What Researchnb does

ResearchNB is a non-profit provincial research funding organization based in New Brunswick, Canada, formed around 2022 through the consolidation of the former New Brunswick Health Research Foundation (NBHRF) and related research functions of the New Brunswick Innovation Foundation (NBIF). It serves as the provincial conduit for publicly funded research grants, disbursing competitive awards across five priority sectors: health, energy, forestry, oceans, and agriculture, with ICT/Data & AI positioned as a cross-cutting enabling sector.

The organization administers a portfolio of approximately 16 funding programs, including the recently launched Dual-Use Technology Challenge, and processes applications through the SurveyMonkey Apply online portal. Eligible applicants are drawn from 15+ New Brunswick institutions, with co-funding and partnership structures linking researchers to provincial government priorities, federal funding programs, and private-sector partners.

ResearchNB's business model is that of a public-purpose intermediary: it does not sell products or services, but rather operates on the basis of an annual appropriation from the Province of New Brunswick, distributing grant funds to researchers, administering peer review, and convening the NB research community through events such as an annual Health Research Symposium. Revenue mechanics are therefore appropriations-driven rather than market-driven, and the organization's growth is bounded by the provincial fiscal cycle rather than competitive sales.

Name

Researchnb

Legal name

ResearchNB

Website

https://researchnb.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Short description

ResearchNB is a New Brunswick non-profit that distributes provincial research grants across health, energy, forestry, oceans, agriculture, and ICT/Data & AI. It is funded by the Province of New Brunswick and serves researchers at the province's eligible institutions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Research Funding and Grant Administration

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Research & Science Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAI)

Keywords

• Research funding programs
• Competitive grant administration
• Provincial research investment
• Research ecosystem support
• Knowledge mobilization

Headquarters

HQ city

Fredericton

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Research Funding Disbursements: ResearchNB receives government funding (primarily from the Province of New Brunswick) and disburses it as competitive grants to researchers and research teams across five priority sectors. The organization itself is funded through provincial appropriations and acts as the intermediary funder.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

ResearchNB is New Brunswick's provincial research funding organization that administers competitive grant programs across five priority sectors (Health, Energy, Forestry, Oceans, Agriculture) and three enabling sectors (Advanced Manufacturing, ICT, Data & AI). It receives government appropriations (primarily from the Province of New Brunswick) and disburses them as competitive grants to researchers and research teams at eligible institutions, following external peer/expert review processes. The organization also supports knowledge mobilization through events, sponsorships, and impact storytelling.

Product overview

ResearchNB is a provincial research funding organization that operates as a platform-plus-programs model, offering funding programs across five priority sectors (Health, Energy, Forestry, Oceans, Agriculture) and three enabling sectors (Advanced manufacturing, ICT, Data & AI). The core offering consists of multiple funding programs including the Impact Fund, Ideas Advancement Fund, Research Professional Fund, Bridging Fund, Academic Start-Up Fund, Student Support Fund, CFI Matching Fund, Equipment and Infrastructure Support Fund, Partnerships for Social Innovation Fund, and Clinical Fellowships. Additional specialized programs include the Public Health Research Fund (in partnership with Department of Health), Challenges Program (including Dual-Use Technology Challenge), and Choosing Wisely New Brunswick Challenge. The organization also runs the annual Health Research Symposium and offers Research in Action Sponsorship for knowledge mobilization. All applications are processed through an online portal (SurveyMonkey Apply).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Impact Fund Funds initiatives that drive large-scale, transformative impacts in ResearchNB priority sectors, focusing on mobilizing scientific findings for implementation in policy, programs, or industry.
• Ideas Advancement Fund Funds early-stage research with potential to advance knowledge and catalyze impact across priority and/or enabling sectors, supporting researchers from fundamental inquiry to early prototype development.
• Research Professional Fund Supports hiring of research professionals in progressive leadership roles within New Brunswick research teams, with awards up to $70k per position for 1 year.
• Bridging Fund Helps researchers with strong meritorious proposals move closer to securing large-scale federal research funding by providing targeted assistance to those not successful in an initial federal application or multi-year renewal.
• Academic Start-Up Fund Attracts and retains high-caliber early career researchers through funding to accelerate initiation of research programs contributing to advancing knowledge and research impact in ResearchNB priority sectors.
• Student Support Fund Supports researchers in hiring college, medical, undergraduate, and graduate students to work in research-focused roles providing meaningful and engaging experiences.
• CFI Matching Fund

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $8.5M in new research funding launched in 2025 to support New Brunswick researchers
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

24 partnerships are on record, tiered core, secondary and minor.

