Funding Opportunities

CRAFT-Unity Clinical Validation Awards

Application Deadline: October 15, 2026 

Funding Amount: Up to $50,000 CAD per project 

Number of Awards: 3 

Program Leads: University of Toronto (UofT), Unity Health Toronto, National Research Council (NRC) 

Program Overview 

The CRAFT–Unity Clinical Validation Awards support collaborations between University of Toronto researchers, UofT-affiliated startups, and Unity Health clinicians in collaboration with the NRC to advance the clinical validation of microfluidic technologies in the areas of diagnostics, biofabrication or organ-on-chip. 

Objectives 

1. Enable early-stage clinical validation of microfluidic technologies 

2. Foster clinician–researcher–industry collaboration 

3. Generate data for publications, funding, and clinical adoption 

Funding Details 

Award value: Up to $50,000 CAD per project. Eligible expenses include personnel, materials, clinical sample costs, and validation-related fees (e.g. patient recruitment or specialist time). The timeline for the project is April 1, 2027 to March 31, 2028. 

These awards may be used to provide proof-of-concept or early validation data, enabling the submission of larger grant applications through CIHR or other clinical trial awards. There should be a clear path to either technology commercialization and outside fundraising OR a larger grant that could enable continuity of the project. These should include timelines and a clear plan for efforts to raise outside funds during and post-award. 

Successful applicants may also leverage up to $10,000 in clinical advisory services through CRAFT at Unity Health. 

Eligibility 

Applicants must: 

• Have pre-existing IP for a microfluidic device from a CRAFT Research Affiliate and/or UofT-affiliated startup that has licensed IP (including those affiliated with campus accelerators/incubators) and this IP must be developed at CRAFT or by a CRAFT Research Affiliate. 

• Include at least one UofT researcher and one Unity clinician on the team. 
  
• Include at least one collaborator or co-PI from NRC, which may include Technical Officers or Research Officers on UofT campus or in Boucherville. 
  
• If the applicant requires assistance identifying a collaborator, please reach out to partnerwithcraft@utoronto.ca for assistance with matching. 

Application Requirements 

No more than 2 pages.

1. Project Description 

2. Clinical Validation Plan 

3. Impact & Advancement 

4. Follow-On Funding Plan 

5. Team & Collaboration 

6. Budget & Justification 

Successful applications will also be required to submit the standard CRAFT Project Award form with all the necessary information for funding disbursement no later than January 11, 2026. 

Evaluation Criteria 

• Scientific merit 

• Clinical validation feasibility 

• Translational potential 

• Follow-on funding strategy 

Submission Process 

Open call announced August 2026. Deadline: October 15, 2026. Notification of Award: January 2027. Project Start April 1, 2027. 

Submissions are accepted by email to partnerwithcraft@utoronto.ca with the subject line “PI name – CRAFT-Unity Clinical Validation Awards”.