Non-dilutive funding for MIT and Harvard founders — grants, pitch competitions, and fellowships
$50K to explore commercial potential of deep tech research. Customer discovery program with 7-week curriculum. Requires NSF-funded research or university affiliation.
Federal R&D grants across 11 agencies. Phase I for feasibility, Phase II for full development. Warning: congressional authority expired Sep 2025 — no new awards until reauthorized.
MIT initiative tackling global challenges across health, climate, learning, and economic prosperity. Solver teams receive funding, mentorship, and MIT network access.
Grants up to $1M from the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center for growth-stage climatetech startups. Includes an Expert in Residence advisor and corporate/university matchmaking.
2-year fellowship for hard tech founders. $100K+ living stipend, lab access, and community. Based at national labs with a Boston cohort. No equity taken.
Federal grants for breakthrough energy and defense technologies. ARPA-E funds transformational energy R&D; DARPA funds defense deep tech. Note: ARPA-E facing proposed 57% budget cut — check current solicitations.
MIT's premier entrepreneurship competition. $100K grand prize plus additional prizes. Teams must have at least one MIT student. Launch round applications open after Accelerate round.
HBS's flagship startup competition. Business Track ($75K) and Social Enterprise Track. Semifinals have passed — finale on March 5.
Harvard's largest startup competition with $500K+ in total prizes across multiple tracks. Open to all Harvard students and recent alumni. Applications for 2026 have closed — watch for 2027 cycle.
$100K+ in prizes for student-led ventures tackling climate change and the clean energy transition. Applications closed — finalists advancing to Grand Finals on April 23.
The $100K competition runs across three rounds. Pitch ($5K, Sep) is the entry point, Accelerate ($10K, Mar) is the semifinal, and Launch ($100K, May) is the final.
Grants up to $125K for MIT researchers translating lab innovations into commercial products. Focus on deep tech with clear market potential. Catalyst grants ($50K) also available.
2-year fellowship at LBNL for hard tech innovators. Access to world-class lab facilities, living stipend, and research funding. Focus on energy, manufacturing, and advanced materials.
MIT and Harvard offer some of the most generous non-dilutive funding opportunities for student founders in the world. From the MIT $100K Competition to Harvard's New Venture Competition and President's Innovation Challenge, there are millions of dollars available each year in grants, prizes, and fellowships — with no equity required. TNT tracks these deadlines so our founders never miss an opportunity to fund their startups.
Last updated: February 2026. Submit an opportunity
TNT is a startup accelerator for MIT and Harvard founders building AI-powered companies. No equity, no fees. $200K+ in credits from Anthropic, Google, AWS, and NVIDIA.