• Maritime SPOR Support Unit (MSSU)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMSSU is listed as a Funding Partner and collaborator on the Partners page. MSSU supports patient-oriented research across Atlantic Canada and aligns with ResearchNB's health research funding mission. The partnership supports collaborative research initiatives in health.
• Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR-IRSC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCIHR is Canada's federal health research funding agency. ResearchNB collaborates with CIHR to co-fund health research in New Brunswick, and CIHR funding can serve as leverage for ResearchNB grant applications. Several funded researchers (e.g., Thomas Pulinilkunnil) received CIHR grants with support from ResearchNB.
• Université de SherbrookesecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversité de Sherbrooke is listed among funding partners. Dr. Saïd Mekari holds an appointment as Associate Professor in Family Medicine at Université de Sherbrooke while directing research at the Centre de Formation Médicale du Nouveau-Brunswick, enabling cross-provincial research collaboration.
• Heart & Stroke Foundation NBsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a Funding Partner. Heart & Stroke NB co-funded research projects alongside ResearchNB (e.g., Thomas Pulinilkunnil's CIHR project), supporting cardiovascular and stroke research in New Brunswick.
• Dalhousie Medicine New BrunswickcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a Funding Partner and Eligible Institution. Dalhousie Medicine NB is a key research institution in the province, with researchers such as Thomas Pulinilkunnil and Dr. Paul Atkinson conducting funded research. Dr. Atkinson serves as Assistant Dean Research and Chief Scientific Officer at Horizon Health.
• Université de MonctoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversité de Moncton is listed as both a Funding Partner and an Eligible Institution. Multiple funded researchers are based there including Dr. Alain Patoine (biology, Université de Moncton Shippagan), Dr. Francis LeBlanc (Associate VP Research), and the AgroGene Solutions startup team (Dr. Pascale Michaud et al.).
• University of New Brunswick (UNB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUNB is an Eligible Institution and one of New Brunswick's major research universities. Funded researchers include Dr. Olga Palazhchenko (Centre for Nuclear Energy Research), Dr. Brynle Barrett (quantum sensors), and Dr. Kush Bubbar (Sys-MoDEL lab). UNB's VP Research, Dr. David I. MaGee, serves on the ResearchNB Board of Directors.
• Vitalité Health NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as both a Funding Partner and an Eligible Institution. Vitalité is one of New Brunswick's two regional health authorities. Brigitte Sonier-Ferguson, VP Learning Health System at Vitalité, serves on the ResearchNB Board. The network supports clinician researcher positions and health research.
• Horizon Health NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as an Eligible Institution. Horizon is New Brunswick's larger regional health authority. Jennifer Sheils (VP Strategy, Transformation & CIO) serves on the ResearchNB Board. Dr. Paul Atkinson serves as Chief Scientific Officer at Horizon Health. The network supports health research and clinical fellowships.
• Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a Collaboration Partner. ACOA is the federal economic development agency for Atlantic Canada. It co-invests in Northern NB research projects (e.g., Belledune Port Authority energy hub development referenced in Dr. Patoine's water quality research) and provides leverage funding for ResearchNB-supported research.
• Government of New Brunswick (GNB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a Collaboration Partner. GNB is ResearchNB's primary funder and the source of provincial research investment mandates. Multiple GNB departments (Health, PETL) partner with ResearchNB on specific funding programs. GNB observers (Hemant Kumar, Lee Burry) sit on the ResearchNB Board.
• New Brunswick Innovation Foundation (NBIF)secondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a Collaboration Partner. NBIF is New Brunswick's other major research funder alongside ResearchNB (legacy organization reference). Jeff White, CEO of NBIF, sits on the ResearchNB Board as an observer. NBIF legacy awards cannot be used as leverage for ResearchNB applications.
• Biogas NBminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a Collaboration Partner. Biogas NB supports agricultural research related to biogas production from farm manure, supporting sustainability in the agriculture sector and reducing agricultural GHG emissions.
• Research & Productivity Council (RPC)secondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as both a Collaboration Partner and Eligible Institution. RPC is a New Brunswick applied research institute. Dr. Diane Botelho, CEO of RPC, serves on the ResearchNB Board. RPC supports industry-focused research across sectors.
• Mount Allison UniversitysecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as an Eligible Institution on the Partners page. Mount Allison is a primarily undergraduate liberal arts university in Sackville, NB, eligible to receive ResearchNB funding for researcher and student support programs.
• St. Thomas UniversitysecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as an Eligible Institution on the Partners page. St. Thomas University in Fredericton is eligible for ResearchNB funding. Dr. Carey Watt, AVP Research at St. Thomas, serves on the ResearchNB Board.
• Huntsman Marine Science CentresecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as both a Collaboration Partner and Eligible Institution. Huntsman Marine in St. Andrews, NB supports ocean and marine research aligned with ResearchNB's Oceans priority sector.
• New Brunswick Community College (NBCC)secondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as an Eligible Institution on the Partners page. NBCC's campuses across New Brunswick are eligible for ResearchNB funding, particularly for student support and applied research programs.
• Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick (CCNB)secondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as an Eligible Institution on the Partners page. CCNB's campuses and CCNB-INNOV network support applied research and are eligible for ResearchNB funding programs.
• Marine Institute (Memorial University)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a Collaboration Partner. The Marine Institute (mi.mun.ca) supports ocean sector research and is involved in fisheries sustainability and marine training initiatives relevant to NB's Oceans priority sector.
• ValorèsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as both a Collaboration Partner and Eligible Institution. Valorès is a New Brunswick research institute focused on industrial research, eligible to receive ResearchNB funding.
• Northern Hardwoods Research InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as an Eligible Institution on the Partners page. The institute supports forestry research aligned with ResearchNB's Forestry priority sector.
• Atlantic Cancer Research InstitutesecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as an Eligible Institution on the Partners page. ACRI in Moncton conducts cancer biomarker and biomedical research. Dr. Stephen Lewis, Scientific Director of ACRI, serves on the ResearchNB Board as Chair of the Research Advisory Committee.
• Centre de formation médicale du Nouveau-Brunswick (CFMNB)secondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as an Eligible Institution on the Partners page. CFMNB in Moncton supports medical education and health research training in New Brunswick. Dr. Saïd Mekari serves as Director of Research at CFMNB.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• New Brunswick Innovation Foundation (NBIF): NBIF is the parallel provincial research and innovation funder in New Brunswick. It remains a separate organization even after ResearchNB's 2022 formation from the legacy NBHRF and NBIF, making it the most directly comparable peer and a direct competitor for provincial research dollars and researcher relationships within the same small provincial ecosystem.
• Michael Smith Health Research BC: MSFHR (formerly MSFHR) is British Columbia's health research funding agency with a near-identical mandate to ResearchNB's health priority sector: distributing competitive grants, fellowships, and trainee awards to BC researchers while connecting government, academia, and health authorities. Comparable in scope, program design, and provincial funding model.
• Research Manitoba: Research Manitoba is Manitoba's provincial research funding body, offering grants, fellowships, and awards across health, natural sciences, and social sciences. Mirrors ResearchNB's role as the consolidated provincial research funder, with similar priorities in connecting government, academia, and health authorities to drive provincial research capacity.
• Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation (SHRF): SHRF is Saskatchewan's provincial health research funding agency, funding researchers, building capacity, and connecting stakeholders to improve health outcomes. Directly comparable to ResearchNB's health priority sector mandate, with a similar scale of operations and provincial government funding base.

