IEEE Foundation

Activate: An Opportunity to Turn Your Idea Into Impact

Applications for two-year, DARPA-funded fellowships for entrepreneurial engineers open soon
27
Aug

Activate: An Opportunity to Turn Your Idea Into Impact

By Mary Catherine O’Connor

Activate partners with funders and leading research institutions—including MIT Lincoln Laboratory and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory—to support entrepreneurial engineers and scientists as they transform their innovative ideas into products. 

To date, Activate has supported 84 hard-tech innovators who have launched 57 new companies that have collectively raised more than $170M to support their work. 

Are you developing a technology that could play an important role in improving electronics performance beyond the limits of traditional scaling? Or does your innovation promise to advance microelectronic architectures, design, and materials and integration? 

The two-year fellowship provides funding, access to world-class research facilities, as well as entrepreneurial mentorship, networking, and education. Also, as a non-profit organization, Activate is solely focused on the success of its fellows and does not take equity in fellow-founded companies.

Applications for Cohort 2021 open in October.

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) provides funding for Activate’s fellows who seek to innovate the microelectronics sector. Whether choosing to embed at MIT Lincoln Laboratory or Berkeley Labs’ Cyclotron Road Division, fellows accepted into the program receive:

  • $100,000 in research grants as well as a yearly living stipend of up to $110,000, plus other benefits.
  • Access to equipment and expertise at world-class research facilities.
  • Intensive one-on-one mentorship and connections to a powerful network of advisors, industry experts & investors.

Don’t miss the chance to apply for this opportunity. Pre-apply and be sure to register for an upcoming webinar to learn more.