Funding, equity, eligibility and what to expect from the TNT Accelerator. Jump to funding questions.
TNT is both a community bringing together builders from MIT and Harvard and an accelerator that supports top teams going full-time. Most teams we accept came through the community first.
We are the only program dedicated to putting founders from both schools in the same room. TNT also invests in our accelerator companies, so we have a vested interest in your success for the life of the company.
No. We are independent, founded and run by students and alumni of both schools, and not endorsed by either. We work alongside the programs and clubs at both universities rather than in competition with them.
TNT invests up to $200K per accepted team through a post-money SAFE at roughly a $6.7M valuation cap, for up to 3% of the company. The investment amount and terms are the same for every team in a cohort and are confirmed before you commit. Read the full TNT deal.
TNT takes equity through its SAFE investment. There is no fee to apply and no fee to participate. TNT does not take a board seat. The SAFE terms determine how the investment converts into shares.
Ask whether TNT can help you build a more valuable company and improve your chances of getting there. The ownership you give up matters. So does what you gain: capital, a partner working with you each week, and TNT’s network of experienced founders, operators, investors, potential customers and technical talent. The decision is whether that support can make your remaining ownership worth more. Talk to founders who have been through TNT about what actually helped them.
Yes. You do not need an immediate funding gap for TNT to be useful. Founders should evaluate the weekly support and TNT’s network alongside the capital. Already knowing people at MIT or Harvard is a starting point. Consider who can help you reach customers, recruit strong people, work through hard decisions and prepare for your next round.
Yes. Prior funding does not disqualify you from TNT. Tell us what you have raised, what you are building and where you want help. The question is whether TNT can contribute enough at your stage to make joining worthwhile. Apply to the next cohort.
You can still apply. TNT’s standard cohort terms are the same for every accepted team, so compare the full program’s value with the ownership you would give up. If you have existing SAFEs or a priced round, review how TNT’s SAFE would interact with them before committing. The valuation cap alone does not describe everything you receive from TNT.
TNT provides the investment at the start of the program. We confirm the cohort’s investment amount and SAFE terms before an accepted team commits. The deal page explains the investment structure.
TNT funding supports building the company. That can include reasonable founder salaries, product development, hiring, customer research and business travel. The aim is to give founders more time and resources to build. Spending should be a company expense or properly paid compensation, consistent with your investment documents.
Curated events across both campuses, for founders at every stage from pre-idea to post-raise. Events include cofounder matching, build nights, founder dinners and firesides.
PhDs, undergrads, MBAs, faculty and alumni from MIT and Harvard, whether you already have a company or just want to build one.
Every room is curated. You put in a short application for an event and we confirm your place.
No. Community events are free to attend.
Founders who have built billion dollar companies, in rooms of a few dozen to a few hundred. Past guests include Matthew Prince (Cloudflare), Marc Raibert (Boston Dynamics), Tom Leighton (Akamai), Ramin Hasani (Liquid AI), Mikey Shulman (Suno), Max Lobovsky (Formlabs), Paul English (Kayak) and David Friend (Wasabi). Accelerator teams get priority access.
No, and most people in the community are not. Events are listed on our events page. Each event requires a very short application so we can ensure the highest quality of attendees. You do not need to be part of the accelerator to attend.
The Fall 2026 cohort runs October through January, ending with Demo Day in San Francisco.
Between 10 and 15 out of several hundred applications.
Three: Spring 2025, Summer 2025 and Spring 2026.
It runs alongside the semester, with weekly accountability sessions, check-ins and mentorship. We expect your startup to be the priority, not a side project.
Yes. TNT is in person in Cambridge. Sessions, mentor meetings and the work all happen in a room, and putting MIT and Harvard founders in one cohort only works if they are actually in it together. We expect you will be prioritizing your business, so we understand if you're out of town some weeks on business-related travel.
The end of each cohort. Teams pitch to a curated room of venture investors, angels and the wider startup community. The Fall 2026 cohort's Demo Day is in San Francisco in January.
Founders already building and serious about going full time. Most teams we accept have a product, prototype, and sometimes customers and are preparing to raise within 3-4 months.
Current students, faculty, and alumni from MIT and Harvard. Teams can include cofounders from anywhere.
Yes. Many of our founders are current students, and the cohort runs alongside the semester for exactly that reason. You do not need to have graduated or dropped out to apply.
Applications are open now. We review on a rolling basis, so applying early only helps.
Three steps. A short written application about your team and what you are building. If you are shortlisted, a 15 minute video call. Then a 45 minute in-person interview the following week.
We are reading the founders first, on the assumption that ideas change.
Yes, and solo founders have been accepted. The bar is higher in practice, because a lot of what we are reading is whether other strong people have committed to you. If you are solo and looking, put your name in for a cofounder matching night first.
No, but most accepted teams have one. We run cofounder matching nights through the community, and you do not need to apply to the accelerator to be considered for one. Like all our events they are curated, so you register and we confirm your place. See the events calendar.
Yes. We do not sponsor visas, but we can connect you to immigration lawyers who work with founders.
Yes. Many of our founders run TNT alongside something else at MIT or Harvard. We are complementary to the rest of the ecosystem.
Yes, and people generally do. A rejection is usually about timing rather than the team. Come back with a working product or committed cofounders and it is a different application.
You stay in the community permanently, with the mentor network, investor introductions and every event we run.
Raised from top-tier investors, signed enterprise customers, and gone on to other programs including Y Combinator. The companies are in the portfolio.
A separate track for researchers whose work could become a company, and who are exploring what that would look like. See TNT Research.
Companies and funds work with us as partners. If you want to join one of our startups rather than start one, put your name into TNT Talent or browse the open roles.