Criteria for Applicants
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Your startup has developed a technology solution to addressing a problem that’s contributing to solutions related to the COVID-19 global pandemic. Your startup may have launched before or after the pandemic started and focuses may include:
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HealthTech and BioTech: Address and scale a range of health initiatives, including preventative/hygiene behaviors, supporting health workers, scaling telemedicine, contact tracing/containment strategies, treatment and diagnosis development.
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FinTech: Creating financial access and solutions for consumers and businesses.
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Future of Work: Adoption of artificial intelligence in the workplace, and the expansion of the workforce.
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EdTech: Alternative learning environments and tools for students, teachers, and entire school systems.
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Civic Engagement Tech: Tech solutions that improve the lives of citizens, increases public participation in improving government and infrastructure and or helps connect people to local communities, resources, and opportunities.
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Your venture must be at the prototype stage, or have already launched. You may not apply if you are only in the concept stage. Note: A prototype is an initial model built to test your product; it is not just a design or a wireframe.
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Your company must have either raised, at minimum, a seed round of at least $50K, or be generating monthly recurring revenue.
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You cannot have raised more than $5M from combined sources.
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You must have a full-time team of two or more people.
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Your startup must incorporate technology into the approach of your product, which allows the company to rapidly and massively scale in a manner that traditional, independent small businesses cannot. Please note that using tech (i.e. hosting a blog, selling products on your website, or using social media in your marketing) does not qualify as using tech to scale on a mass level nationally and globally.
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Fast growing with degrees of innovation.
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All ideas must be original work or an improvement upon an existing idea without infringements.
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You are a technical founder or you have a technical cofounder. Note: If this does not apply to you, please email us (info@womenwhotech.com) and tell us more about your setup.
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You must be a woman-led startup, defined as having at least one woman founder or cofounder on the team. Note: Women Who Tech uses an inclusive definition of “woman” and “female”, and we welcome transwomen, genderqueer women, and non-binary people who identify as gender-nonconforming, female, and/or woman. People who identify within gender identities associated within the male and/or man spectrums are asked not to apply to uplift space and access for people of genders that are historically oppressed and underfunded.
Rules for Applicants
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Your startup must be located within North America.
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Agencies or consulting businesses are not eligible unless you have created a product that fits the above criteria.
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All applications must be submitted in English, and all pitches must be given in English.
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Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis from August 5 until August 23, 2020 at 11:59 pm PT.
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Applications will only be accepted online through the application portal on Reviewr.com.
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No applicant may reach out to judges, sponsors, and/or partners in advance of the grant process advocating for their startup. Anyone who does will be disqualified. If you have any conflicts of interest, please reach out to the Women Who Tech team (info@womenwhotech.com) prior to submitting your application.
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Startups who have been awarded a grant through the Women Who Tech Startup Grants Program may not re-apply. Finalists who were not awarded a grant, and finalists of previous Women Startup Challenges are eligible to apply.
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Women Who Tech reserves the right to select and reject grant applicants at any time.
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All grant finalists are required to virtually participate in the Women Who Tech Startup Grants Program pitch series.