A Wilmington startup with the goal of addressing the opioid epidemic has received funding to scale faster.

OpiAID has been selected as one of seven innovative companies in the state to receive the NC IDEA SEED grant from the private foundation NC IDEA.

The $50,000 grant is awarded to “innovative startups with a proven concept — even if they are not yet profitable,” the NC IDEA website states. Along with the funds, winners of the fall 2022 grant round get mentorship and guidance with the goal of helping push companies forward and reduce the risk associated with growing startups.

Since forming in 2018 by founder David Reeser, the company has worked to develop a cloud-based software product using data science that Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) rehab centers can use to improve shared clinical decision-making and that can lead to intervention preventing relapse or preventing a potential overdose.

The seven recipients were chosen from 158 applicants across the state after a three-month competitive application and selection process.

Other winners include:

• Animal Cancer Dx – Raleigh
• LabRunner – Raleigh
• Phase Dock Inc. – Raleigh
• ROSA Technology, LLC – Chapel Hill
• Social Cascade – Raleigh
• Spring & Mulberry – Raleigh

In addition to SEED grants, NC IDEA also recognized at its Ecosystem Summit event the previously announced winners of the MICRO grant, which is intended for small projects by young companies looking to validate their ideas. The local winner of this grant was Wilmington orthotic developer Project Heel.

During this event, NC IDEA also announced a new grant program launched by the North Carolina Black Entrepreneurship Council that will award $600,000 in grants to the state’s accredited Historically Black Colleges and Universities. These selected grant recipients will be announced in mid-December.

Counting SEED, MICRO, ECOSYSTEM and HBCU grants, NC IDEA has provided a total of $2.3 million in the final quarter of 2022.

“Today we announced over $2 million in grants directly to companies and partners across the state strengthening the foundation supporting North Carolina entrepreneurs,” Thom Ruhe, CEO and president of NC IDEA, said in the release. “These awards are a direct investment in the equitable startup ecosystems of North Carolina and affirm our commitment to empower more people to pursue their entrepreneurial ambition.”