The US Department of Defense’s Office of Strategic Capital (OSC) has partnered with the Small Business Administration (SBA) to launch the Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) critical technologies initiative. The program aims to generate capital for small business development by increasing investment to crowd-in private capital, prioritizing areas such as semiconductors that have large applications but aren’t necessarily going directly to the things the military buys. The OSC’s strategy is to work with other agencies to support the extension of loans or loan guarantees that invest in scaling critical technologies. The goal is to attract patient capital to bring critical technologies to scale and bridge the gap between development and actual production. The OSC and SBA plan to move into business partnerships as a part of the Defense Department’s expansion with private capital, aiming to help new technologies bridge the gap between development and actual production, a period known as the “valley of death”. This is significant for small businesses because the SBIC fund represents another business avenue that is independent from the annual appropriations process. The fund may provide working capital for qualified companies, even during the time the government is operating under a continuing resolution. Having a diverse set of funding sources is important for small businesses that are heavily dependent on cash flow. Larger investments could also be made by combining DoD research, development testing, and evaluation funds with private capital in larger investments for future procurement funding.  These long-duration investments are necessary for highly capital-intensive industries and hardware, such as deep tech.  Small business contractors may want to research the SBIC initiative and see if it could be an additional way to conduct government business.