The campus field guide

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA·University

Explore 12 programs ↓Meet the founders ↗Official campus site ↗

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At a glance

Indexed programs

All currently active

Top direct funding

No direct cash prizes indexed

Equity

No equity on indexed programs

Program mix

Entrepreneurship Center · Tech Transfer · Incubator

Programs to explore

Compare funding, equity, and timing before you apply.

12 programs indexed

Pitch Competition

HBS New Venture Competition

Pitch Competition

Also: HBS NVC, New Venture Competition

$210,000

funding range

No equityannualActive

Last activity: 2026-06-25
Participants: Graduate Students
Verification: Verified

President's Innovation Challenge

Pitch Competition

Official site

Also: Harvard PIC, President's Innovation Challenge

$75,000

funding range

No equityannualActive

Last activity: 2026-06-25
Participants: Undergraduate Students, Graduate Students +more
Verification: Verified

Accelerator

Harvard Grid Accelerator

Accelerator

Also: Grid Accelerator

$400,000

funding range

No equityrollingActive

Last activity: 2026-06-25
Participants: Faculty, Graduate Students
Verification: Verified

Launch Lab X

Accelerator

Also: Harvard Launch Lab X, LLX

—

funding range

Indirect supportNo equityannualActive

Last activity: 2026-06-25
Participants: Alumni
Verification: Verified

Incubator

Climate Entrepreneurs Circle

Incubator

Also: Harvard Climate Entrepreneurs Circle

—

funding range

No equityannualActive

Last activity: 2026-06-25
Participants: Undergraduate Students, Graduate Students +more
Verification: Verified

Pagliuca Harvard Life Lab

Incubator

Also: Harvard Life Lab, Pagliuca Life Lab

—

funding range

No equitycontinuousActive

Last activity: 2026-06-25
Participants: Faculty, Alumni +more
Verification: Verified

Entrepreneurship Center

Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship Center

Also: HBS Rock Center, Rock Center

—

funding range

Indirect supportNo equitycontinuousActive

Last activity: 2026-06-25
Participants: Graduate Students, Alumni
Verification: Verified

Harvard Innovation Labs

Entrepreneurship Center

Also: Harvard i-lab, Harvard Launch Lab

—

funding range

Indirect supportNo equitycontinuousActive

Last activity: 2026-06-25
Participants: Undergraduate Students, Graduate Students +more
Verification: Verified

Tech Transfer

Blavatnik Biomedical Accelerator

Tech Transfer

Also: Harvard Blavatnik Accelerator

$400,000

funding range

No equityannualActive

Last activity: 2026-06-25
Participants: Faculty, Researchers
Verification: Verified

Office of Technology Development

Tech Transfer

Also: Harvard OTD, Harvard Tech Transfer

—

funding range

Indirect supportNo equitycontinuousActive

Last activity: 2026-06-25
Participants: Faculty, Researchers +more
Verification: Verified

Fellowship

Navab Social Impact Fellowship

Fellowship

Also: Navab Fellowship, Navab Social Impact Fellowship Fund

$15,000

funding range

No equityannualActive

Last activity: 2026-06-25
Participants: Undergraduate Students, Graduate Students
Verification: Verified

From students

Be the first student from Harvard University to post a startup.

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Founders at this school

Known startups and winners

Competition winners and notable student ventures from our research.

See every startup

RapidSOS

$70,000

prize won

Harvard University · President's Innovation Challenge

Grand prizeCompetition winner

Grand prize at the 2015 President's Innovation Challenge ($70,000). The day before, the team also won the $50,000 grand prize in the Harvard Business School New Venture Competition. RapidSOS securely links life-saving data from connected devices to 911 and first responders.

Historical winners (research notes)

RapidSOS — 2015 President's Innovation Challenge grand prize ($70,000). The day before, the team also won the $50,000 HBS New Venture Competition grand prize. Website: rapidsos.com.

Named President's Innovation Challenge and New Venture Competition winners were not fully captured in the earlier vault research pass; see harvard-presidents-innovation-challenge and harvard-new-venture-competition for prize structure. OTD portfolio metrics document 102 startups launched in five years with $4.4B+ raised.

