Polyplexus Pilot | DARPA RA 18 01

Opportunity Information: Apply for DARPA RA 18 01

The Polyplexus Pilot is a DARPA Defense Sciences Office (DSO) initiative meant to test a faster, more connected way of shaping early-stage science ideas into competitive basic research proposals. Instead of the usual slow cycle of networking, concept development, and proposal drafting, this pilot is set up to use modern connectivity tools and structured engagement to quickly identify promising research directions and then translate those directions into formal proposal submissions. DARPA's stated goal is not only to run the pilot, but also to fund some of the proposals that come out of it, meaning participation can be a pathway toward a DARPA-supported basic research award.

The technical focus is intentionally broad but firmly aimed at high-risk, high-reward basic research. DARPA emphasizes that the desired outcomes are proposals that explore innovative approaches capable of producing revolutionary advances in science, devices, or systems. In practical terms, this means the program is looking for ideas that could change what is possible or open up entirely new capabilities, rather than projects that mainly fine-tune or incrementally improve current methods. Proposals centered on evolutionary improvements to the existing state of practice are explicitly excluded, which is DARPA's way of signaling that novelty and potential for step-change impact are core evaluation themes.

Eligibility for participating in the pilot is restricted to scientists and researchers at educational institutions. The typical participants are faculty members and postdoctoral researchers, but the opportunity also allows graduate students and undergraduate researchers to be involved, as long as they are conducting original scientific or technical research under the supervision of a faculty member or postdoc. While the pilot participation itself is limited to academia, the opportunity also notes that, subject to specific requirements referenced in the announcement (Section I.C.), responsible sources capable of meeting the government need may submit proposals for DARPA consideration. The listing categorizes eligible applicants as "Others," but the narrative makes clear that the pilot component is academically focused.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity is issued by DARPA's Defense Sciences Office under Funding Opportunity Number DARPA RA 18 01. The funding instrument type is a cooperative agreement, which generally implies a more collaborative relationship with the government than a standard grant, with DARPA potentially having substantial involvement during the performance of the funded work. The activity category is Science and Technology and other Research and Development, with CFDA number 12.910. The posting indicates an award ceiling of $100,000 and lists the expected number of awards without a specified value in the provided data. The opportunity was created on March 6, 2018, and had an original closing date of July 20, 2018.

Overall, the Polyplexus Pilot is best understood as a DARPA experiment in accelerating the front end of basic research funding: rapidly connecting researchers, quickly maturing nascent concepts into credible research pathways, and producing proposal submissions that target breakthrough advances rather than incremental progress, with the prospect that DARPA will fund a subset of the strongest proposals generated through the pilot process.

• The DARPA - Defense Sciences Office in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Polyplexus Pilot" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.910.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2018-03-06.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2018-07-20. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $100,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for DARPA RA 18 01

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