Parker McKeeThe most transformative ideas across software, hardware, AI, robotics, climate, biotech, and more are forming inside university research labs, MBA programs and undergraduate dorm rooms.
Yet, funding options for students and faculty remain bleak. Grant programs are broken, slow, cumbersome and risk-averse. And investors are often unwilling to back a big idea before a founder is ready to graduate, drop out or spin-out.
At Pillar VC, we’ve launched the $1M Moonshot Competition to fill this funding gap. Our team is energized by ambitious founders working on weird, crazy, groundbreaking science with the potential to disrupt industries and create new worlds of possibility. For the second year in a row, we will award more than $1 million in SAFEs to university undergrad and grad students, postdocs, and faculty.
Last year, we opened up our inaugural Moonshot Competition to Harvard and MIT. This year, undergrad and grad students, postdocs and faculty from any university can apply. Whether you have an idea for an industry-leading company or a groundbreaking technology, all ideas are open for consideration.
Moonshot Timeline
- March 2: Deadline to apply
- March 10 – 28: First Round Interviews
- March 31 – April 4: Final Round Interviews
- April 8: Winners Selected
In advance of the application deadline, we’re also hosting:
To learn more about the Moonshot Competition, visit moonshot.pillar.vc.