More about this ecosystem

Harvard University

Harvard Innovation Labs / Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship

Harvard University's entrepreneurship ecosystem is among the world's most comprehensive, anchored by the Harvard Innovation Labs (founded 2011, Batten Hall, Allston) serving all 13 schools under Executive Director Jill Kravetz and the Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship at Harvard Business School (founded 2003, Faculty Chair Shikhar Ghosh). The ecosystem spans $500K+ flagship pitch competitions, multiple accelerator programs, dedicated wet lab and co-working incubator space, and world-class technology transfer with $4.4B+ raised by portfolio startups.

Key Details

Central Hub: Harvard Innovation Labs (i-lab, 30K+ sq ft, Allston)
HBS Hub: Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship (Shikhar Ghosh, Thara Pillai)
3 Physical Labs: Student i-lab, Launch Lab (alumni), Pagliuca Life Lab (wet lab)
Flagship Pitch Comp: President's Innovation Challenge ($500K+)
HBS Pitch Comp: New Venture Competition ($210K)
Alumni Accelerator: Launch Lab X (8-month online, no equity)
Climate Program: Climate Entrepreneurs Circle (65+ ventures)
Social Impact: Navab Social Impact Fellowship ($4K-$15K grants)
Tech Transfer: OTD (102 startups/5 years, 900+ licenses, $4.4B raised)
Life Sciences Gap Fund: Blavatnik Biomedical Accelerator (up to $400K)
Engineering Gap Fund: Harvard Grid Accelerator (19 startups, $468M raised)
Key People: Jill Kravetz (i-lab Exec Dir), Shikhar Ghosh (Rock Center Chair), Thara Pillai (Rock Center Dir), Isaac Kohlberg (OTD 2006-2026)
Address: 125 Western Ave, Allston, MA (i-lab); Soldiers Field, Boston, MA (HBS)

Assessment

Tier 1 (high confidence) — World-class comprehensive entrepreneurship ecosystem. Harvard Innovation Labs provide exceptional physical infrastructure (30K sq ft co-working for students, alumni Launch Lab, Pagliuca Life Lab wet lab). Multiple non-dilutive funding sources through President's Innovation Challenge ($500K+), New Venture Competition ($210K), Rock Venture Catalyst (summer stipends), Navab Fellowship ($4K-$15K), and OTD accelerators (up to $400K). World-leading tech transfer (102 startups/5 years, $4.4B+ raised). No dedicated student-run venture fund, but the breadth and depth of programming, infrastructure, and funding across all 13 schools places Harvard firmly in Tier 1.

News & articles

11 news articles and official sources documenting entrepreneurship programs, winners, and activity at Harvard University.

11 sources

News & articles(1)

News ReleasePrimary Official

RapidSOS wins the 2015 President's Challenge

Harvard Gazette

Published 2015-04-24

Harvard Gazette

RapidSOS wins the 2015 President's Challenge

Harvard Gazette report that RapidSOS won the $70,000 grand prize in the 2015 President's Challenge at the Harvard Innovation Lab, one day after winning the $50,000 grand prize in the HBS New Venture Competition.

Read on Harvard Gazette

UndergradVC summary

Official sources(1)

Official Program PagePrimary Official

RapidSOS at Harvard Innovation Labs

Harvard Innovation Labs

Observed 2026-10-13

Harvard Innovation Labs

RapidSOS at Harvard Innovation Labs

Harvard Innovation Labs venture page for RapidSOS. It describes the company as linking life-saving data from connected devices to 911 and first responders, and records a 2015 President's Innovation Challenge grand prize. The page links the company website.

