Activate, a nonprofit, runs a two-year U.S. fellowship that helps scientists and engineers turn hardware-based research into companies. Fellows work full time on their own venture with funding, mentoring and leadership training; Activate takes no fees or equity.
Each fellow joins one of five communities: in-residence groups in Berkeley (shared with Berkeley Lab’s Cyclotron Road), Boston/Cambridge, Houston and New York, or the virtual Activate Anywhere with quarterly in-person trips.
Benefits & funding
- More than $300K in total over two years.
- $100K living stipend per year, plus health insurance and relocation support.
- $100K in R&D support per project, usable for lab access.
- $12K per year for travel and professional development.
- Only the principal applicant is funded; a co-applicant joins as an unfunded Affiliate Fellow.
Eligibility
- Bachelor’s degree plus 4+ years of post-baccalaureate research, engineering or technology-development experience.
- Leading a hardware venture for the first time (not a repeat hard-tech founder), with a significant ownership stake.
- Full time from the start; any prior job or degree finished by September 1.
- Legally able to work in the U.S. for the whole fellowship (no visa sponsorship); proficient English.
- Project in physical or biological sciences or related engineering, not yet at full-scale sales, under $2M non-governmental debt or equity raised.
- Healthcare-only technologies pursuing FDA approval are out; current or former LEEP Innovators are ineligible.
- Anywhere: live in the U.S., 70+ miles from an in-residence community.
Can you apply?
Here's who can apply
Decoded from the official rules. A free account checks them against your passport, degree and age in seconds.
Residence required
USA
Education required
Bachelor
Experience required
≥ 4 yrs
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Application process
- 1Apply solo or with one co-founder; people on the same project must apply together, one application per applicant or team per cycle.
- 2Submit written answers, a one-page blinded resume per applicant, a 3-page Technical Vision, a 3–4-slide Technical Reality deck and a one-take video under 60 seconds.
- 3Rank the communities you can fully join and explain each choice.
- 4Submit by October 30, 2026, 12 p.m. PT.
- 5Shortlisted applicants have a virtual video interview, then a virtual finalist pitch.
Program timeline
Applications opened
Sep 15, 2026
Application deadline
Oct 30, 2026, 12 p.m. PT
Video interviews
January–February 2027
Finalist week, then fellows selected
March–May 2027
Fellowship begins (cohort elements end May 31, 2029)
Jul 1, 2027