Funding

OIE Funding Programs

Pitt.INC

Coming soon! Pitt Idea Navigation to Commercialization, Pitt.INC, offers University of Pittsburgh faculty, postdocs, students and staff funding, community and a simplified process to enter ideas into the commercialization pathway.

Commercialization Gap Fund

Advance Your Innovation with the Commercialization Gap Fund! Secure up to $75,000 in funding to de-risk and validate your early-stage projects with high commercial potential. Open to all fields and disciplines, this program supports key technical and market studies to bring your innovations closer to commercialization.

Pitt SPARK

Pitt SPARK is a competitive innovation funding program designed to support the development of Pitt intellectual property, making it ready for commercially focused external funding and tech transfer events. The program offers up to $250,000 for one year to support key technical and market de-risking studies, with the possibility of additional funding based on milestone achievements.

Wells Student Healthtech Challenge

The Wells Student HealthTech Challenge empowers entrepreneurial students at Pitt by providing faculty support and opportunities to engage with innovative technologies. With $40,000 in prizes, the competition helps advance their discoveries toward commercialization.

Field Specific Funding Programs

Hunter Family Foundation Traumatic Brain Injury Translational Research Program

The Hunter Program provides a $100,000 annual award to advance Pitt technologies in neuroscience from lab discoveries to commercial products. This program supports key proof-of-concept and validation studies, bridging the gap between academic research and market-ready innovations

SHRS Innovation Challenge

The SHRS Innovation Challenge, hosted by the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, aims to advance early-stage discoveries towards commercialization. This program includes a 4-week virtual course that provides researchers with insights into market potential and entrepreneurial skills, culminating in a final pitch competition with a $100,000 prize pool.

Funding for Pitt Startups

SBIR/STTR. The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program and its companion Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program are both very natural first steps to assist small businesses in the transition from the university to commercialize new technologies that meet federal research and development needs. Funding ranges from $150,000 in Phase I to $1 million in Phase II.

Angel Groups. Individual angels are joining together with other angels to evaluate and invest in entrepreneurial ventures. The angels can pool their capital to make larger investments.

Venture Capital. Venture capital is financing that investors provide to startup companies and small businesses that are believed to have long-term growth potential. Venture capital generally comes from well-off investors, investment banks and any other financial institutions.

Other Startup Funding. Funding for your startup company can also be secured from local and national foundations, economic development organizations, or through mechanisms like crowdfunding.

If you are a faculty member interested funding for your startup, please contact startup@pitt.edu.

Funding for Pitt Students

Big Idea Competition

Participate in the Big Idea Competition for a chance to win up to $25,000 and further advance your groundbreaking projects.

Kuzneski Innovation Cup

The Kuzneski Innovation Cup is a premier competition for Pitt student-led teams with early-stage ideas, offering a chance to win part of a $25,000 prize pool.

Big Idea Advantage Fund

Unlock Pitt Innovation Funding opportunities through the Big Idea Advantage Fund, which provides $10,000-$25,000 to help Pitt students and postdocs bring their innovative ideas to life.