Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) are the shorthand of grant applications, but how do I apply them to my tech if its non-engineering e.g. SaaS / MedTech / Pharma?
TRLs are the short hand of grants – they are used all over the scope documentation to describe what kind of projects the awarding bodies are looking to fund.
𝗪𝗵𝘆 – TRLs provide an instant snapshot of risk, investment needs, and timeline expectations – regardless of the underlying 𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿.
When someone says “we’re at TRL 4,” you immediately understand they’ve proven their concept works in a lab but still need significant development before commercialization.
𝗦𝗼 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽
In short the scale has 3 principal groupings:
TRL 1-3: Concept & Research Phase:
Early stage idea -> proven concept
TRL 4-6: Development & Validation:
Prototype development -> Proven in a relevant environment
TRL 7-9: Deployment & Commercial Readiness:
Late stage development -> Final product in operational environment.
𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝘄𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝗳𝘁𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲?
Neither of these fields neatly fit on the above framework, so some creative wiggling needs to be undertaken.
𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻:
For medical devices or pharma – it’s best to think in terms of clinical trials:
TRL 1-3: Target identification, in vitro testing, pre-clinical research
TRL 4-5: Component validation, pre-clinical trials
TRL 6: First human trials (Phase I) or safety demonstrations for devices
TRL 7: Phase II clinical trials or operational prototype testing
TRL 8: Phase III clinical trials or system qualification
TRL 9: Market-approved product ready for commercialization
𝗦𝗼𝗳𝘁𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲/𝗦𝗮𝗮𝗦 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻:
For SaaS its better to translate the Alpha/Beta framework
TRL 1-3: Concept research through early prototype development
TRL 4: Alpha testing with integrated components
TRL 5: System validation in realistic environment
TRL 6: Beta version ready for user testing
TRL 7: Final prototype testing in operational setting
TRL 8: Pre-commercial demonstration with real users
TRL 9: Commercial product deployment with full functionality
Using these scales – it will allow you to understand where you are on the traditional development framework – and most importantly which grants are the best fit for your development right now.