Regional players

• Genome Canada: Genome Canada is a national funder of genomics and bioscience research, co-investing with provincial partners including organizations like ResearchNB. While not a direct competitor (national vs. provincial mandate), it represents a comparable model of large-scale, peer-reviewed research funding with co-investment logic.

Broad incumbents

• Mitacs: Mitacs is a national Canadian research funding organization that runs flagship internship and acceleration programs linking academia with industry. While federally oriented rather than provincial, it operates in the same space of funding researcher-industry collaboration and is a comparable model for program structure and review processes.
• Alberta Innovates: Alberta Innovates is a much larger provincial research and innovation funding corporation operating across health, energy, environment, agriculture, and technology. Broader and more established than ResearchNB, it offers an instructive comparable for how a provincial funder scales its portfolio and programs over time.
• Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI): CFI funds research infrastructure and equipment across Canadian institutions and is referenced by ResearchNB's own CFI Matching Fund program. As the federal infrastructure counterpart to ResearchNB's funding mission, it is a meaningful comparable for program design and government co-investment models.
• Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC): NSERC is Canada's federal funding agency for natural sciences and engineering research. While national in scope, it operates an analogous grant model (Discovery Grants, research partnerships) and serves as a natural downstream target for the kinds of NB-based researchers ResearchNB funds through its bridging and partnership programs.
• Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR-IRSC): CIHR is Canada's federal health research funding agency and an active co-funding partner of ResearchNB. While federal rather than provincial, it is closely comparable in its grant program structure, peer-review model, and strategic role in funding research at Canadian institutions.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Researchnb