The delivery of vaccines via the respiratory tract has been studied for many years and has been highly effective in clinical trials for many diseas-es. This delivery method is potentially safer and more effective, less painful, and less expensive than injectable vaccines. However, despite its many advantages, limitations in aerosol delivery device technology have kept the respiratory route of vaccination from common use. Specifically, previous aerosol devices have been cumbersome and required outlet electricity and crushed ice to keep the vaccine cold. These requirements made use in developing countries impractical. Also, devices for delivery of agents to the respiratory tract were typically designed for one patient to use repeatedly, instead of using a device for mul-tiple patients. To address these limitations in aerosol delivery devices, a team of scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and en-gineers at Creare, Inc., created an aerosol device capable of quickly vaccinating many patients in a mass vaccination setting or a local clinic without contaminating the device and spreading respira-tory diseases. This device is handheld and pow-ered by a rechargeable battery, and has dispos-able patient interfaces and a disposable aerosol element to prevent contamination. The device can deliver vaccines or pharmaceuticals to the desired area of the respiratory tract through the nose or the mouth. This technology pro-vides a customizable, d o s a g e - c o n t r o l l e d and environmentally friendly method of delivering a wide va-riety of vaccines and drugs. The device has been successful in animal studies of measles vaccination and will be included in human trials later this year. The improved aerosol delivery technology was transferred to AerovectRx Corporation. The re-sult of this technology transfer process was the creation and funding of a new startup company based on this CDC technology, benefiting the economy by creating new jobs and introducing a new product to multiple markets. In addition to providing a mechanism to commercialize CDC technology, the technology transfer process also raised awareness of CDC’s research efforts to maximize its impact on global public health. More importantly, transfer of this technology makes it possible to move vaccination via the respiratory tract from the research and develop-ment phase to commercial use, where it can prvide safer, more effective, less painful and less expensive vaccines for millions of people.