Michigan Mobility Funding Platform

Building upon the success of the PlanetM Mobility Grants, the Office of Future Mobility and Electrification (OFME) and the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) are launching the Michigan Mobility Funding Platform to provide grants to mobility and electrification companies looking to deploy their technology solutions in the state of Michigan. Over time, the platform will evolve to enable Michigan-based organizations (public and private) to launch their own mobility and electrification funding initiatives.

On September 15, 2021, the first round of grants through the Michigan Mobility Platform were announced. 

The funding platform is designed to accelerate investment in:

• Mobility and electrification solutions that create safer, more equitable and environmentally conscious transportation for all Michigan residents
• High potential mobility and electrification companies who anticipate long-term growth in Michigan and seek to play a meaningful role in the state’s mobility ecosystem

Our grants are focused on catalyzing and scaling mobility solutions across three key areas of focus:

• Sustainable Futures: Improve environmental sustainability by encouraging EV adoption and the buildout of EV charging infrastructure
• Equitable Futures: Alleviate mobility barriers and increase access to affordable and reliable transportation options
• Multimodal Transportation: Modernize existing transportation systems and keep Michigan at the forefront across all connected and autonomous transportation modes

Eligibility for Testing Environments and Real-World Deployments

• Focus on sustainable futures, equitable futures, OR multimodal transportation
• Provide matching funds or receive matching funds from a project partner 
  • Note: Refer to the FAQ section below for more details on the matching funds
    
• Demonstrate how the grant will help your company grow in Michigan

Additional Eligibility for Real-World Deployments

• Collaborate with a Michigan partner (public or private)
• Meet a local use case/need in Michigan

Note: If you are applying to deploy at a test site, we encourage you to work with a test site to design your testing scope prior to applying. See below for the list of test sites.

Learn more about the Michigan Mobility Funding Platform through the most recent Virtual Mobility Meetup. During this meetup, representatives from the Office of Future Mobility and Electrification discuss the application process and the success mobility grant funding has had for companies in Michigan.

Future plans for the Michigan Mobility Funding Platform include:

• Enable Michigan based organizations (public and private) to submit mobility needs so OFME and MDOT can understand trends and provide introductions to solution providers
• Enable mobility and electrification companies to submit their deployment ideas, so OFME can support their growth through introductions to the Michigan mobility ecosystem
• Provide programming to connect Michigan based organizations (public and private) with mobility and electrification companies – leading toward unique collaborations and applications

Terms and Conditions

• Expectation to deploy within four months of receiving the grant award and to report results within one month of project completion
• Grants will be awarded to subsidize a portion of the cost to plan, deploy, monitor, and report out on projects across the state. The remaining cost should be covered by the company and/or its project partner(s). The amount of the grant will be determined in a negotiated process between OFME and each selected recipient
• Projects that are interoperable and not proprietary are preferred, particularly when a government agency is the partner
• All information submitted in connection with or included in any Michigan Mobility Funding Platform application, may be subject to disclosure under the Michigan Freedom of Information Act
• All grants awarded under the Michigan Mobility Funding Platform are subject to available funding
• All awarded grants will be memorialized in a final written grant agreement with terms and conditions in accordance with these guidelines and requirements, and otherwise satisfactory to the OFME, including without limitation, requiring performance based milestones which shall govern disbursements, and requiring periodic reporting of data, financial information, and repayment for misappropriation, event of default, or other actions or activities prohibited by law
• Companies may apply more than once if they are not granted in previous rounds

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How are you reviewing and selecting applicants?
It is a rolling application, so applications will be reviewed every three months. See schedule provided above in the “Rolling Application” section. OFME will initially scan the applications and remove those that do not fit the eligibility criteria. A review committee, made up of public and private Michigan-based organizations, will review and score each application. OFME will then schedule calls with applicants who received a high review score, before selecting and notifying the final grant recipients. Evaluation criteria includes, but is not limited to, partners, location, budget, timeline, and metrics.

Applications will be reviewed every three months according to the schedule below:

• July 1, 2021 — September 30, 2021, recipients notified by the end of November 2021
• October 1, 2021 — December 31, 2021, recipients notified by the end of February 2022
• January 1, 2022 — March 31, 2022, recipients notified by the end of May 2022

Note: The timeline will continue past the January – March 2022 application window and will be updated throughout the year.

2. Who has received grants in the past?

In September 2021, five mobility companies - MUVE, Airspace Link, KUHMUTE, GreenRoute and Michigan Flyer - received more than $444,000 in funding to deploy mobility pilots in Michigan. 

Between 2018 – 2020, $2.4 million went toward 26 real world deployment grants and 27 testing site deployment grants.

Real World Deployment Grants:

• Pre-Round Winner
• Round 1 Winners
• Round 2 Winners
• Round 3 Winners
• Round 4 Winners
• Round 5 Winners
• Round 6 Winners (also known as the COVID-19 Mobility Solutions Grant)

Testing Site Deployment Grants:

• Aveopt
• Shift Environment, Strange Development
• GLDC, RAVE, P3 Mobility
• Airspace Link
• Wind Craft Aviation

3. What expenses will the grant cover?
The grant will cover project related expenses. Those expenses need to be provided in your application, including project cost, grant amount requested, and matching funds (financial or in-kind). The state of Michigan expects all travel expenses to be reasonable and to follow the State Travel Reimbursement Rates. For both real world deployment and testing site deployment grants, your company will need to secure matching funds, either financial or in-kind. See “How do the matching funds work?” question for more information.

4. What does the application include?
The application will include questions around general company information, product/service, impact/funding, and partners. You are encouraged to attach letters of support/commitment from project partners.
Note: All information submitted, including without limitation, information submitted in connection with or included in any Michigan Mobility Funding Platform grant application, is subject to disclosure under the Michigan Freedom of Information Act.

5. What is the typical size of an individual grant?
Grants vary in size and we have no strict minimum or maximum amount. In the past, testing site deployments have ranged from $10K – $100K and real world deployments have ranged from $40K – $125K.

6. How do the matching funds work?
In order to apply for a grant, applicants need to have matching funds available (financial or in-kind). In the past, the PlanetM Mobility Grant program required a 25% match from the company or one of their project partners. Going forward, the Michigan Mobility Funding Platform grants will cover whatever portion is needed. For example, if you need gap funding and the partners involved can cover a large portion of the cost, consider just applying for 10-20% funding from the state. Or if the partners involved can cover a small portion of the cost, consider applying for 60-70% funding from the state. Applications with high matching funds will be looked at favorably.