Grant Engine’s Sam Tetlow to appear on “AUTM on the Air” Podcast

Listen to the “AUTM on the Air” podcasts here.

“AUTM on the Air” is a weekly podcast that brings listeners conversations about the impact of research commercialization and the people who make it happen. Join us for interviews with patent and licensing professionals, innovators, entrepreneurs, and tech transfer leaders on the issues and trends that matter most.
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The AUTM on the Air interview with Sam Tetlow, Founder and CEO of Grant Engine, highlights his path from aerospace engineering and venture capital to leading one of the nation’s most successful non-dilutive funding firms. After years in venture capital and as CEO of multiple biotech startups, Tetlow founded Grant Engine out of frustration with poor-performing grant consultants. The company now employs over 75 people, submits more than 5% of all NIH SBIR proposals, and achieves win rates two to four times the national average by combining rigorous technical writing, external peer review, and a focus on building both funding success and equity value for clients across life sciences, defense, and energy sectors

Throughout the conversation, Tetlow outlines how Grant Engine’s “Find, Win, and Manage” model helps companies and tech transfer offices thrive amid today’s volatile funding environment—marked by federal budget cuts, program uncertainty, and an extended government shutdown.

He emphasizes proactive grant preparation, compliance awareness, and commercialization strategy as key differentiators that turn funding into sustainable business growth. Tetlow also stresses the strategic value of non-dilutive capital—not only as a lifeline during constrained markets but as a way to secure better terms in later venture rounds. Despite challenges such as reduced NIH and NSF budgets and AI-driven declines in proposal quality, he remains optimistic: the demand for breakthrough innovation endures, and those who plan ahead, tell compelling scientific and commercial stories, and uphold quality will continue to win.

Listen to the ‘AUTM on the Air’ podcast here.