Open vs. Conventional SBIR/STTR Topics
The Government Accountability Office’s September 2025 report, Small Business Research Programs: Clearer Guidance Could Improve Award Data to More Effectively Measure Outcomes (GAO-25-107942), led by Hilary M. Benedict and colleagues, offers a timely examination of how “open” versus “conventional” topics are used across SBIR and STTR—and why imprecision in those labels now distorts outcome measurement. For contractors, the headline is twofold: open topics now represent roughly half of FY 2023 awards and dollars (about $2.2 billion), and agency-by-agency inconsistency in what “open” and “conventional” mean can directly shape capture strategy, teaming, bid probability, and expectations about time to award.
GAO finds that open topics tend to heighten competition—lower acceptance rates and more first-time applicants and awardees—because they cast a wider net. That dynamic is a signal to incumbents and frequent proposers that differentiation and problem framing matter more than ever: the burden falls on offerors to persuasively map their technology to an agency mission need that may be only loosely articulated in the solicitation. For new entrants, the same dynamic is an opportunity—open topics historically have been one of the surest on-ramps to obtain a first Phase I award—but the bar for clarity of use case, stakeholder identification, and commercialization path is rising.
At the same time, GAO shows there is no simple, government-wide pattern in downstream outcomes besides the competition effect. Nontraditional participation varies by agency and topic type; speed to notification and award issuance differs across organizations and is influenced by contracting strategies and internal workflows; and progression from Phase I to Phase II does not consistently favor open or conventional topics. For contractors, the practical takeaway is to calibrate expectations to each agency’s operating model. The Air Force’s AFWERX-managed open topic process, for example, has enabled much faster issuance than some conventional pathways; elsewhere, conventional topics may see more predictable reviews. These differences can affect cash-flow planning, staffing ramps, and risk allocation with investors or primes.
The most consequential finding for the market may be definitional. Because SBA has not provided formal government-wide definitions distinguishing “open” from “conventional,” agencies have labeled broad solicitations as “conventional” and vice versa. That inconsistency undermines cross-agency comparability, program evaluation, and congressional oversight. It also obscures contractors’ ability to benchmark win rates and pipeline plans across portfolios. GAO recommends SBA issue formal definitions and guidance to standardize categorization, and SBA concurs. Contractors should watch for that guidance: once definitions harden, agencies’ reporting, dashboards, and leadership targets are likely to shift, altering where “open” topics are emphasized and how outcomes are measured and rewarded internally.
Several operational threads also deserve attention. First, heightened due-diligence requirements (e.g., foreign risk reviews) have lengthened some decision timelines; contractors should plan for elongated cash cycles and ensure compliance documentation is award-ready. Second, GAO notes feedback quality varies, with some components offering limited or generic debriefs—especially on open topics—reducing learning loops. Contractors may need to proactively structure post-decision inquiries and invest in third-party proposal diagnostics to recover insight that formal feedback may not supply. Third, commercialization metrics past Phase II remain hard to track, especially where Phase III occurs via non-SBIR/STTR funding or private capital. Firms should therefore maintain their own commercialization evidence bases—sales records, integration milestones, and customer letters—to credibly demonstrate impact during renewals, follow-ons, and future Phase II evaluations.
In short, the report is significant because it confirms open topics’ growing share and competitive pull while highlighting definitional gaps that cloud program analytics. For federal contractors, that means re-tuning capture to agency-specific realities, preparing for continued high competition under open topics, and anticipating a near-term policy fix from SBA that could reshape how opportunities are labeled and measured. Watching that definitional guidance—and aligning proposal strategy, internal metrics, and commercialization narratives accordingly—will be essential to sustaining win rates and scaling within the SBIR/STTR ecosystem.
Disclaimer: This summary is provided for informational purposes only, reflects the author’s interpretation of GAO-25-107942, and does not constitute legal, financial, or contracting advice. Readers should consult the original GAO report and agency guidance for authoritative requirements.