Harvard President’s Innovation Challenge

We are delighted to announce that today marks the opening of the application process for the annual President’s Innovation Challenge. Each year, the Harvard Innovation Labs (i-lab) hosts this exciting competition, encouraging members of our community to consider the most pressing issues facing our society and to offer solutions. Winners will receive a share of more than $500,000 in prize money, made possible by a generous gift from the Bertarelli Foundation, co-founded by Ernesto Bertarelli MBA ’93. You are invited to attend the launch party on November 10.
 
Applications for the Challenge will be accepted until December 8. Student-led teams will compete in one of three tracks: Social Impact, Health Care and Life Sciences, or Open. Two additional tracks will include select alumni and affiliate ventures from the Blavatnik Harvard Life Lab Longwood, Pagliuca Harvard Life Lab, and Launch Lab X, the i-lab’s alumni accelerator. The i-lab will provide support and guidance, including expert feedback and pitch preparation, throughout the competition.
 
For nearly four hundred years, members of the Harvard community have made important contributions in areas such as scientific discovery, breakthrough technology, education reform, and climate resilience, among many others. Since its founding in 2011, the i-lab has sought to expand on this legacy, supporting more than 20,000 innovators working on nearly 7,000 ventures. We hope that you will participate in this year’s challenge, and we look forward to hearing your boldest solutions to the world’s toughest problems.