Doolittle Institute

What Doolittle Institute does

The Doolittle Institute (DI) is a non-profit corporation headquartered at 1140 E John Sims Pkwy #1, Niceville, Florida, operating as an Innovation Hub of Defensewerx Inc. Founded in 2013 with 11–50 employees, DI holds a Partnership Intermediary Agreement (PIA) with the Air Force Research Laboratory Air Warfare Directorate (AFRL/RA), under which it is the official facilitator of technology transfer between the lab, businesses, and academia. The organization is structured as a horizontal intermediary serving small non-traditional businesses, universities and research institutions, federal labs, and K–12 STEM participants.

DI's core offering is technology transfer facilitation executed through four formal federal mechanisms: Patent License Agreements (PLA), Cooperative Research & Development Agreements (CRADA), Educational Partnership Agreements (EPA), and Commercial Test Agreements (CTA), alongside Broad Agency Announcements (BAA) and SBIR/STTR program navigation. Around these mechanisms, DI runs a portfolio of events — assessment events, technology sprints, collaboration events, feasibility studies, technical showcases, industry days, and innovation discovery events — in both in-person and hybrid formats. Complementary products include the DI Tech Showcase series (e.g., Counter-UAS, Hypersonics Radomes), the DI Facility at below-market rates, the HubTalk Q&A video series, and AFRL/RA patent licensing support.

DI's revenue model rests on three streams: PIA government funding for intermediary services, facility-use fees charged below market rates under a published Facility Scheduling and Fee Policy, and non-refundable donations. As a 501(c)-style nonprofit without equity ownership, venture funding, or subsidiaries, DI does not sell software products, license proprietary IP, or generate transactional revenue; instead it monetizes its role as a sanctioned bridge between AFRL/RA and the commercial/academic innovation ecosystem in Northwest Florida. Marketing and outreach are conducted through its website, LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, email newsletter, and on-site/hybrid events.

Name

Doolittle Institute

Legal name

Doolittle Institute

Website

https://doolittleinstitute.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Doolittle Institute is a non-profit partnership intermediary that holds a Partnership Intermediary Agreement with the Air Force Research Laboratory Air Warfare Directorate, facilitating defense technology transfer to small businesses, academia, and industry while running STEM robotics programs in Northwest Florida.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Defense Technology Transfer Services

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Science, Technology & Innovation Administration (National R&D Policy) (BPAIAAAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Technical Committees, Working Groups & Expert Panels (BPADANAB)

Keywords

• Defense technology transfer
• Partnership intermediary services
• STEM workforce development
• Federal lab collaboration
• Small business defense innovation

Headquarters

HQ city

Niceville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Partnership Intermediary Agreement Services: DI operates under a Partnership Intermediary Agreement (PIA) with AFRL/RA to facilitate technology transfer. Revenue is derived from government funding to support these intermediary services.
2. Facility Use Fees: The Doolittle Institute provides community access to its facilities at significantly less than market rates. Fees are charged for facility use and are non-refundable once paid.
3. Donations: The organization accepts donations to support programs and services. Donations to the Doolittle Institute are non-cancellable and non-refundable.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Doolittle Institute (DI) operates under a Partnership Intermediary Agreement (PIA) with the Air Force Research Laboratory Air Warfare Directorate (AFRL/RA) to facilitate technology transfer between the federal lab and external partners including small businesses, industry, and academia. It delivers this through structured mechanisms (PLA, CRADA, EPA, CTA), hosted events (assessment events, technical showcases, feasibility studies, industry days), SBIR/STTR and Broad Agency Announcement support, and STEM workforce programs (FIRST LEGO League and FIRST Tech Challenge AeroCoast League) in Northwest Florida.

