Venture Challenge

The FY22 Venture Challenge seeks to advance technology-based economic development and through regional innovation ecosystems that promote the commercialization of new technologies, strengthen growing industry clusters, and lead to the expansion of high-paying economic opportunities in communities, regions, or combinations of regions. View the FY22 Venture Challenge grantees here.

The Venture Challenge awards grants to intermediary organizations such as, accelerators, universities, and non-profits supporting new business ventures that are:

scalable by nature;
challenging the status quo of established markets;
commercializing technologies; and
furthering job creation within their businesses.

The Venture Challenge invites organizations to submit competitive proposals that seek to support entrepreneurship and accelerate the growth of technology-based companies in their community, region, or combination of regions that are aligned with high-growth industrial clusters. Competitive proposals will outline how the project will strengthen economic competitiveness through new product innovation or new technology adoption, enhancing research commercialization processes and outcomes, addressing barriers that inhibit regional innovation capacity and resilience, or leveraging regional competitive strengths to stimulate innovation and job creation. Under this Challenge, there are two funding levels—Build and Scale.

The Venture Challenge plans to award up to $38 million in grants in FY22.