BoSS Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Not all foreign entities are eligible for ARPA-H funding. Awards will not be made to entities organized under the laws of a covered foreign country, defined in the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. § 3059) as Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China. Individual solicitations may allow or restrict the participation of foreign entities to varying degrees. For more information, please visit ARPA-H’s International Affairs website and FAQs: https://arpa-h.gov/engage-and-connect/international.

Yes, academic and commercial entities are eligible to propose as the IV&V partner.

No, we encourage international partnerships. We are eager to see teaming with international partners as members and/or subject matter experts with consideration that culminating BoSS technologies are intended for domestic manufacturing. 

No. Monoclonal antibodies, proteins (e.g., recombinant, enzymes, hormones, growth factors, cytokines), peptides, and other non-cell demonstration systems are out of scope as a demonstration system for the BoSS program.

The BoSS program is not currently soliciting approaches that involve genetic modification. All genetic alterations—including any introduction of exogenous nucleic acids into cells—are out of scope for this program, in part due to safety risks associated with transient, permanent, heritable, or otherwise unintended genetic changes to cells.

Methods of payload delivery that can be adapted to deliver non-nucleic acid molecules are in scope.

At this time, BoSS is only seeking low-cost, rapid, and scalable methods that can induce reversible biostasis in cells used for biologics manufacturing and/or as drug products (e.g., cell therapies) and which have the potential to follow a relatively straightforward regulatory pathway. 

The government does not require ownership of all software, source code, or technical data developed under the BoSS program. Performer team members may retain ownership, including as trade secret or other proprietary IP, provided that the government receives license rights sufficient to:

Use, operate, test, and evaluate the integrated BoSS system across relevant government users;
Maintain, modify, and upgrade the system directly or through support contractors; and
Support transition and potential follow‑on activities consistent with the program’s objectives.

In most cases, the government anticipates obtaining at least Government Purpose Rights in technical data and software developed under the program, so that the government can use the results for governmental purposes, including potential follow‑on competition and broader deployment, without being unduly restricted by proprietary claims.

Any proprietary or trade secret software or data must be appropriately marked and licensed on terms that do not impede deployment, sustainment, or further adoption of the BoSS system and associated products. Specific rights and licenses will be established in the award documents in accordance with applicable law and regulation.

Performers are not limited to using government-selected cells and are encouraged to demonstrate system generalizability by evaluating concepts on multiple cell types as early as in Phase 1.  

A commercially-relevant cell type specific for Phase 3 industry transition may be used as a demonstration cell type throughout the entire program, as long as the minimum requirements for end-of-phase demonstrations are also met.

To allow independent verification and validation (IV&V) of developed methods and approaches, at the end of Phase 1, Phase 2a, and Phase 2b, performers are expected to demonstrate on two government-selected cell types, but this is a minimum requirement, and other performer-selected cells may be used to demonstrate bioprocessing system performance.

At the end of Phase 2b, in addition to the IV&V evaluation on two government-selected cells, demonstration of a third performer-selected cell type is expected.

Table 2 on page 12 of the solicitation/ISO lists the government-selected cell types that will be used for end-of-phase demonstrations. The independent verification and validation (IV&V) partner will be selected in part based on their ability to supply adequate quantities of well-qualified cells to performers (see Section 2 of the ISO), thus the final cell types will be provided to performers as soon as the IV&V partner is selected and the contracting process is complete.

The cost proposal spreadsheet and narrative are due with your Solution Pitch submission through the portal, not at the time of the oral presentation itself. Your pitch will only be scheduled after ARPA-H receives a complete and conforming Solution Pitch package, which includes the cost proposal narrative (Attachment 3) and cost spreadsheet (Attachment 4).

All team members must sign an internal binding agreement (Articles of Collaboration) that, among other things, defines roles and responsibilities of team members and binds members to the team. Although the OT award will be between the Government and the team, only the lead agent/member appointed by the team need sign the OT on behalf of the team. This arrangement allows the Government privity of contract with all team members, even though only the agent signs the OT agreement. Reference: Section 4.6 of the ISO.

"Under the OTA team structure (not prime/sub), the lead (team agent) receives payment from the Government and then distributes funds to team members according to the terms outlined in the internal team agreement (Article of Collaboration or Multi-Party Teaming Agreement). Each team member does not invoice the Government directly; instead, the agent manages payments based on the team’s agreed-upon process.

Reference: See Section 4.6 of the ISO and minimum expectations for the Multi-Party Teaming Agreement (MPTA) in Appendix D."

It is strongly recommended that multi-party teams submitting proposals as Technical Performers incorporate expertise to achieve program milestones and goals, including but not limited to regulatory affairs, commercialization, intellectual property management, and other relevant business analytics and strategic capabilities. Demonstrating that such expertise is represented within the team at the time of proposal submission will strengthen the overall quality and credibility of the proposal. These capabilities may also be added after program initiation, provided that appropriate roles and associated costs have been anticipated and budgeted in the original proposal.

No, we encourage international partnerships. We are eager to see teaming with international partners as members and/or subject matter experts with consideration that culminating BoSS technologies are intended for domestic manufacturing. 

Yes. You are welcome to bring key team members to BoSS Proposers’ Day as long as all members are registered to attend.

The BoSS Proposers’ Day will be held on January 29, 2026, at The Warner Building, 1299 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC 20004. The event is hybrid, with both in-person and virtual attendance options. The event is expected to run from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM Eastern Time (ET). 

A formal agenda will be published prior to the meeting and made available to all registered participants.

• Morning: Registration and welcome, overview presentations by ARPA-H program staff
• Midday: Lunch
• Afternoon: Lightning talks, networking opportunities, and closing remarks
• Post-event: A no-host social gathering will be held at a nearby venue immediately following the conclusion of Proposers’ Day, providing additional opportunities for informal networking and team formation. 

Pre-scheduled sidebars with the BoSS Program Manager and team will also be available.

No hotel group rates have been secured for this event; attendees are responsible for making their own hotel reservations.

During registration for Proposers' Day (link opens in new window), you will be asked if you request to present a lightning talk. Upon request, you will receive a separate email with lightning talk instructions and the template.