Key points
The Innovation Team works with internal and external initiatives to promote innovative solutions to public health challenges. Learn how the Team's partnerships and programs seek to break new ground on a variety of scientific fronts.
What we do
The Innovation Team promotes the testing and implementation of innovative ideas across the agency through a variety of programs and initiatives. This team promotes and facilitates solutions and new approaches to public health challenges through a variety of activities including:
- Coordinating CDC's Small Business Innovation Research Program which funds U.S.-based small businesses to engage in Federal Research/Research and Development (R/R&D) with the potential for technology commercialization. CDC's SBIR Program targets innovations in diagnostics, data science (e.g., artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning), surveillance, occupational safety and health, and public health.
- Managing a collaboration with Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) to accelerate data science for public health impact and find solutions to data challenges.
- Facilitating innovative solutions to scientific and public health problems through open innovation tools such as citizen science, crowdsourcing, challenges, and contests.
CDC's Innovation Team helps CDC programs explore these tools and approaches through technical assistance, consultation, and access to challenge platforms.
Our impact
This team promotes and facilitates solutions and new approaches to public health challenges through a variety of activities.
Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program
CDC coordinates the Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR). This program funds U.S.-based small businesses for federal research and development with potential for technology commercialization.
The SBIR program focuses on innovations in:
- Diagnostics.
- Data science (including artificial intelligence and machine learning).
- Surveillance.
- Occupational safety.
- Public health.
Collaboration
In October 2019, CDC launched a collaboration with Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI). The goal is to boost data science for public health and to solve data challenges.
Tools
The Innovation Team uses tools like citizen science, crowdsourcing, challenges, and contests to address scientific and public health problems. The team helps CDC programs explore these tools through technical assistance, consultation, and access to challenge platforms.