Read on Harvard Innovation Labs

UndergradVC summary

Other evidence(9)

WebsitePrimary Official

Blavatnik Biomedical Accelerator

Harvard University

Observed Tue Jun 23 2026 20:00:00 GMT-0400 (Eastern Daylight Time)

Harvard University

Blavatnik Biomedical Accelerator

--- title: Blavatnik Biomedical Accelerator source_type: website url: https://otd.harvard.edu/accelerators/blavatnik-biomedical-accelerator/ description: Gap funding for life sciences research at Harvard --- # Blavatnik Biomedical Accelerator

Read on Harvard University

UndergradVC summary

WebsitePrimary Official

Harvard Innovation Labs

Harvard University

Observed Tue Jun 23 2026 20:00:00 GMT-0400 (Eastern Daylight Time)

Harvard University

Harvard Innovation Labs

--- title: Harvard Innovation Labs source_type: website url: https://innovationlabs.harvard.edu/ description: Harvard Innovation Labs central website - ecosystem for all 13 Harvard schools, 3 labs (i-lab, Launch Lab, Life Lab) --- # Harvard Innovation Labs

Read on Harvard University

UndergradVC summary

WebsitePrimary Official

Launch Lab X

Harvard University

Observed Tue Jun 23 2026 20:00:00 GMT-0400 (Eastern Daylight Time)

Harvard University

Launch Lab X

--- title: "Launch Lab X: Harvard Alumni Accelerator" source_type: website url: https://innovationlabs.harvard.edu/labs/alumni-launch-lab/llx description: 8-month online accelerator for Harvard alumni founders --- # Launch Lab X (LLX)

Read on Harvard University

UndergradVC summary

WebsitePrimary Official

HBS New Venture Competition

Harvard University

Observed Tue Jun 23 2026 20:00:00 GMT-0400 (Eastern Daylight Time)

Harvard University

HBS New Venture Competition

--- title: HBS New Venture Competition source_type: website url: https://www.hbs.edu/newventurecompetition description: HBS annual pitch competition --- # HBS New Venture Competition (NVC)

Read on Harvard University

UndergradVC summary

WebsitePrimary Official

Harvard Office of Technology Development

Harvard University

Observed Tue Jun 23 2026 20:00:00 GMT-0400 (Eastern Daylight Time)

Harvard University

Harvard Office of Technology Development

--- title: Harvard Office of Technology Development source_type: website url: https://otd.harvard.edu/ description: Harvard's tech transfer and commercialization office --- # Harvard Office of Technology Development (OTD)

Read on Harvard University

UndergradVC summary

WebsitePrimary Official

Pagliuca Harvard Life Lab

Harvard University

Observed Tue Jun 23 2026 20:00:00 GMT-0400 (Eastern Daylight Time)

Harvard University

Pagliuca Harvard Life Lab

--- title: Pagliuca Harvard Life Lab source_type: website url: https://www.hbs.edu/about/campus-and-culture/campus-built-on-philanthropy/pagliuca-harvard-life-lab description: Wet lab incubator for life sciences/biotech startups --- # Pagliuca Harvard Life Lab

Read on Harvard University

UndergradVC summary

WebsitePrimary Official

President's Innovation Challenge

Harvard University

Observed Tue Jun 23 2026 20:00:00 GMT-0400 (Eastern Daylight Time)

Harvard University

President's Innovation Challenge

--- title: President's Innovation Challenge source_type: website url: https://innovationlabs.harvard.edu/presidents-innovation-challenge description: Harvard's flagship venture competition, $500K+ in prizes --- # President's Innovation Challenge

Read on Harvard University

UndergradVC summary

WebsitePrimary Official

Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship

Harvard University

Observed Tue Jun 23 2026 20:00:00 GMT-0400 (Eastern Daylight Time)

Harvard University

Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship

--- title: Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship source_type: website url: https://www.hbs.edu/entrepreneurship/ description: HBS entrepreneurship hub --- # Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship

Read on Harvard University

UndergradVC summary

WebsitePrimary Official

Rock Venture Catalyst

Harvard University

Observed Tue Jun 23 2026 20:00:00 GMT-0400 (Eastern Daylight Time)

Harvard University

Rock Venture Catalyst

--- title: Rock Venture Catalyst source_type: website url: https://www.hbs.edu/entrepreneurship/mba/rock-venture-catalyst description: Summer program for HBS MBAs (formerly Rock Summer Fellows) --- # Rock Venture Catalyst

Read on Harvard University

UndergradVC summary

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