan and a team formation plan, aiming to reach a proof-of-concept during Phase 1.

Funding and timelines are substantial and structured. Phase 1 awards can be up to $750,000 over 12 months. Of that year, about nine months are described as intensive, hands-on participation in the program's innovation curriculum, and the remaining three months include other required activities such as participation in NSF Convergence Accelerator Pitch Presentations. During Phase 1, teams receive curriculum support in areas like human-centered design, user discovery, team science, and partnership integration, and they are paired with coaches who support the team through Phase 1 and may continue with them into Phase 2 (teams can also request a different coach for Phase 2).

Phase 2 awards can be as large as $5,000,000 for a 24-month period and must be framed around a clear 24-month research-and-development plan that transitions the work into practice. Phase 2 proposals must spell out specific deliverables achievable within those two years, along with the partnerships necessary to produce them and get them adopted. This includes explicit roles for end-users and multi-sector partners such as industry, universities, non-profits, and government entities. Phase 2 funding is provided with a performance checkpoint: teams are funded initially for 12 months, and continuation into the second year depends on a progress assessment tied to agreed milestones and deliverables. NSF anticipates roughly four check-in meetings during the year with program staff, and at the end of year one teams undergo an overall review based on a report and a presentation to a panel of NSF staff and/or external reviewers. The program is strict about timelines: teams are expected to complete within 24 months, and no-cost extensions are generally not allowed except in well-documented exceptional circumstances that must be discussed with the NSF Program Officer.

The opportunity also places a strong emphasis on broadening participation and ensuring that the expertise and benefits of the work extend broadly. NSF explicitly encourages proposals from, and partnerships with, minority-serving institutions, aligning with the program's stated commitment to research that benefits everyone and draws from diverse communities and institutions.

Key administrative details in the posted opportunity include: Funding Opportunity Number 23-590; agency is the National Science Foundation; instrument type is a grant; activity category is science and technology and other research and development; CFDA number 47.084; the original closing date listed is August 22, 2023; and the posting references an expected 48 awards (with the award ceiling not stated as a single fixed number in the header, because Phase 1 and Phase 2 have different maximums described in the narrative).

• The National Science Foundation in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NSF Convergence Accelerator Phases 1 and 2 for the 2023 Cohort - Tracks K, L, M" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 47.084.
• This funding opportunity was created on May 13, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 22, 2023. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 48 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

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