Funding SMEs and Startups that develop products and services relevant to the local market needs.
The Product Development Fund (PDF) is a cost sharing fund wherein QSTP provides up to 50% of the total budget as a grant to encourage local startups and SMEs in the private sector to develop products and services relevant to local market needs.
The fund promotes new high-tech products and services and supports the commercialization of market-ready technologies.
What’s in it for you
Funding of up to 50% of the cost of your product or service proposal
Total funding value/project of up to QAR 1.2 million
Eligibility
Local SME or startup in the private sector, with at least 20% Qatari share ownership (individual or organization) and their active involvement in the development process (an SME is up to 249 employees and not listed on the stock exchange)
Must be a private sector SME, spinout, or startup
Engaged in the development of new products/services or processes relevant to local market needs
Willing to accelerate development of existing products by adding new features and to differentiate your product from the other competitors in the market place
Focus on one of our priority sectors: Energy, Environment, Healthcare, or ICT
Criteria for selection and selection committee
Intellectual Property (IP): QF will not assume ownership of new IP before, during or after (unless existing QF IP is involved in the project). New IP is always owned by the Awardee only (unless existing QF IP is involved in the project). At application time, Applicant company must confirm it owns or has already licensed any IP essential to carry out the project.
How to Apply
The application process to the Product Development Form is simple and iterative. At each phase you will be supported by the Product Development team which is here to help you maximizing your chances to submit a successful application.
The process could be detailed as follows:
- From this page, download the PDF Information and Application Pack that includes all the needed information, the application forms and other templates
- Contact the PDF team to request a meeting to discuss your ideas, project, proposal ([email protected]). Applications submitted before an introductory meeting will not be considered.
- Use the provided templates to write your draft application and submit it as Word documents (.docx) to the Product Development Fund team using this link: https://qstp.qgrants.org (Please do not submit .pdf format files but .docx files only except for the registration certificate that can be submitted as a .pdf file).
- The Product Development team will read and comment your draft in “redline mode” and will send it back to you including suggestions to improve your application.
- Steps 3 and 4 can be repeated as many times as needed for your application to be strong enough to be officially submitted.
- You submit the final version as an official application (that will be reviewed and assessed by the Product Development Fund Evaluation Committee).
If you would like to speak to someone from the PDF team, drop us a line at [email protected]
To download our information and application pack, click here.