Product overview

The Doolittle Institute is an AFRL Innovation Hub operated by Defensewerx Inc. that provides a comprehensive ecosystem for technology transfer between the Air Force Research Laboratory Air Warfare Directorate (AFRL/RA) and external partners. The core offerings include Technology Transfer Services facilitated through various mechanisms (PLA, CRADA, EPA, CTA), event programs (Technical Showcases, Assessment Events, Industry Days, Collaboration Events), and STEM Outreach (FIRST LEGO League Challenge, FIRST Tech Challenge AeroCoast League). The institute operates a facility in Niceville, FL and supports small businesses through SBIR/STTR programs, BAA processes, and a curated resource network. The organization functions as a partnership intermediary rather than a traditional software product company.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Technology Transfer Services Partnership intermediation service that connects AFRL/RA with small businesses, industry, and academia through formal mechanisms including Patent License Agreements (PLA), Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADA), Educational Partnership Agreements (EPA), and Commercial Test Agreements (CTA). The service targets non-traditional small businesses and academic partners seeking structured access to AFRL/RA capabilities and IP.
• DI Facility Rental and Event Hosting Rental of the Doolittle Institute facility at 1140 E John Sims Pkwy #1, Niceville, FL 32578 to community users at below-market rates for event hosting, collaboration sessions, and hybrid meetings. Governed by the Facility Scheduling Policy and Facility Fee Policy, with non-refundable fees once paid.
• STEM Outreach Programs (FIRST LEGO League Challenge and AeroCoast FIRST Tech Challenge League) Regionally delivered STEM workforce development programs for K-12 students and schools in Northwest Florida. Includes the FIRST LEGO League Challenge AGE program (LEGO Spike Prime robots on themed playing fields) and the AeroCoast FIRST Tech Challenge League (head-to-head matches on 12'x12' fields with about 25 teams), designed to build the future STEM workforce pipeline for AFRL/RA.
• SBIR/STTR Support Support services helping small businesses navigate Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program opportunities with AFRL/RA, including guidance on submission processes and pathways to follow-on engagements.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability1 record

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Air Force Research Laboratory Air Warfare Directorate (AFRL/RA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Doolittle Institute operates under a Partnership Intermediary Agreement (PIA) with AFRL/RA to support the development and execution of AFRL's technology transfer strategy. DI facilitates partnerships that drive technology transfer between the Lab, businesses, and academia.
• Defensewerx Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Doolittle Institute is an Innovation Hub of Defensewerx Inc., a not-for-profit corporation. DI operates as part of the Defensewerx network of innovation hubs supporting defense technology transfer.
• One Okaloosa (Economic Development Council)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner supporting local economic development and innovation ecosystem in Okaloosa County, Florida.
• Destin-Fort Walton BeachminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner providing support for innovation ecosystem activities in the Destin-Fort Walton Beach area.
• University of West Florida (UWF)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner providing academic collaboration and research partnership opportunities for the DI ecosystem.
• Small Business Development Centers (SBDC)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner providing small business development resources and support for DI ecosystem participants.
• AFLCMC (Air Force Life Cycle Management Center)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates with DI on industry days and technology transfer events, particularly for weapons systems and munitions programs (e.g., Ordnance Concepts Industry Day, Weapons Electrical Power and Battery S&T Industry Day).

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• AFWERX: Air Force innovation hub that, like the Doolittle Institute, accelerates technology transfer, engages non-traditional vendors, and funds Air Force-aligned R&D and small business programs. Highly comparable mission and GTM model, with broader Air Force scope.
• MD5 (National Security Technology Accelerator): DoD technology accelerator that helps non-traditional vendors prototype and transition technology into defense programs. Comparable mission of bridging small business innovation with DoD end-users, but with a national scope.
• SOFWERX: A Defensewerx-affiliated innovation hub (sister organization to DI) that facilitates technology transfer and collaboration between USSOCOM and industry/academia using the same partnership-intermediary model.
• NavalX: Navy tech transfer and innovation intermediary that connects naval R&D priorities with non-traditional vendors, startups, and academia — directly parallel to DI's AFRL/RA facilitation role but for the naval services.
• TechConnect: Defense and federal innovation network that runs innovation discovery events, showcases, and matchmaking between government labs and industry — closely parallel to DI's Tech Showcase and assessment events.

Others

• FIRST: Parent non-profit of the FIRST LEGO League and FIRST Tech Challenge robotics programs that DI manages regionally — a key ecosystem partner for DI's STEM pipeline rather than a competitor.
• Defensewerx Inc. Parent non-profit network that operates DI and sister hubs (e.g., SOFWERX). Comparable operating model and shared infrastructure, but functions as the umbrella organization rather than a single directorate's PIA holder.

Emerging players

• Riverside Research: Non-profit, employee-owned scientific research organization that supports AFRL and the IC with R&D services, providing a comparable non-profit/AFRL-facing operating model though with a direct research rather than intermediary focus.

Broad incumbents

• Defense Innovation Unit (DIU): DoD organization that contracts commercial technology for defense applications, often overlapping with the small business and dual-use vendor pool that DI engages via CRADAs and PLAs.
• Battelle: Large non-profit R&D organization managing federal labs and operating CRADA-style partnerships with government sponsors; relevant comparably to DI's intermediary role but at a much larger, national scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@DoolittleInstitute
• Facebookfacebook.com/doolittle-institute-790304544328496
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/15644654
• Xx.com/doolittleinst

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Doolittle Institute