Future Builders Fellowship (2025)

This program brings together founders from across the U.S., empowering them to address climate challenges, health barriers, and equity gaps. Founders gain expert training, critical resources to accelerate their ventures, a one-week in-person residency in Washington, DC, and a one-week in-person residency in Atlanta.

Halcyon welcomes applications from all entrepreneurs, regardless of background or experience. We are deeply committed to fostering equity in entrepreneurship, recognizing the systemic barriers that many founders from underrepresented communities face. For example, less than 3% of venture capital funding goes to Black and Latine founders, and women founders receive just 2% annually. At Halcyon, we are proud to be part of the solution: 84% of Halcyon ventures are led or co-led by a founder of color, and 63% are led or co-led by a woman or non-binary founder. We encourage all eligible entrepreneurs to apply as we continue to build a diverse and inclusive community of innovators.

APPLY HERE

Sectors

Climate:

Solutions addressing climate mitigation, adaption, and resilience, including but not limited to:

  • Renewable energy generation and storage
  • Green building technologies
  • Climate data and analytics
  • Climate-smart agriculture and food systems
  • WaterTech
  • Blue economy

 

Health:

Solutions leveraging technology to reduce barriers to quality, affordable health care and to improve physical and mental healthcare outcomes, particularly for historically excluded populations. Sub-sectors include, but are not limited to:

  • Telemedicine, remote patient monitoring, and digital therapeutics
  • Healthcare operations
  • Health data analytics and AI
  • MedTech
  • FemTech
  • Preventative medicine
  • Health finance
  • AgeTech/Longevity Tech

 

EquityTech:

Solutions leveraging technology to increase social and financial inclusion and close equity gaps in wealth, education, and accessibility. Sub-sectors include, but are not limited to:

  • FinTech
  • Future of Work
  • Assistive Tech
  • EdTech

Eligibility

We’re looking for (for-profit) startups that are building scalable solutions that are tackling challenges related to Climate, Health, or EquityTech

  • Location: Must have operations in the U.S. or U.S. territories
  • Stage: Must have a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) that has the potential to scale. Must be working on your venture full-time. 
  • Team: 
    • Must be based in the U.S. or U.S. territories
    • May apply with up to one co-founder
    • Applicant must be the CEO and/or hold primary decision-making power
    • Must be fluent in English
    • Must be at least 21 years of age by the start of the program
  • Program Engagement: Must be able to participate in all activities and programming sessions
  • Impact: Must be developing a product and venture which contributes towards 1 or more of the UN’s 17 SDGs

In addition to eligibility, Halcyon scores each application based on 4 criteria: Impact, Scalability, Innovation, and Talent.

Program Structure

  • The cohort is selected of up to 10 ventures from across the U.S.
  • Ventures receive training in Halcyon’s methodology on product-market fit, investment readiness, and leadership  
  • The program is delivered through a hybrid modality with participants engaging in both virtual and in-person sessions:
    • A virtual kickoff meeting
    • 4 virtual program meeting days
    • 1 week in-person residency in Washington, DC
    • 1 week in-person residency in Atlanta, GA

Benefits

  • $10K in Amazon Web Services (AWS) credits
  • Additional technical support from AWS
  • $5K equity-free stipend per venture
  • Access to a world-class network of mentors and advisors
  • Bespoke training on leadership development, investment readiness, and product-market fit
  • Networking with investors and varied stakeholders
  • Workshops with legal experts
  • A global community of nearly 600 impact-driven entrepreneurs
  • And more

Timeline

  • Jan. 7, 2025: Applications open
  • Feb. 16, 2025: Applications close
  • Feb.-March 2025: Finalists invited to a virtual pitch
  • March 2025: Selected fellows will be notified
  • April 11, 2025: Virtual program kickoff
  • April 21-25, 2025: In-person residency week in Washington, DC
  • May 2025 (specific date TBA): Virtual meeting #1
  • June 2025 (specific date TBA): Virtual meeting #2
  • July 2025 (specific date TBA): Virtual meeting #3
  • Aug. 2025 (specific date TBA): Virtual meeting #4
  • Sept. 8-12, 2025: In-person residency week in Atlanta, GA

Selection Criteria

Impact

To what extent will the solution, if scaled, have a meaningful impact on society and/or the environment?

Scalability

Could this venture scale to reach hundreds of thousands or millions of users in a 5-10 year time horizon?

Innovation

Is the solution a novel approach to tackling the issue in their context?

Talent

Is the team uniquely qualified to tackle the challenges they’ve identified?

Ready to accelerate your impact with Halcyon?

Apply today