Opportunity Overview
The Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning administers the Strengthening Mississippi Academic Research Through Business Act (SMART Business Act). The program is designed to stimulate private research and development through new research partnerships between qualifying investors and Mississippi public universities or university research corporations. Healthcare is one of the program’s three priority areas, together with energy and advanced manufacturing.
Funding
Approved applicants may receive a rebate equal to 25% of pre-approved qualified research costs, up to $1,000,000 per investor per fiscal year. The current IHL program page states total State of Mississippi funding support of $5,000,000 per fiscal year. This is a rebate structure rather than an up-front grant: the applicant must pay the university or research corporation for the qualified research and later submit proof of payment and the required rebate claim documentation to the Mississippi Department of Revenue.
Who Can Apply
Eligible applicants may include individuals, partnerships, LLCs, associations, corporations, business trusts and other business entities that were not formed specifically to acquire the rebate and that are subject to Mississippi income or franchise tax.
Required Application Materials
The electronic application requires applicant contact information and Tax ID, a Mississippi Department of Revenue letter certifying the applicant is current in its tax filings, a new signed research agreement with a Mississippi Institution of Higher Learning or affiliated research corporation, a description of the qualified research, and a university-approved research budget. Research that began before SMART application and approval is not eligible. The company name on the research agreement, payment and SMART application must match exactly.
Deadline and Review
Applications are accepted at any time throughout the year. The current IHL FAQ states applicants are notified in writing within 30 days of receipt. There is no fixed application deadline stated on the active program page.
Atlas Analysis
N9+ Fit Score: 92/100. Healthcare receives explicit priority consideration, and a properly designed university research agreement could legitimately evaluate the Nonagon N9+ remote physical examination platform in areas such as telehealth physical-exam concordance, rural or school-health workflows, usability, clinician workflow, diagnostic support, implementation science, or health-outcomes research. The research question and budget must be developed with the Mississippi university partner; Atlas should not invent or pre-commit a study design without that partner.
Dr. Miltie direct-pursuit status: Conditional / Needs Marc Review. Dr. Miltie, LLC is a plausible direct investor applicant, but eligibility is not yet verified because Atlas has not confirmed that Dr. Miltie is subject to Mississippi income or franchise tax or possesses the required Mississippi Department of Revenue current-filing certification letter. A new signed research agreement and approved budget with a Mississippi public university are also required before application. This should not be treated as a submission-ready direct application until those conditions are documented.
Potential Mississippi Research Partners
The official SMART Business Act contact list includes the University of Mississippi Medical Center, Mississippi State University, University of Mississippi, University of Southern Mississippi, Jackson State University, Alcorn State University, Delta State University, Mississippi University for Women and Mississippi Valley State University. For an N9+-focused healthcare validation project, UMMC is a particularly relevant institution to evaluate, subject to mutual research interest and appropriate study design.
Official source: Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning SMART Business Act program and application pages. Atlas verified September 10, 2026.