Brazil moves to expand state purchases from startups

The House Science and Technology Committee advanced a bill that could reshape the country’s innovation landscape. The measure amends Brazil’s Innovation Law to allow government agencies that fund advanced research in startups or nonprofit organizations to also purchase the resulting products and services.

The change addresses a long-standing gap in the law. While public funding for private-sector research has existed since the Innovation Law’s introduction, there has been no mechanism to ensure that governments could directly absorb the technologies developed through these partnerships.

Congresswoman Maria do Rosário, the bill’s rapporteur, framed the bill as a way to give legal certainty to startups and companies engaged in risky research ventures with the state.