Stacy L ChinFounder, KeepYourEquity · I get the government to write you checks

Non-Dilutive Funding: Powering Dual-Use Founders

14 Feb 2026 · 1 min

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1:19

In this monologue, Stacy Chin—an experienced grants and contracting consultant who has helped raise over $50 million for startups in healthcare, climate, and defense—explains why non‑dilutive funding is especially powerful for founders building dual‑use technologies that serve both commercial and defense markets. She contrasts non‑dilutive capital with venture funding, emphasizing that federal grants and contracts (e.g., SBIR, STTR, AppWorks, Tactify, Stratify, NSIC pilots) provide strategic capital that preserves ownership while delivering validation, traction, and access to mission demand. Chin outlines two core advantages: (1) the funding de‑risks early‑stage technical hurdles, giving startups technical credibility before a dilution round, and (2) winning an award or contract signals trust from government partners, enhancing investor confidence. The overall message positions non‑dilutive funding as a strategic lever for dual‑use founders to accelerate development, reduce equity loss, and strengthen market credibility.

Chapters

This is what makes non-dilutive funding so powerful, especially for dual-use founders. If you're joining us for the first time, I'm Stacy Chin, a professional grants and contracting consultant who has helped to raise over $50 million for startups developing innovation in healthcare, climate, and defense. For founders developing dual-use technologies, which are solutions that would serve both the commercial and defense markets, non-dilutive capital isn't just smart capital, but rather is strategic capital. Unlike venture funding, where you have to trade your equity for speed, federal grants and contracts can let you fund your defense tech without giving up ownership or control. For example, programs like the SBIR and the STTR, AppWorks, Tactify, Stratify, and NSIC pilots are designed specifically for innovators who sit at the intersection of commercial and national security needs. And this what makes non-dilutive funding so powerful, especially for dual-use founders. Every dollar comes in with validation, traction, and access to real mission demand. And here's why this matters. First, this capital helps to de-risk your early-stage technical hurdles. And so this is a great way to leverage federal dollars instead of VC dollars in order to give you the technical credibility you need before going in a dilution round. Second, capturing one of these awards or contracts will signal to investors that you are trusted by these partners.